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Law school gets extension to meet Standard 316; ABA Legal Ed council posts additional notice on faculty diversity

Updated: The Golden Gate University School of Law, which has not had a two-year bar pass rate at or above 75% since its class of 2017, has received an extension to come into compliance with Standard 316, which requires a bar passage rate of at least 75% within a two-year time period.

Bill Horton, longtime ABA leader and past Health Law Section chair, dies at 63

William “Bill” Horton, a longtime leader in the ABA Health Law Section, died Tuesday from cancer. “There are those lawyers whom the ABA changes, and there are those who change the ABA. Bill Horton is one of the latter,” ABA President-Elect Mary Smith said in a tribute.

Finance-related notice for Kentucky law school posted by ABA Legal Ed Section

The University of Kentucky J. David Rosenberg College of Law is not in compliance with an accreditation standard focused on financial resources, the council of the ABA’s Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar recently found.

ABA partners with law schools to advance new approaches to policing and public safety

Kendall Anderson, a 3L at the Syracuse University College of Law, is a fellow in the third class of the Legal Education Police Practices Consortium. He plans to study cases in which police stops end in physical altercations. “I’ll try to get insight from officers as to the training they do that is preparing and equipping them to be able to handle those situations better.”

3 law schools dinged on bar pass rates see improvement; another back in compliance with diversity standard

Updated: Three law schools have come into compliance with an ABA accreditation standard requiring two-year bar passage rates of at least 75%, the council of the ABA’s Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar recently announced.

Fictional ABA Techshow hearing tackles hot-button issue on amending rules of professional conduct

Should states relax rules of professional conduct to address the access-to-justice crisis and make legal services more affordable? On Friday, a panel of experts took on that question during a fictional hearing at the second and final keynote at this year’s ABA Techshow at the Hyatt Regency Chicago.

Another law school dinged on accreditation standard regarding diversity of faculty and staff

Updated: The Baylor University School of Law is noncompliant with an accreditation standard that requires schools to demonstrate “concrete action” showing a commitment to having a diverse and inclusive faculty and staff, according to an ABA notice posted Wednesday.

Universal Migrator snags first prize at ABA Techshow 2023’s Startup Alley competition

Universal Migrator won first prize at the seventh annual Startup Alley pitch competition at the ABA Techshow 2023 on Wednesday evening after facing off against 14 other finalists.

Choice-of-law questions for state ethics rules examined in new ABA opinion

Lawyers admitted to multiple jurisdictions may be subject to different ethical requirements in the different states in which they are licensed to practice law, according to a new ABA ethics opinion.

Federal judge faces probe after he orders handcuffing of 13-year-old girl in gallery in ‘scared straight’ approach

A federal judge faces an ethics probe initiated by the judiciary after a transcript indicated that he ordered the handcuffing of a 13-year-old girl during a probation revocation hearing for her father. The allegations are against Judge Roger Benitez.

Which law schools are choosiest? Washington University is in top five, while Yale is mostly No. 1

Yale Law School is No. 1 based data showing that it is the choosiest law school in terms of acceptance rate and median LSAT scores for fall 2022. But it falls to No. 2 in a tie with two other schools based on the median undergraduate grade-point average.

ABA task force issues 14 guiding principles to improve plea bargaining system

An ABA task force that spent three years examining problems in plea bargaining has released recommendations that judges, lawyers, lawmakers and other stakeholders can follow to create a fairer, more transparent process.

Meet Holly Cook, director of the ABA Governmental Affairs Office

When Holly Cook joined the ABA in January 2012, she brought with her more than two decades of experience in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps. “I thought I was going to Afghanistan and deploying yet again. But I got a phone call one day saying they were looking for someone to come to the Governmental Affairs Office,” Cook says. “I loved working with the Hill. So I thought, ‘All right.’”

ABA Techshow 2023 will celebrate ‘being together’ after 3 tough years

It was just weeks before lockdown in early March 2020 when the ABA held its last all in-person ABA Techshow. Three years later, legal tech enthusiasts and lawyers can expect the 2023 edition to meet pent-up demand for face-to-face panels and meetings.

Legal Ed will resubmit proposed elimination of admissions-test standard and consider increasing distance ed credits

The council of the ABA’s Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar on Friday voted in favor of resubmitting to the House of Delegates a proposal to eliminate a requirement that accredited law schools use an admissions test like the LSAT or GRE. Additionally, the council approved a suggestion to allow up to 50% of a law school’s credits offered online, without special permission.

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