The Supreme Court of Texas convened a ceremonial session to admit new members of the State Bar of Texas, present awards recognizing pro bono service and law school commitment to service, and administer the lawyer's oath. Steve Binish of the Texas Board of Law Examiners certified the list of successful July 2025 examinees before Chief Justice Jimmy Blacklock led the oath.

The ceremony included presentations by Justice Brett Busby on behalf of the Supreme Court and the Texas Access to Justice Commission. Two law students received the Law Student Pro Bono Award: Brandon Yim of Texas A&M University School of Law, who the court said contributed nearly 1,000 hours to clinics, externships and nonprofit work, and McKenna McGraw of the University of Texas School of Law, credited with about 275 hours of pro bono service across asylum, parole, wills, guardianship, juvenile lifer and capital mitigation projects. "Please join me in applauding McKenna McGraw, winner of the Texas Access to Justice Commission's Law Student Pro Bono Award," Busby said.

The court also presented the Law School Commitment to Service Award to South Texas College of Law Houston. Justice Busby said the school's Randall O. Sorrells legal clinics have, in a typical year, students providing more than 35,000 hours of legal services (a figure the court said is valued at roughly $2,000,000). Busby said that in the past year 172 South Texas students contributed thousands of pro bono hours that directly impacted nearly 2,000 people, with more than 700 cases closed and more than 150 mediations conducted. Ray Valencia, president and dean of South Texas College of Law, was invited to accept the award.

Santos Vargas, president of the State Bar of Texas, welcomed the newly licensed attorneys and urged them to seek mentors and to contribute to closing the justice gap for low-income Texans. Vargas listed State Bar resources available to new lawyers, including free legal research tools, an ethics helpline, a career center, a lawyer referral service, a law-practice AI toolkit and a free month of online counseling through BetterHelp. "Help is always available, and it's always okay to ask for help," Vargas said.

Allison Martinez, president of the Texas Young Lawyers Association (TYLA), addressed new attorneys on TYLA membership and resources for lawyers with 12 or fewer years of practice, including wellness initiatives and practice guides.

The ceremony recognized high scorers on the July 2025 Texas Bar Examination. The court named Cameron Lindsay (New York University), Haris Siddiqui (Stanford), and a tie for highest score between Katie Grace Frisby (Duke University School of Law) and Michael Cooper (Texas A&M University School of Law). Frisby and Cooper each offered brief remarks to the audience. Cooper said new lawyers should aim "to be good colleagues," "to be eager mentors," and "to be willing helpers," and described lawyers as persons who can "stand in the gap" for those in need.

After Binish formally certified the successful examinees, Chief Justice Jimmy Blacklock administered the lawyer's oath and charged the new attorneys with duties to the courts, to clients and to the constitutions of the United States and of Texas. Blacklock led the oath with the phrase "I, Jimmy Blacklock, do solemnly swear" and asked each new lawyer to repeat the oath aloud. Following the oath, the court directed attendees to a reception and adjourned the session.

The ceremony was largely ceremonial and did not include votes or policy actions. It combined recognition of pro bono service, remarks on professional responsibility and resources, and the formal admission of new attorneys to the State Bar of Texas.