It is with pride and a heavy heart that I present you with these guides. Pride because over the past few years the law school application guide has become an invaluable resource for applicants of color. And a heavy heart because it is the product of desperation.

Since the passage and implementation of Proposition 209 in California, the number of students of color being admitted to institutions of higher learning has plummeted. Nowhere is this more keenly evidenced than in California's public law schools.

With this in mind, in 2000, I embarked on a journey to create a comprehensive guide, from a non-majority perspective, that would empower students by informing them about the law school admissions process. Later, several law students asked me to write a guide to the bar examination. I invite you to use these guides and urge you to inform others about their availability on this website.

Finally, I would like to thank you for taking this bold step in your life. Although some may deny the beauty and significance of your accomplishments, those of us dedicated to creating a rich, meaningful, and just society refuse to do the same.

Anthony Solana, Jr., Esq.
President & Chairperson

 Arnold Barba, Esq.

Arnold Barba is an attorney with the law firm of Lim, Ruger & Kim, LLP and concentrates his practice on insurance recovery and complex civil litigation and real estate matters. He has extensive experience representing large corporate clients in complex, commercial litigation matters in federal and various state jurisdictions, as well as indigent pro bono clients in federal civil rights actions. He is an an adjunct faculty member at Pepperdine Law School, where he teaches civil trial preparation and Settlement.  Mr. Barba’s successful alternative dispute resolution and trial practice has included matters in antitrust, constitutional, contract, federal transportation, financial services, intellectual property, real estate, securities, tort, and unfair competition law.  

Mr. Barba earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science with an emphasis in Political Theory from the University of California Los Angeles School of Letters and Sciences in 1994 and earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of California Los Angeles School of Law in 1998.

Before attending law school, Mr. Barba served in the United States Marine Corps Reserve from 1989 to 1995 with the Fifth Battalion, Fourteenth Marines. He was decorated with the Navy Achievement Medal in 1994 for his efforts in ensuring the daily supply of adequate food, water and ice by helicopter and ground support to more than 600 marines in seven forward artillery batteries deployed in the Lava and Blacktop Ranges of Twentynine Palms, California, where daily temperatures exceeded 120°F during a fourteen day training period.

Mr. Barba enjoys the study of Judeo-Christian theology and scripture, political and moral philosophy, and natural law jurisprudence. He writes poetry and other forms of literature. He is currently at work on a manuscript concerning the Trinity, Eternal Law, and their implications for man.  Mr. Barba is married to his law school sweetheart, Claudia Barba, and is the proud father to three beautiful little girls, Natalia and twins Gabriela and Sofia.