Will New York jump on the Uniform Bar Exam bandwagon? Top state court seeks comment
New York’s highest court is seeking public comment (PDF) on a proposal to begin administering the Uniform Bar Examination prepared by the National Conference of Bar Examiners.
Fourteen states currently offer the standardized test, most of them west of the Mississippi, but California, Florida, Illinois and Texas are not among this group. Hence, if the New York Court of Appeals approves the plan after commenting closes Nov. 7, having the state of New York on board would considerably expand the influence of the UBE, the New York Law Journal (sub. req.) reports.
“I believe if we choose to go forward, it portends extremely well that you would have a truly uniform bar nationally,” Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman told the legal publication. “I think there is a lot of anticipation from my colleagues in other states about whether we would be going to the uniform bar and, if we do, I think it will have a dramatic impact on that uniform bar approach in very short order.”
Proponents of the UBE, which could be in use in New York as early as July of 2015 if the test is adopted there, say it streamlines the bar exam process for applicants who may wish to seek admission elsewhere due to the nationalization of many law practice areas. Even under the UBE, New York would continue to have a brief test on state-specific law, as do other states in which it is offered. Nonetheless, a score on the standardized portion can be used in multiple jurisdictions, making it easier for individuals to gain admission in multiple states.
However, some are expressing concern that law students completing coursework with the current bar exam in mind could find some of their effort has been wasted. Also, scores satisfactory in one state may not necessarily be sufficient for admission in another, because the UBE score required to gain admission varies from state to state, according to Long Island Business News and the Wall Street Journal Law Blog.
“I think it’s a lot of change in a short period of time,” Dean Patricia Salkin of Touro College Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center told LIBN, stressing that she is expressing her personal opinion. “You have an entire crop of graduating law students this year and you’re basically telling them that the bar exam you thought you were preparing for is going to change just before you graduate.”
Salkin serves as co-chair of the Committee on Legal Education and Admission to the Bar of the New York State Bar Association.
Related coverage:
ABAJournal.com (2010): “ABA Group Backs Uniform Bar Exam”
