Legal Education Statistics

Despite the COVID-19 crisis, some law schools see increases in jobs for new graduates

When the pandemic started, law schools feared 2020 would be a year like 2009—which was during the Great Recession and saw significantly fewer job opportunities for new graduates, along with many attorney layoffs. But those fears don’t seem to have come to fruition for ABA-accredited law schools, based on employment data for the classes of 2019 and 2020.

May 5, 2021 1:30 PM CDT

US News releases its 2022 law school rankings; which schools had lowest student debt?

Five law schools repeated last year’s results when they snagged the top spots in rankings released Tuesday by U.S. News & World Report. The same schools took the top spots in the 2021 rankings, but there were some small changes in the top 14 list.

Mar 30, 2021 12:01 AM CDT

Compared with 2016, there are now half as many for-profit law schools

In 2010, there were six for-profit law schools; as of March 2021, however, only three with that tax status remain—and two of the three hope to eventually convert to nonprofit status.

Mar 29, 2021 10:36 AM CDT

Afternoon Briefs: Judge allows DNA collected from suspect via fake survey; judge resigns amid probe of texts

Judge allows DNA collected in fake police survey A judge in Wisconsin has ruled that prosecutors can use DNA collected from a licked envelope in the prosecution of Raymand Vannieuwenhoven for a 1976 double murder. Judge James Morrison of Marinette County, Wisconsin, said the DNA could be used, even though…

Mar 22, 2021 4:00 PM CDT

More people are applying to law schools, and those with top LSAT scores are also increasing

Securing a spot at a top law school could become more difficult this year, as more people with high scores on the Law School Admission Test are submitting applications.

Mar 8, 2021 9:03 AM CST

4 more law schools found to be in compliance with ABA’s new bar passage standard

Of the 10 law schools that did not meet an accreditation standard in the summer of 2020 requiring a 75% bar passage rate, six have now demonstrated that they are in compliance.

Mar 1, 2021 3:25 PM CST

Afternoon Briefs: Law deans want to delay employment reporting; Edelson parody videos tout untraditional mold

Law school deans want more time for reporting employment outcomes Citing the COVID-19 pandemic, law school deans have asked the ABA’s Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar to push back its law graduate employment data deadline from March to June. The data, which comprises the ABA’s annual…

Feb 12, 2021 4:27 PM CST

Did bar candidates who had a choice do better on in-person or remote exams?

Most jurisdictions saw bar exam pass rates increase in 2020, regardless of whether they had in-person or online exams. However, in three states that offered both types of exams, online test-takers didn’t do as well.

Feb 9, 2021 9:58 AM CST

California releases bar exam results, and like many jurisdictions sees increase in pass rates

Out of the 9,301 people who sat for California’s online bar exam in October, the pass rate was 60.7%, according to a Jan. 8 news release from the State Bar of California.

Jan 11, 2021 12:49 PM CST

2 law schools dinged for bar pass standard are now found to be in compliance

Of the 10 law schools to receive public notice in May that they were out of compliance with Standard 316, Florida Coastal School of Law and the University of the District of Columbia David A. Clarke School of Law are the first to demonstrate compliance.

Aug 25, 2020 3:14 PM CDT

‘Modest increase’ for class of 2019 jobs but also smaller class size, ABA data shows

For 2019 graduates of ABA-accredited law schools, 80.6% were employed in full-time, long-term jobs that require bar passage or are categorized as JD-advantage positions, according to data released Monday.

Jun 1, 2020 4:07 PM CDT

Average multistate bar exam score drops to new low, raising concerns about bar pass rates

The average scaled score for the multistate bar exam dropped to a new low of 132.6 for February test-takers, raising concerns that bar pass rates will also drop.

Apr 21, 2020 11:21 AM CDT

Afternoon Briefs: Public defender group bypasses judge; top state court upholds COVID-19 business shutdown

Public defender group bypasses judge who rejected all release bids The Defender Association of Philadelphia has withdrawn all its petitions for inmate release before Judge Anne Marie Coyle, after she rejected every detainee’s request over a two-day period. Coyle even increased bail for four inmates during the release hearings and…

Apr 16, 2020 4:33 PM CDT

Law schools see an increase in bar passage rates, new ABA data shows

The bar passage rate for first-time test-takers has increased by nearly 5 percentage points, according to data released Monday by the ABA’s Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar.

Feb 18, 2020 2:41 PM CST

Texas university moves to fire its president over law school admissions scandal

The president of Texas Southern University may be out of a job after TSU regents alleged that he failed to promptly report information about an admissions scandal at the Thurgood Marshall School of Law.

Feb 7, 2020 2:43 PM CST