Connecticut allows fully online law school grads of Purdue Global to take bar exam
Graduates of the Purdue Global Law School, described as the oldest wholly online law school, can now take the bar exam in a third state, as the Connecticut Bar Examining Committee voted Oct. 4 to follow the lead of California and Indiana. (Image from Shutterstock)
Graduates of the Purdue Global Law School, described as the oldest wholly online law school, can now take the bar exam in a third state, as the Connecticut Bar Examining Committee voted Oct. 4 to follow the lead of California and Indiana.
The move from Connecticut comes as the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar continues examining what standards are necessary to start fully accrediting online-only law schools.
Currently, ABA standards state that only law schools with brick-and-mortar campuses can become accredited, and only fully accredited schools can apply to offer fully online JD programs. That excludes online law schools, such as Purdue Global, that start from scratch. In most states, only graduates of ABA-accredited law schools can become licensed.
The approval from Connecticut allows Purdue Global law graduates to take that state’s bar exam for three years, beginning with the February 2025 bar exam, according to an Oct. 7 letter from the committee to Martin Pritikin, the dean and vice president of the Purdue Global Law School, provided to the ABA Journal. The decision applies to Purdue Global graduates who received degrees this calendar year and going forward, according to the letter.
Rhonda Stearley Hebert, the deputy director of communications, education and outreach for the Connecticut Judicial Branch, confirmed the committee’s unanimous approval of the petition via email to the Journal, but she declined further comment.
“I’m very pleased,” Pritikin says. “They looked at our petition, and they looked at our bar pass rates, and they agreed, and they gave us the green light on Friday.”
Pritikin says he first approached Connecticut about seven years ago after learning that it was one of only two states where the board of law examiners can approve a law school’s graduates for the bar exam without having to change its bar admissions rules and petition the state supreme court.
Initially, the Connecticut committee narrowly rejected the plan, he says, but Pritikin resubmitted it for consideration in 2023.
“A lot had changed,” he says. “Obviously, the pandemic. But we also got full accreditation from the State Bar of California in 2020.”
California allows graduates of state-accredited law schools to take the bar exam, meaning that Purdue Global law graduates can take the the bar exam there. In February, the Indiana Supreme Court changed its attorney admission rules to allow graduates of non-ABA-accredited law schools to request a waiver to take the exam if they are eligible to take the exam in another state. That move allows graduates of a fully online law school, such as Purdue Global, to take the exam because of California’s rules.
Michigan is the other state where the bar exam committee can determine which law schools’ graduates can take the bar exam without changing the rules and involving the state supreme court, Pritikin says. Although Michigan rejected a proposal similar to Connecticut’s about seven years ago, Pritikin says, he plans ask for reconsideration.
In addition, Pritikin says, he has submitted requests to Utah and Nevada to amend their rules prohibiting online law school graduates from taking the bar exam and reduce or eliminate their 10-year bar practice requirement before attorneys from other states can take the bar.
“We’re looking for any way we can to chip away at these barriers to legal education,” he says. “Obviously, we would love it if the ABA would let online school [graduates] apply. But in the meantime, we’re just going to keep knocking on doors and seeing who answers.”
Earlier this year, proposed revisions to ABA Standards 102 and 306 drew the ire of 26 law school deans, saying more information was needed regarding bar passage and employment rates of online law school graduates before moving forward.
Several steps are necessary before the ABA House of Delegates would make the ultimate decision about online law schools applying for initial provisional approval.
First, the standards committee must draft specific rules for online-only law schools after receiving input from the legal education and higher education communities.
At its quarterly meeting in August, the council scheduled time to hear from representatives of affiliate organizations regarding the unique challenges and advantages of online law schools.
Next, specific rules would be drafted, and the council would then have to approve them for notice and comment, giving the public the opportunity to respond. After that, the council must approve before sending them to the House of Delegates.
