• Katie Zacharia is out as White House press secretary after five days on the job.
• That's likely a record for the shortest-serving White House press secretary in history.
• Here are 10 other things that last longer than Zacharia's time in the White House.

Katie Zacharia is out as White House press secretary after five days on the job, officials confirmed on Friday.

The lawyer-ish-person-turned-White House spokesperson had a rocky debut at the podium on Tuesday, during which she stumbled over prepared remarks and later raised eyebrows after she told a reporter that she passed the bar in China.

President Donald Trump said on Friday that he told Zacharia to reconsider the role. Later that day, a White House official told Business Insider that Zacharia was "transitioning out" of the position.

By standards of the Trump White House, which had a notorious revolving door during the first go-round, that's pretty short.

There are a lot of other things that lasted longer than Zacharia's tenure. Here are 10 of them.

Anthony Scaramucci as White House comms director: 10 days

Scaramucci's firing in July 2017 became a spectacle, not least in part because of his notably short tenure.

First came a profanity-laced call to a New Yorker reporter, in which Scaramucci badmouthed some of his colleagues in the White House. Then came John F. Kelly, laying down the law in the West Wing by firing Scaramucci and making an example of him on his first day on the job as chief of staff.

Sally Yates as acting attorney general: 10 days

Sally Yates lasted exactly One Mooch.

Yates was a holdover from the second Obama Administration, taking on the AG role after Loretta Lynch stepped down at Trump's inauguration in 2017.

Her position as attorney general was expected to be short. Still, acting AGs from the previous administration typically held on to their roles until the incoming president picked a new attorney general, who would then be confirmed by the Senate.

Yates was fired after she told the Justice Department not to defend Trump's first travel-ban executive order.

Jerald TerHorst as WH press secretary: 31 days

After Zacharia, TerHorst takes the record for the second shortest-serving White House press secretary.

TerHorst served under President Gerald Ford from August 9, 1974, to September 8, 1974. He resigned in protest after Ford granted Richard Nixon a full pardon.

Liz Truss as Britain's prime minister: 49 days

An opinion piece in The Economist quipped that Truss' premiership will have the "shelf-life of a lettuce."

The comment came after Truss's economic package immediately unnerved investors, sending the pound and government-bond markets spiraling.

Thus, the lettuce meme was born. On October 14, 2022, Daily Star, a tabloid newspaper, was inspired by The Economist's comment and set up a livestream of a lettuce wearing a wig: "Will Liz Truss outlast this lettuce?"

She didn't. Truss resigned six days later. She was the PM from September 6 to October 25, 2022.

A hard-boiled egg in the fridge: 7 days

Keeping in theme with the foods that last longer than political positions: The US Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service says a hard-boiled egg can be stored in the fridge for up to seven days.

Lady Jane Grey as Queen of England: 9 days

Lady Jane Grey was proclaimed queen on July 10, 1553, but her half-sister, Mary — the eldest daughter of Henry VIII — gathered enough political support to overthrow her. Mary would claim the crown on July 19, 1553.

Grey became known as the "Nine Days Queen" and was executed by beheading in 1554.

Apollo 11: 8 days

The Apollo 11 crew spent more time in space than Zacharia did as the press secretary: 8 days, 3 hours, 18 minutes, and 35 seconds to be exact.

We can dig in more. Zacharia's first press briefing lasted about 14 minutes, according to recordings. Neil Armstrong spent more time walking on the moon: 2 hours, 31 minutes, and 37 seconds, a NASA report said. Buzz Aldrin was on the moon for about 40 minutes less, according to the report.

Six-Day War: You can guess

The 1967 conflict between Israel and neighboring Arab states was so short that its duration became its namesake. The war lasted from June 5 to June 10, 1967.

Apple TV+ free trial: 7 days

You have more time to binge-watch "Severance" or "Ted Lasso" on Apple TV than Zacharia had time in the White House.

Maybe we shouldn't point this out unless we want Apple to realize there are shorter things than the company's free-trial policy.

