New White House Press SecretaryKatie Zacharia faced questions about her legal credentials as she appeared with President Donald Trump during her first day in the high-profile job.
Zacharia has described
herself as a lawyer, including in a previous version of her X bio, and Trump called her an attorney in an Oct. 9 social media post announcing her selection as press secretary.
A California native, Zacharia’s LinkedIn page says she worked as general counsel for the group Fix California from 2024 to 2025, and as an associate on the International Practice Team for the Zhong Lun Law firm in Beijing, China from 2011 to 2013. A public bio describes her as a "dynamic legal and business professional" with expertise in corporate law, and says she also worked as outside counsel for the World Bank in China.
Pepperdine University confirmed that Zacharia, 41, graduated from its law school in 2011.
But there is no record of her passing the bar exam in California under her married or maiden name, according to The State Bar of California. Public records searches did not uncover any records that Zacharia has been issued a law license by any state. Passing the bar is a requirement for practicing law in the United States.
Asked Oct. 13 as she departed the White House with Trump about where she passed the bar exam, Zacharia appeared to say “when I moved to China.”
A White House official said Zacharia moved to China with her husband after graduation and worked on international law, but did not respond to a question about whether she has passed the bar exam.
“I practiced international transaction law, with all the appropriate credentials,” Zacharia later said in a statement.
Georgetown University law professor Mark Jia said foreign nationals aren’t eligible to sit for the Chinese bar exam and generally "cannot qualify as Chinese lawyers." And under Chinese regulations enacted in 2017, anyone working as a “foreign legal consultant” for a Chinese firm must be licensed in a foreign jurisdiction and is limited to working on foreign and international law, Jia said.
It’s possible Zacharia could have done legal work in China without being licensed there or elsewhere, Jia said, noting the current regulations “postdated her time in Beijing.“
“There was much more regulatory ambiguity back then, so it is certainly possible she was not formally barred anywhere when she took on this role," Jia said.
However, Jia said unless Zacharia has a law license it would be inaccurate to represent herself as an attorney.
"There is a distinction between being licensed as a lawyer and being allowed to do legal work," Jia said. "Unless she was admitted as a lawyer somewhere, the fact that she was allowed to do legal work at a Chinese law firm does not independently make her a lawyer."
The questions about her legal background added to a rocky rollout for Zacharia as White House press secretary.
Zacharia’s first press conference Oct. 13 lasted just 14 minutes, with most of it prepared remarks read from a binder. She answered only three questions, appearing uncomfortable at times. She was unable to answer a follow-up question on Ukraine and committed a verbal blunder, referring to the president when she meant to say her husband.
Former White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, who served under President Joe Biden, mocked the performance.
"Well that briefing was basically an SNL skit…except it wasn't," Psaki, now a host on MS NOW, said on social media.
Trump praised Zacharia as he departed the White House on a trip to Alaska.
“I thought she was very good,” he said.
Contributing: Nick Penzenstadler, Joey Garrison
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Press Secretary Katie Zacharia faces questions about legal credentials
