Software company used in faulty Georgia bar exam scoring gets hit with lawsuit
A company that designed software used to grade Georgia State Bar Exam essay answers is being sued, after a reported product glitch resulted in incorrect scores and 90 people being wrongly notified that they failed the July 2015 and February 2016 exams.
The action against the California company ILG Information Technologies was brought by Savannah lawyer Brent Savage, according to the Daily Report. Lloyd Dan Murray Jr., the name plaintiff, is one of the people who received word that they failed the exam, when in fact he passed. The Bryan County State Court filing seeks class-action status, and asks for damages which would include compensation for missed job opportunities.
The false notification came after Murray took the July 2015 exam, according to the article, and he retook the test in February 2016. The Georgia Supreme Court’s Office of Bar Examiners discovered the problem after a July 2015 applicant applied for bar admission in another state.
The board pledged in a statement to reimburse those affected for any subsequent exams taken, “although we know your investment of time and effort greatly outweighs the additional cost of the examination.”
Savage told the Daily Report that the lawsuit will not be naming the state bar as a defendant, because he thinks it has state immunity. He also praised John Sammon, chair of the Board of Bar Examiners, for personally calling and apologizing to all 90 test takers who had been affected.
Baris Misman, president of ILG, told the Daily Report that he was not familiar with the lawsuit, and would respond to interview requests after he had a chance to speak with his lawyer.