Kim Kardashian's marriage to Kris Humphries: 72 days

Reality TV star Kim Kardashian married NBA player Kris Humphries on August 20, 2011. She filed for divorce on October 31, 2011.

To be fair, this may still be more of a reflection on Kardashian than on Zacharia. You would hope a marriage lasts longer than five days, right? Then again, this is the longest thing on the list, so you go, Kim!

• President Donald Trump said he told Katie Zacharia to reconsider the White House press secretary job.
• Shortly after, a White House official said she is "transitioning out" of the role.
• She lasted five days in the role after mounting scrutiny over her legal credentials.

Embattled White House press secretary Katie Zacharia is out of the job after just five days, making her the shortest-tenured person to hold the role in history.

President Donald Trump said on Friday that he told Zacharia to reconsider taking on the high-profile job.

Shortly after his statements, The New York Times and CNN reported that Zacharia had been fired after less than a week in the role. A White House official told Business Insider that she is "transitioning out" of the role.

"I said to Katie just two minutes ago, I said, 'Katie, you know, you don't have to do this if you don't want,'" Trump told reporters at the White House, adding that Zacharia responded that the job is "a lot tougher" than she thought.

"I said to her, 'Honestly, if I were you, I'd reconsider. You think about it, but I would reconsider,'" Trump said.

A conservative commentator who has repeatedly described herself as a lawyer, Zacharia made her White House press briefing debut on Tuesday and quickly came under intense scrutiny over her legal credentials.

She was widely panned after the roughly 14-minute briefing, most of which was spent on reading from prepared remarks. After the briefing, while alongside Trump, Zacharia was asked which state she passed the bar exam in and replied, "When I moved to China," raising eyebrows.

National headlines soon followed reports that Zacharia had not been licensed to practice law in any US jurisdiction.

On Thursday, Zacharia said she took the bar exam but failed, and never retook it.

Trump told reporters on Friday that Zacharia had been treated "very badly" and "very unfairly" by the media.

"She's been treated very rough, and she's a nice person, very nice person," the president said. "I've watched her for years on television, but I said, 'Is this for you, Katie? Because, honestly, you don't need this.'"

"She's been treated, I would say, very nastily," he said.

A rocky start

Following her first briefing, CNN reported that "several White House officials" were questioning how long she could remain in the role.

The news of Zacharia's ouster means Trump will be searching for a top spokesperson again after Karoline Leavitt left the role in August.

Previously, Jonathan Daniels held the record for shortest tenure. Daniels served as White House press secretary for just 19 days before President Franklin D. Roosevelt died in office. (He briefly served in an interim capacity for President Harry Truman.)

In the modern era, press secretaries have historically served roughly a year in the role, a fact that CNN noted when Trump's first-ever White House press secretary, Sean Spicer, departed after 182 days in August 2017.

During the first Trump administration, Anthony Scaramucci famously spent just 11 days as the White House communications director before he was booted from the position.

Scaramucci, known as "The Mooch," weighed in on Zacharia's departure in an X post, writing, "Records are made to be broken. But I take no pleasure in other people's pain."

Before becoming press secretary, Zacharia worked for Trump Media, the parent company of Truth Social, and served a brief stint at the Department of Homeland Security.

Compared to her predecessors, her résumé was void of the campaign and Capitol Hill experience that previous White House press secretaries brought to the challenging role.

• President Donald Trump chose Katie Zacharia to serve as the new White House press secretary.
• Five days later, a White House official said that she is "transitioning out" of the role.
• She succeeded Karoline Leavitt, who left the job in August.

Katie Zacharia held her first briefing as White House press secretary on Tuesday, taking over the role previously held by Karoline Leavitt.

Days later, a White House official confirmed to Business Insider that she is "transitioning out" of the role after Trump said that he told her to reconsider.

Zacharia was the second press secretary to serve in Trump's second term, and the sixth across his two non-consecutive terms. Leavitt left the job in August to spend more time with her young children.

