Bar Exam

New bar pass rate questionnaire will yield better information but create more work for law schools

There’s no bar passage data on this year’s law school consumer information reports, which came as a surprise to some. That information, with more recent numbers than in years past, is expected to be released in March 2018.

Dec 21, 2017 2:00 PM CST

How did some law schools increase first-time pass rates by at least 10 points in 2017?

A year after offering a three-credit, graded multistate bar exam course, which includes videos created by professors that students watch before class, Campbell University School of Law saw a greater than 13-point increase in the pass rate for first-time test-takers in North Carolina in July 2017.

Dec 20, 2017 9:00 AM CST

Questions on California bar exam line up with lawyer jobs data, study finds

The content of the California bar exam lines up with national surveys about skills expected for first-year lawyers, but a state-specific assessment would be helpful, according to a recent content validation study from the State Bar of California. The report, sent to the California Supreme Court on Dec. 1, the…

Dec 7, 2017 4:23 PM CST

California sees increase in pass rates for July 2017 despite denying requests to lower cut score

After the California Supreme Court's rejection of requests to lower the state bar exam cut score, the July 2017 overall pass rate slightly increased.

Nov 20, 2017 2:43 PM CST

Law grad with criminal record can sit for state bar, Washington Supreme Court rules

After a Thursday hearing with many questions centered on the substance abuse recovery of Tarra Simmons—a 2017 law school graduate who also has an addiction history, as well as prior theft and drug possession convictions—the Washington Supreme Court ruled that she can sit for the state bar.

Nov 17, 2017 4:46 PM CST

Texas law school serving at-risk students achieves 59% bar pass rate

The University of North Texas Dallas College of Law, which opened in 2014 to help students with lower admission credentials gain law licenses, had a 59.3 percent pass rate for the July 2017 Texas bar exam, its first graduating class.

Nov 9, 2017 3:00 PM CST

New York State Bar exam sees slight pass rate increase for July 2017

The overall pass rate for the July 2017 New York State Bar exam was 68 percent, the New York State Board of Examiners announced Tuesday.

Oct 25, 2017 2:46 PM CDT

Cut score for California state bar exam to stay at 1440—for now

The California Supreme Court announced Wednesday that it will not be adjusting the state bar cut score, which is 1440.

Oct 18, 2017 5:47 PM CDT

California bar brief pokes holes in some arguments for a lower bar exam cut score

Amidst arguments that lowering the California bar exam cut score may help diversity in the profession, increase lawyer access for moderate-income residents and have no influence on attorney misconduct findings, the State Bar of California filed a data-heavy brief with the California Supreme Court taking the position that there’s scant evidence for the majority of those claims.

Sep 14, 2017 2:29 PM CDT

California bar board of trustees sends state supreme court 3 options for bar exam cut score

Rather than suggest to the California Supreme Court that it should or shouldn’t lower its bar exam cut score, which is currently 1440, the State Bar of California's Board of Trustees voted Wednesday in favor of providing the court with three possibilities--keep the score where it is, lower the score to 1414 or lower it to 1390.

Sep 6, 2017 2:41 PM CDT

California Committee of Bar Examiners recommends keeping bar exam cut score the same

Updated: On Thursday, the State Bar of California’s Committee of Bar Examiners voted 13-1 to recommend leaving California’s bar cut score at 1440, Courthouse News Service reports. Some studies are still ongoing, according to the article, including a content validity study expected to be completed in October. “I have yet…

Aug 31, 2017 4:47 PM CDT

Gundersen to replace Moeser as leader of National Conference of Bar Examiners

Judith A. Gundersen, director of test operations at the National Conference of Bar Examiners, has been tapped to serve as the organization’s president and chief operating officer. Gundersen replaces Erica Moeser, who retired in August. An ABA Journal Legal Rebel, Moeser has been a strong advocate of the uniform bar…

Aug 29, 2017 8:00 AM CDT

An ABA Journal Legal Rebel who promoted uniform bar exam to retire

Erica Moeser, president of the National Conference of Bar Examiners, will retire this month. Moeser, who pushed for acceptance of a uniform bar exam, tells Law.com (sub. req.) that she turned 71 in June and “the time has come” to retire. “At some point you think ‘Life is finite,’ and…

Aug 18, 2017 11:20 AM CDT

More law school deans call for lowering California bar exam cut score

Law school deans at public hearings this week in San Francisco and Los Angeles called on the state of California to lower its bar exam cut score.

Aug 18, 2017 7:00 AM CDT

Proposal to lower California bar exam cut score considered

A proposal to set a new interim California bar exam cut score at 1414 from the current 1440 is being considered by the State Bar of California. The proposal is one possibility to come out of standard setting study (PDF) the state bar commissioned.

Aug 1, 2017 2:14 PM CDT