Kim Kardashian turned her California bar exam result into the final joke of a new ad.
The reality star and entrepreneur appears in a campaign for UPDATE, the canned beverage brand she co-founded. The commercial opens with Kardashian holding a mock press conference as reporters ask about her workload, her businesses and her appearance.
The ad later moves her into a glass display case, where attorney Gloria Allred walks up to the exhibit and asks whether Kardashian ever passed the bar. “No, I didn’t pass the bar,” Kardashian replies. “I raised it.”
Kardashian took the California bar exam in July 2025 after completing the state’s legal apprenticeship path. She announced in November that she had not passed but said she was still pursuing her goal of becoming a lawyer.
Gloria Allred Set Up Kardashian’s Bar Exam Joke
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The commercial begins with Kardashian standing behind a podium while reporters ask how she keeps up with her businesses, television work, family life and legal studies. “People are always asking about all of the work I’ve gotten done,” she says, using the line to nod at both her schedule and years of public speculation about cosmetic work.
When reporters ask how she keeps going, Kardashian says her energy is “just different” before introducing UPDATE. Asked why she became involved with the company, she replies, “I wasn’t aware that there was an alternative.”
The final scene places Kardashian inside a glass case beside papers and a can of the drink. Allred appears outside the case and asks, “Did she even ever pass the bar?” Kardashian answers with the campaign’s punchline.
The Ad Also Brings Back Her ‘Get Your Ass Up and Work’ Quote
Kardashian’s bar exam result is not the only older headline folded into the commercial. While she sits inside the gallery display, one visitor watches her working and says, “When she said, ‘Get your ass up and work,’ this is not what I pictured.”
The line refers to Kardashian’s 2022 Variety interview, when she told women in business to “get your ass up and work” and said it seemed like nobody wanted to work anymore. The comment drew heavy criticism, and Kardashian later apologized for how it was received.
Speaking to People about the UPDATE campaign, Kardashian said the team liked adding “fun easter eggs, some humor, and a bit of a wink.”
Kardashian Did Not Pass the July 2025 Bar Exam
Kardashian completed California’s legal apprenticeship program in May 2025, making her eligible to take the full bar exam without attending a traditional law school. California allows qualifying applicants to study under a lawyer or judge instead.
She sat for the July 2025 exam but announced months later that she had not passed. “Six years into this law journey, and I’m still all in until I pass the bar,” Kardashian wrote at the time.
The State Bar of California said 4,032 of the 7,362 applicants who completed the July 2025 General Bar Examination passed, for an overall pass rate of 54.8%.
She Previously Passed the Baby Bar on Her Fourth Try
Kardashian had already passed California’s First-Year Law Students’ Examination, commonly called the baby bar, in December 2021. She passed on her fourth attempt after documenting earlier attempts on Keeping Up With the Kardashians.
The baby bar result allowed her to continue through the apprenticeship route before taking the full bar. After her July 2025 result, Kardashian said falling short had given her more motivation to keep studying.
Her legal work has included criminal justice advocacy, clemency efforts and sentencing-reform cases. Kardashian has said her interest in law was partly inspired by her late father, attorney Robert Kardashian.