The State Bar of Arizona Revenue and Competitors

The Arizona Territory was formed in 1865, and already lawyers were practicing law in three judicial districts. In 1895, the first statewide bar association was created and lawyers held regular Bar meetings. In 1902, the Bar raised membership dues from $1 to $5. The Bar also led the rewriting of a civil code for the Territory that year and in 1904 strongly promoted the admission of Arizona and New Mexico as one state into the Union. Arizona became the 48th state in 1912. The Arizona Bar Association was first incorporated in 1906 and in 1912 it adopted the ethical rules of the American Bar Association and began official admission procedures for the practice of law. The University of Arizona College of Law was created in 1925 to expand upon what had previously only been a department of study. The State Bar of Arizona was created as an integrated or "mandatory membership" organization in 1933 by an act of Legislature to serve the legal profession and the public. At that time 654 attorneys and 22 judges worked in the state and only 175 belonged to the voluntary Arizona Bar Association. The State Bar has held annual conventions since 1933, except for 1945 during World War II.