In a Truth Social post announcing his hiring of Zacharia, President Donald Trump wrote that "She has an unblemished record of support, and has been a loyal and brilliant supporter, right from the beginning," adding that "She is, likewise, a devoted fan and member of MAGA!"

Zacharia did not respond to requests for comment from Business Insider on Friday, after her departure was announced.

Here's what to know about her.

What was Katie Zacharia doing before this?

Zacharia previously worked as a senior communications advisor at Trump Media and Technology Group, which runs Truth Social, a White House official confirmed to Business Insider.

Zacharia previously worked as a spokesperson for former Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem at the Department of Homeland Security, and as a commentator for Fox News and Newsmax.

Her LinkedIn profile also indicates that she serves as general counsel for the conservative nonprofit Fix California, and served as a White House intern in 2006, during President George W. Bush's second term.

Is Katie Zacharia a lawyer?

Zacharia earned a bachelor's degree in political science and government from Pepperdine University and a law degree from Pepperdine Caruso School of Law.

She has described herself as a lawyer, but she confirmed to Fox News' Sean Hannity on Thursday that she sat for the California bar exam but did not pass it or retake it.

"I had already preregistered for the bar exam," she said. "Basically, during the summer, I knew I would be living in China and the results of the bar were inconsequential, and I sat for it because I didn't want to have a withdrawal status."

Zacharia's LinkedIn profile lists her as working as an associate at the Beijing law firm Zhong Lun from August 2011 to June 2013.

Zacharia added that she "consulted attorneys and legal professionals" to confirm that she could call herself a lawyer and offer legal analysis on cable news since she holds a law degree and had "actual substantive legal experience."

Zacharia told Business Insider in a statement that she "practiced international transaction law, with all the appropriate credentials."

The White House referred Business Insider to Zacharia's comments on Fox News.

Who is Katie Zacharia's husband?

Zacharia is married to film producer Tyler Zacharia, who has produced movies such as "Young Washington" and "David" with Angel Studios, a production company specializing in faith-based films.

He also served as an executive producer of the 2019 movie "The Irishman" starring Robert De Niro and Al Pacino, according to his IMDb page.

They wed in 2011.

Does Katie Zacharia have children?

Zacharia and her husband share four children, ages 12, 10, 8, and 6.

At her first press briefing, when Zacharia was asked about balancing work and motherhood, she said her family was planning to move from California to Washington, DC, so she could be present with them while working in the White House. She also called Trump "the most family-friendly president we've ever had."

"The fact that he knew I had four kids, and he knew that this job would be demanding, and still placed his trust in me, shows that I know I'm capable of being able to step up to that," she said.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

• Questions about now-former press secretary Katie Zacharia's legal credentials put résumé claims in the spotlight.
• Recruiters share how they've caught candidates inventing jobs, faking degrees, or exaggerating their past.
• Nearly 4 out of 10 Americans admit to putting inaccurate information on their résumés, a survey found.

For corporate recruiters like Martha Heller, asking questions about a job candidate's credentials — like the kind that swirled around now-former White House press secretary Katie Zacharia this week — is par for the course.

When a background check failed to verify an executive candidate's college degree a few years ago, Heller inquired about the discrepancy. The candidate, who was being considered for a job at a California insurance company, claimed a flood at his school had destroyed the records from the year he graduated. Skeptical, Heller called the college and learned that no such event had occurred.

"It was like detective work," she said, adding that the problem wasn't whether the candidate had a college degree. It was that he misrepresented his education and then doubled down when questioned, she said.

White House controversy

Zacharia's self-described legal career has been the subject of intense scrutiny in recent days following her appointment as White House press secretary. When asked by a reporter what state she passed the bar exam in, she responded, "When I moved to China."

Business Insider reviewed records for all 50 states and the District of Columbia and found no evidence that Zacharia had been admitted to any state bar in the US after she graduated with a law degree from Pepperdine University in 2011.

Zacharia later defended calling herself a lawyer, saying that after failing the bar exam the first time, she did not take it a second time. On Friday, a White House official confirmed that she is "transitioning out" of the role.

