A disgraced journalist who was caught fabricating numerous articles during his career was denied a license to practice law by the Supreme Court of California on Monday.
Stephen Glass "made himself infamous as a dishonest journalist by fabricating material for more than 40 articles for The New Republic magazine and other publications,” read the court’s decision.
Glass wrote a fictionalized account of his journalistic downfall in the book "The Fabulist," and the 2003 movie "Shattered Glass," starring Hayden Christensen, was based on his experience.
The court denied Glass the ability to practice law because it determined he was focused on “advancing his own well-being rather than returning something to the community” after his lies were exposed, the decision said.
The ruling detailed various fabrications by Glass during his time as a journalist from 1996 to 1998, including one article in which he made up every source and tied them to racist quotes that he crafted himself.
When Glass appropriately turned to writing fiction after his lies were uncovered he was able to profit from his misdeeds. And the State Bar Admission Committee argued that Glass could have used the proceeds to redeem himself rather than keeping the money.
Jon Eisenberg, a lawyer for Glass, said his client "appreciates the court's consideration of his application and respects the court's decision."
Glass passed the New York bar exam in 2002 but withdrew in 2004 after he found out his moral character application was rejected. When he passed the bar exam in California in 2006 and was reviewed again, Glass revealed in character proceedings that he had covered up ethical breaches in his previous New York review.
California State Bar officials have struggled to decide whether to allow Glass to practice law since 2007 and turned the decision to the California Supreme Court.
“The applicant failed to carry his heavy burden of establishing his rehabilitation,” Monday’s Supreme Court decision read.
NBC News' Andrew Blankstein and The Associated Press contributed to this report.