Sophia Park, a 17-year-old prodigy, has become the youngest person to pass the California bar exam, beating a record previously held by her older brother, Peter Park.
Sophia passed the exam on Nov. 8 at just 17 years and 8 months old, breaking her brother's record set last year at 17 years and 11 months. She will join her brother at the Tulare County district attorney's office in California.
Sophia described the bar exam as manageable but demanding. "I don't think it was extremely difficult," she told Your Central Valley. "But I do think there was difficulty in how much you had to put into your brain in a limited period of time."
Her legal journey began early, a press release detailed. After a sixth-grade career survey suggested she consider law, Sophia enrolled in the Northwestern California University School of Law at age 13. Balancing legal studies with high school, she passed the California High School Proficiency Exam during her freshman year to focus entirely on law school.
Sophia graduated from law school in 2024 and has worked as a law clerk at the Tulare County district attorney's office, where she plans to begin her career as a prosecutor in March 2025 -- once she's 18 and meets the age requirement to become a licensed attorney.
"I wanted to work for the prosecution," she told the Sun-Gazette, "because I like the idea that I get to represent the people of the state of California, keep our community safe, and make sure that justice is served."
The legal profession appears to run in the Park family. Sophia's younger sister, currently 14 and in her second year of law school, may soon challenge her record. Meanwhile, the family's youngest sibling, an 8-year-old aspiring lawyer, dressed as an attorney for Halloween.
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