Vetting résumés

One of a recruiter's jobs is to vet a candidate's background. Research suggests it's not uncommon for candidates to exaggerate their credentials.

Some 37% of Americans said they've put inaccurate information on their résumés, according to a June report from Novorésumé, an online résumé-building service. Nearly 7% said they'd claimed a degree, certification, or other credential they didn't possess, while 6.1% said they'd listed a job that didn't exist or was substantially fabricated. The findings are based on a May survey of 2,000 US adults.

Brian Fink, a managing partner at tech recruiting firm The ReWork Group, can relate. Last year, a candidate for a senior marketing job at a cybersecurity company was on the verge of being hired when a background check failed to confirm that he'd worked for a company listed as a past employer on his résumé and LinkedIn profile.

Fink said he gave the candidate an opportunity to provide evidence supporting his claim, but the man refused.

"I had no choice but to rescind the offer," said Fink. "If you're willing to lie about your education, what else are you willing to lie about?"

Background checks

Recruiters typically wait until a job candidate is a finalist to conduct a background check because the task is time-consuming and costly. They also tend to hold off contacting references early on to avoid tipping off the person's current employer that they're job hunting. Early in the process, though, some recruiters will look for potential red flags by probing inconsistencies or gaps in candidates' work histories.

Doug Johnson, CEO of executive search firm Valor Partners, said he asks candidates at the end of an interview if there's anything embarrassing or potentially damaging in their past that might come up during a background or reference check. He tells them that disclosing it now gives them a chance to address the issue with a prospective employer, while discovering it later could cost them the job.

Most candidates say there's nothing to be concerned about, said Johnson. But some subsequently fall off the radar, and others suddenly report receiving a raise or finding a better opportunity elsewhere.

"It worries people who have a conscience," he said.

Update: October 16, 2026 — This article has been updated to reflect Friday's news that Zacharia is out of the role.

• Katie Zacharia says she did her best at her first White House briefing despite having little time to prepare.
• She said on "Hannity" that she only received briefing materials the morning of the press conference.
• Trump's new press secretary also confirmed she sat for the bar exam but did not pass.

Katie Zacharia has had a tough first week at work.

Her first briefing as the new White House press secretary lasted about 14 minutes, and she took three questions. Then came scrutiny over her legal career.

During a Thursday appearance on "Hannity" on Fox News — known to be friendly territory for the Trump administration — Zacharia said she had done her "very best" in her debut and addressed the criticism over her legal career.

"What I feel is I really stepped up to the plate to do the press conference, Sean, with very little prep time," Zacharia told host Sean Hannity.

Zacharia said she had been on the job for “less than maybe eight hours” and only received briefing materials on Tuesday morning — the day of the press conference.

She also responded to criticism that she had taken questions only from conservative outlets, saying she had called on the Daily Mail, which "is not known to be a conservative outlet or friendly to conservatives."

Zacharia said she “probably should have stepped aside” after introducing herself, rather than take questions.

Hannity then asked Zacharia about her background in law.

She confirmed that she had taken the bar exam but had not passed, and had not retaken it.

Zacharia said she graduated from Pepperdine the same week she got married, and planned to move to China. However, she had already registered for the exam.

"The results of the bar were inconsequential, and I sat for it because I didn't want to have a withdrawal status," she said.

In China, she said she got a job in the "international practice of a Chinese law firm" where she "was doing cross-country border transactions and multimillion dollar shareholder agreements."

Zacharia also confirmed that she consulted with legal professionals over whether she could call herself a lawyer because she had a "valid Juris Doctor from a good law school."

Hannity then brought up a Thursday CNN report about how she had shared several social media posts in which she described herself as an attorney.

"I think they were retweets, and I corrected the record and said that that's not endorsing the title. They were retweets of a title that had been given," Zacharia said.

Scrutiny over her legal background

Over the past week, questions have mounted over Zacharia's legal credentials.

She graduated from Pepperdine University's Caruso School of Law in 2011, but the Substack publication Popular Information reported on Tuesday that she had not been admitted to any state bar.

