Bar Exam

Our top LinkedIn posts of 2024

As we close the door on 2024 and step into 2025, we're giving readers a behind-the-scenes look at the ABA Journal's LinkedIn page and social media analytics.

Dec 23, 2024 10:54 AM CST

Our favorite Instagram posts from 2024

It's been another riveting year in the legal industry and for our coverage at the ABA Journal. And like clockwork, 2025 will be here before we know it.

Dec 23, 2024 10:34 AM CST

5 biggest changes to the bar exam in 2024

This year was a key moment for the bar exam, with changes to the exam and paths to licensure taking place around the country. Here are the top five that caught our attention.

Dec 20, 2024 9:13 AM CST

Bar admission denied for applicant who won’t take constitutional oath

A bar applicant who won’t take an oath to support the U.S. Constitution and the New York Constitution has failed to demonstrate that she has the character and fitness to become an attorney, according to a New York appeals court.

Dec 9, 2024 2:22 PM CST

Teen who enrolled in law school at age 13 becomes youngest person to pass California bar exam

A 17-year-old girl has beaten her brother’s record to become the youngest person to pass the California bar exam.

Nov 19, 2024 8:51 AM CST

Bar pass rates climb nationwide for July exam

Bar pass rates for the July 2024 bar exam are strong throughout the country. The expectations were high for the class of 2024. In 2021, the year that this class entered law school, applications increased by 13%.

Nov 12, 2024 10:14 AM CST

Utah considers allowing law grads to choose apprenticeship rather than bar exam

The Utah Supreme Court is seeking comment on a proposal to allow law grads to become lawyers without taking the bar exam.

Nov 7, 2024 1:21 PM CST

From behind bars, to passing the bar

Each state sets its own rules for formerly incarcerated people who want to practice law. In Kansas, Mississippi and Texas, for example, no one with a felony can practice law. But even for those who live in less restrictive states, there are other hurdles to overcome.

Oct 29, 2024 8:42 AM CDT

California Supreme Court approves state’s Kaplan-created bar exam

Updated: The State Bar of California’s plan to create a new exam enabling the licensing test to be taken remotely, as well as at in-person test centers, has been green-lighted by the California Supreme Court, allowing the first administration of the Kaplan North America-developed test to move forward in February 2025.

Oct 24, 2024 9:34 AM CDT

Overturning 45-year precedent, New Jersey gives disbarred lawyers second chance

Former New Jersey lawyers who are disbarred will in most cases be allowed to apply for reinstatement after five years, the New Jersey Supreme Court has decided.

Oct 16, 2024 11:55 AM CDT

California Supreme Court shoots down portfolio bar exam proposal but clears path to state-specific exam

The California Supreme Court has rejected the proposal to run a pilot program for a pathway to licensure without taking the bar exam, but it did approve the bar developing “a California-specific bar examination” and offered content areas for a state-specific exam.

Oct 11, 2024 5:10 PM CDT

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.

Oct 8, 2024 3:24 PM CDT

California plan to move bar exam to Kaplan sent back to state supreme court

California’s Committee of Bar Examiners approved launching a propriety bar exam to be created by Kaplan Exam Services for the February administration and will submit updated petitions for the California Supreme Court to reconsider.

Oct 1, 2024 1:48 PM CDT

California law deans have ‘grave concerns’ about new bar exam plans

Fifteen deans from ABA-accredited law schools have signed a letter to the California Supreme Court stating that they have “grave concerns” about Kaplan Exam Services’ ability to develop a multiple-choice bar exam “in a responsible manner” in time for the February 2025 administration of the newfangled exam.

Sep 20, 2024 12:54 PM CDT

California Supreme Court denies plan for new bar exam

The California Supreme Court has put the brakes on the State Bar of California’s plan to launch a proprietary bar exam created by Kaplan Exam Services. The bar’s petition to allow Kaplan to create a 200-question multiple choice exam for the February 2025 administration was denied without prejudice just two weeks before registration opens, according to the bar’s website.

Sep 19, 2024 4:19 PM CDT