Key facts
- White House press secretary Katie Zacharia stated she passed a bar exam "when I moved to China."
- Searches of all 50 U.S. states and Washington D.C. reportedly found no evidence of Zacharia being licensed to practice law.
- Zacharia does not appear in the State Bar of California's or the D.C. Bar's directories.
- Zacharia received a law degree from Pepperdine University's Caruso School of Law in 2011.
Newly appointed White House press secretary Katie Zacharia is facing scrutiny regarding her legal qualifications after stating she passed a bar exam "when I moved to China." The response, given when President Donald Trump was asked by a reporter where Zacharia had passed the bar, has added to confusion about her licensure.
State bar exams are typically administered in person within the U.S. jurisdiction. Popular Information reported that searches of records in all 50 states and Washington D.C. turned up no evidence of Zacharia being licensed to practice law. She also does not appear in the State Bar of California's attorney database or the D.C. Bar's member directory, despite living and working in California.
Zacharia graduated from Pepperdine University in 2007 with a bachelor's degree and received a law degree from its Caruso School of Law in 2011. Her LinkedIn profile indicates she served as general counsel for the nonprofit Fix California from January 2024 to March 2025 and previously worked as an associate at the Beijing-headquartered Zhong Lun Law Firm.