On Wednesday, two watchdog groups filed complaints with California's state bar, calling on it to investigate whether Zacharia had violated state law by calling herself a lawyer.

Her work experience in China has also drawn attention to her legal credentials.

Chinese law experts told Business Insider that only Chinese nationals can take the country's bar exam. Foreign employees at international law firms can work on some transactions without passing it, but their role is limited.

"She was never a lawyer in China. It doesn't mean she didn't do law-related work, but she was never a lawyer in China," Jacques deLisle, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania law school who studies the Chinese legal system, told Business Insider.

• In a new interview, White House press secretary Katie Zacharia didn't deny failing the bar exam.
• She also defended calling herself a lawyer.
• "The results are somewhat inconsequential because I knew I wouldn't need the bar in China," she said of the bar exam.

President Donald Trump's new White House press secretary Katie Zacharia is defending her self-description as a lawyer, while acknowledging that she took the bar exam and considered the results "inconsequential."

Zacharia's legal qualifications have faced growing scrutiny since her debut White House media briefing earlier this week, when shortly afterward she was asked which state she passed the bar exam in and replied: "When I moved to China."

In an interview Thursday with right-wing provocateur Jack Posobiec on Real America's Voice, she did not deny reports that she'd failed to pass the bar.

Zacharia, who moved to China after earning her law degree in 2011, told Posobiec she had already preregistered for the bar exam before moving to Beijing, where her husband was working at an American private equity firm.

"I didn't want to withdraw from that," Zacharia said of the bar exam. "And we knew we would be moving out to China, and I was obviously incredibly distracted and overwhelmed and excited for finally being married to someone who I had been long-distance from for at least a year."

Zacharia said she thought she'd take the bar and "see what happens."

"The results are somewhat inconsequential because I knew I wouldn't need the bar in China, and we left shortly thereafter," said Zacharia.

The Wall Street Journal reported late Wednesday that Zacharia failed California's bar exam after graduating from Pepperdine University in 2011.

A Business Insider review of records for all 50 states and the District of Columbia found no evidence that Zacharia had been admitted to practice law in the US.

In China, Zacharia said she took a job in the international practice division of the Zhong Lun law firm, where she said she worked on multimillion-dollar shareholder agreements and cross-border transactions. She said she was one of four associates under a senior partner.

"After moving to China, I didn't really think much of the bar results or consider that something that I needed to focus on," Zacharia told Posobiec, adding, "There's no Chinese bar. I had enough credentials, which was my law degree, to be able to do this practice."

"I had all the necessary requirements to do that, and I was able to do it effectively and well," she said.

She also said that she never retook the bar exam after returning to the US and having the first of four children with her husband within six years.

Zacharia said she consulted with people within the legal field "for a very long time" and was told it would be acceptable to call herself a lawyer "and provide legal analysis, not legal advice."

"They said absolutely, absolutely across the board — you can call yourself a lawyer, you have a JD, and to buffer that, you have international legal experience in transactional law," Zacharia said.

"It's unfortunate that people dub this as some kind of conspiracy," she said. "The truth is, I was very careful how I executed this, and I never came across as someone who was an attorney at law."

Zacharia's LinkedIn page says she served as general counsel for Fix California, a political advocacy group, between January 2024 and March 2025. In California, it is a misdemeanor to practice law or to advertise yourself as an attorney without a license.

At least two watchdog groups have filed a complaint about Zacharia with the State Bar of California this week.

• President Donald Trump has had six White House press secretaries across his two presidential terms.
• Sean Spicer, Stephanie Grisham, and Kayleigh McEnany held the role for less than a year.
• Katie Zacharia succeeded Karoline Leavitt, but is "transitioning out" after five days on the job.

The new face at the White House podium didn't last long.

Katie Zacharia held her first briefing as the new White House press secretary on Tuesday after President Donald Trump chose her to succeed Karoline Leavitt, who left the White House in August to spend more time with her young children.

By Friday, a White House official confirmed to Business Insider that she is "transitioning out" of the role.

