Skipping the bar exam
This year’s crop of law school graduates faces an uncertain future due to the coronavirus pandemic. Several states already postponed July testing dates for bar exams, and the organization that develops the exam announced it is considering a nationwide cancellation.
“It’s offered only twice a year, in a huge convention hall, so it creates a perfect storm for what the virus is able to do,” said Ohio State University law professor Deborah Jones Merritt. “We most certainly won’t be able to administer the exam in every state in July.”
Employment offers out of law school are often conditional on the graduates passing their state bar exam, which typically falls within months of graduation. Postponing the date leaves employers in a bind if their recruits don’t fare well. Students also are concerned about getting rusty on the material they’re studying right now.
Some states are considering a “diploma privilege” for this year, whereby law school graduates move directly into the profession without taking the test at all. Wisconsin already operates this way, and Utah has announced plans to adopt the model soon.
“People are very wedded to the idea of the bar exam,” Jones Merritt said. “Nationally, we have this fixation on multiple-choice tests. But we’ve seen no complaints that lawyers in Wisconsin are committing malpractice at rates higher than other states.”
The American Bar Association Board of Governors last week urged states to adopt a protocol like Wisconsin’s or one that allows supervised practice alongside a veteran attorney for this year’s graduates. —L.E.