The North Carolina State Bar was established by state government in 1933 as the mandatory bar organization for North Carolina. The North Carolina State Bar is responsible for regulating the investigation and prosecution of any of its more than 22,000 members who are accused of being in violation of the bar's code of ethics. In addition to creating and enforcing minimum standards of professional legal conduct, the North Carolina State Bar also provides a mandatory continuing legal education program, a client security fund, a paralegal certification program, a legal specialization program, an IOLTA program for increasing the access of the underprivileged to justice, and a substance abuse intervention program.