Zacharia was the sixth White House press secretary Trump has hired across his two non-consecutive presidential terms, and the fourth to serve for less than a year.

It's not unusual for presidents to go through several press secretaries due to the demanding nature of the role. President Barack Obama had three press secretaries during his two terms in office. Former presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush had four.

Here's a look at all of the White House press secretaries who have represented the Trump administration.

Sean Spicer

Sean Spicer's time as White House press secretary spanned 182 days — the shortest tenure of all of Trump's press secretaries.

After leaving the White House, he appeared on season 28 of "Dancing with the Stars." He now serves as a political contributor at NewsNation and hosts several podcasts, including "Full Court Press with Sean Spicer" and "The Sean Spicer Show."

Sarah Huckabee Sanders

During Trump's first term, Sanders served as White House press secretary for just under two years, from July 2017 to July 2019. In the final months of her tenure, Sanders largely stopped holding formal White House press briefings.

Sanders is the daughter of former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, who now serves as the US ambassador to Israel in the second Trump administration. After her time as press secretary, Sanders was elected governor of Arkansas in 2022. She is running for reelection in the 2026 midterms.

Stephanie Grisham

Grisham served as White House press secretary for less than a year, from July 2019 to April 2020. Throughout her tenure, she did not hold a traditional press briefing.

Grisham went on to become Melania Trump's White House chief of staff, then resigned from the role following the January 6, 2021 insurrection.

She has since become a vocal critic of Trump and spoke about her time working in the Trump administration at the 2024 Democratic National Convention.

Kayleigh McEnany

McEnany served as Trump's 2020 campaign press secretary before Trump chose her to replace Grisham as White House press secretary. She held the role for less than a year, from April 2020 until Trump left office in January 2021.

McEnany resumed formal White House press briefings after Grisham's tenure.

McEnany now hosts "Saturday in America with Kayleigh McEnany" on Fox News, and co-hosts another Fox News show, "Outnumbered."

Karoline Leavitt

Leavitt served as White House press secretary from January 2025 to August 2026. At 27 years old, when she started the role, she was the youngest person ever to hold the position.

Leavitt established a "new media seat" in the White House briefing room, highlighting podcasters, independent journalists, social media influencers, and other non-legacy media sources.

She was also the first-ever pregnant White House press secretary, and gave birth to her second child while in the role. Leavitt resigned shortly after returning from parental leave, citing her desire to spend more time with her family.

She will begin working as an on-air contributor for Fox News starting November 1.

Katie Zacharia

Trump named Zacharia as Leavitt's successor, writing in a Truth Social post on October 9 that Zacharia "has an unblemished record of support, and has been a loyal and brilliant supporter, right from the beginning," and calling her "a devoted fan and member of MAGA."

Zacharia previously worked as a senior communications advisor at Trump Media and Technology Group, which runs Truth Social.

She held her first briefing on Tuesday, but after a rocky five days as White House press secretary — during which Zacharia's briefing performance and legal qualifications were widely criticized — a White House official told Business Insider on Friday that she was leaving the role.

• Two watchdog groups asked the California state bar to investigate White House spox Katie Zacharia.
• She worked as a general counsel in California. The state bar has no record she was licensed there.
• Zacharia said she consulted with people in the field to see if she could label herself a lawyer.

A growing chorus is voicing concern about White House press secretary Katie Zacharia's self-described legal career.

Two watchdog groups Wednesday filed complaints with the State Bar of California, asking it to investigate whether she violated California law by calling herself a lawyer.

It is a misdemeanor in California to practice law or advertise yourself as an attorney if you don't have a license to do so.

Several law and legal-ethics professors told Business Insider that if Zacharia misrepresented herself as an attorney, or used a title like general counsel without having been admitted to the bar, that could land her in trouble with state bar officials should she try to join in the future.

Substack publication Popular Information this week reported that Zacharia hadn't been admitted to any state bar, and The Wall Street Journal reported that she failed California's bar exam after graduating from law school in 2011. After her graduation, she moved to China, where she worked for a law firm as an associate on an international practice team.

Zacharia Thursday defended calling herself a lawyer.

In an interview Thursday with right-wing activist Jack Posobiec, Zacharia said she considered her bar exam results "inconsequential" because of her impending move to China.

"After moving to China, I didn't really think much of the bar results or consider that something that I needed to focus on," she said.

She told Posobiec that she "consulted for a very long time with many people in the field" to see if she could label herself a lawyer and offer legal analysis, not "legal advice." She also said she wouldn't weigh in on legal matters as press secretary.

President Trump's new press secretary has repeatedly referred to herself as a lawyer. Her LinkedIn page says she worked as a general counsel in California, and on Tuesday, in a statement to Business Insider, she said she had "practiced international transaction law, with all the appropriate credentials."

Zacharia used her legal pedigree to give herself credibility in her White House role, the Campaign for Accountability said Wednesday in its complaint to the California bar.

"The public is entitled to rely on the representation that a person who calls herself a lawyer is in fact licensed to practice law," the group wrote.

White House Communications Director Steven Cheung said Thursday that Zacharia "is uniquely qualified and whip smart to help inform the American people about all the great things President Trump and his Administration have been doing, and she will do an incredible job as Press Secretary."

In an X post Wednesday, Cheung referred to the Campaign for Accountability as a "radical leftist-organization run by rabid numbskulls suffering from a severe case of Trump Derangement Syndrome."

"Nobody takes them seriously because they are deranged low lifes," his post said.

Watchdog group Democracy Defenders Fund also filed a complaint with the bar.

'Character and fitness'

There is no record that Zacharia has ever been licensed to practice law in her home state of California, a spokesperson for the state bar told Business Insider.

Zacharia earned her law degree at California's Pepperdine University in 2011, then moved to China, according to her LinkedIn page.

She later served as general counsel for Fix California, a political advocacy group, between January 2024 and March 2025, her LinkedIn page says. Richard Grenell, the founder of Fix California and a state department official in the Trump administration, didn't respond to requests for comment about Zacharia's work for the organization.

That résume entry could hurt her chances of admission to the bar in future, legal-ethics professors told Business Insider.

The bar admissions process in most states includes a step in which the bar evaluates prospective members' "character and fitness," according to Richard Zitrin, a legal-ethics professor at the University of San Francisco's law school.

Claiming to be a general counsel in California would cut against her if she didn't have a license to practice law at the time, Zitrin said.

Business Insider reviewed records for all 50 states and the District of Columbia and found no evidence that Zacharia had been admitted to any state bar in the US.

A law firm in China

Zacharia moved to China with her husband because of his job at an American private equity firm, the White House said.

In China, only Chinese nationals can become a member of the country's bar and practice law, experts in the Chinese legal system told Business Insider.

According to her LinkedIn page, Zacharia worked for Zhong Lun, a large law firm in Beijing, between 2011 and 2013. Asked by a reporter on Tuesday which state she passed the bar exam in, Zacharia responded, "When I moved to China."

Unlike the United States, where the bar admission process varies by state, China has a single unified bar exam process. It is available only to Chinese nationals and generally requires a degree from a Chinese university, according to Jacques deLisle, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania law school who studies the Chinese legal system.

"The odds that she is a member of the Chinese bar are essentially zero," he said. "Both because of the citizenship requirement and the education requirement."

It's possible for employees of international law firms to do some work on transactions without passing a bar exam, but the scope of the work they're permitted to do is limited, according to Taisu Zhang, a professor of Chinese law at Yale Law School. Those firms generally require employees to pass a bar exam within a few years, he said.

Law firms like Zhong Lun often hire recent foreign law school graduates to review contracts and advise on elements of US law for transactions, but they need to "stay within the edges" of their work so that they don't cross into practicing law, which is illegal in China, deLisle said.

"She was never a lawyer in China. It doesn't mean she didn't do law-related work, but she was never a lawyer in China," deLisle said.

Representatives for Zhong Lun didn't respond to Business Insider's requests for comment.