Bar Exam

Gulp! Civil procedure will be added to Multistate Bar Exam

Would-be lawyers who take the multiple choice Multistate Bar Exam beginning in February 2015 will have to deal with a seventh section—on civil procedure. The National Conference of Bar Examiners announced timing of the change in a Feb. 21 letter, the Wall Street Journal Law Blog reports. Kaplan Bar Review…

Mar 8, 2013 3:07 PM CST

A bar applicant is denied a law license for completing her sentences

An Ohio bar applicant won’t be able to practice law just yet because of a complaint that she continued writing for up to 60 seconds after time was called on some bar exam essay questions. In a Jan. 29 opinion (PDF), the Ohio Supreme Court denied a license to Jasmine…

Feb 6, 2013 1:19 PM CST

Proposal to let law students take NY bar after 2 years is worth study, says state’s chief judge

A proposal to let individuals who have completed two years of law school take the New York bar exam before they have earned their juris doctor degree is worth further study, the state’s chief judge said at a recent conference. Jonathan Lippman didn’t formally endorse the idea, which is still…

Jan 23, 2013 7:47 PM CST

No more 3Ls? Proposal would let law students skip their third year

A law professor who says two years of law school is sufficient preparation for the bar exam is getting a serious hearing for his idea. New York University law professor Samuel Estreicher is proposing that New York change its bar exam requirement to allow students to take the test after…

Jan 14, 2013 12:00 PM CST

Arizona Supreme Court OKs Proposal to Allow 3Ls to Take Bar Exam

Arizona will allow third-year law students to take the bar exam in February under a three-year experimental program approved on Monday by the Arizona Supreme Court. The Supreme Court order (PDF) approved an amended rule paving the way for the pilot program. Arizona is now the only state that currently…

Dec 12, 2012 2:28 PM CST

California Lawyer Accused of Lying to Get More Time to Take Bar Exam

A California lawyer who was granted more time for the state bar exam based on a false statement has agreed to cancellation of her law license. Leah Harmuth was granted time and a half and given a semi-private room to take the July 2009 bar exam because of an asserted…

Dec 6, 2012 2:37 PM CST

Arizona Law Schools Back Proposal to Allow 3Ls to Take the Bar Exam

The Arizona Supreme Court is scheduled to consider a proposal Wednesday to allow third-year law students to take the bar exam before graduation. All three law schools in Arizona support the proposal, the National Law Journal reports. If the idea is approved, Arizona would become the only state to allow…

Dec 4, 2012 12:00 PM CST

Final Call: Section Won’t Accredit Non-US Law Schools, But Foreign Lawyers Can Be Admitted

It looks as though the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar won’t be accrediting foreign law schools anytime soon. The council of the legal education section, which is recognized by the Department of Education as the national accrediting body for U.S. law schools, rejected the idea…

Oct 1, 2012 6:00 AM CDT

Minn. for First Time Admits Foreign Law Grad Without Requiring Her to Pass Bar Exam

For the first time ever, the Minnesota Supreme Court has admitted a graduate of a foreign law school to practice in the state without first requiring her to pass the bar exam. JaneAnne Murray, who earned her law degree from England’s renowned University of Cambridge, is licensed in New York…

Sep 28, 2012 10:09 PM CDT

Thirty-Four Years After His Graduation, Law Grad Joins the California Bar

It took 34 years and seven or eight tries for University of San Francisco law grad Jeffery Baker to become a lawyer. Baker, 62, will be sworn in as a California lawyer on Thursday, the Contra Costa Times reports. “If that’s not a record for the longest time between graduating…

Sep 6, 2012 12:13 PM CDT

Belief in Bias Can Block Your Success

If someone thinks they won’t succeed, partly because of stereotypes, that notion will harm performance, according to Steven Spencer, a psychology professor at the University of Waterloo whose work focuses on motivation and the self. The professor from Ontario, Canada, discussed his research at an annual meeting event sponsored by…

Sep 1, 2012 6:00 AM CDT

Washington State Legal Community Braces for Huge Turnover in Lawyer Population

Washington state’s legal community is bracing for a huge turnover in its lawyer population over the next five years. The expected turnover, driven largely by demographics and economics, poses big challenges for firms both large and small, though small firms and solo practices seem especially vulnerable, the Puget Sound Business…

Aug 24, 2012 8:46 PM CDT

Model Ethics Rule Allows Lawyers to Practice in New State for Up to a Year, Pending Admission

Lawyers who move to a new state can practice there for up to a year while seeking admission under a new model ethics rule approved Monday by the ABA House of Delegates. A comment to the rule explains why it is needed. “This rule recognizes that a lawyer admitted in…

Aug 6, 2012 8:21 PM CDT

If You Think You Won’t Succeed, You Probably Won’t, Panelists Say

If someone thinks they won’t succeed, partly because of stereotypes, that notion will harm performance, says Steven Spencer, a psychology professor at the University of Waterloo, whose work focuses on motivation and the self. The Ontario, Canada, professor discussed his research at an event Thursday sponsored by the ABA’s Council…

Aug 2, 2012 6:56 PM CDT

What Was the Strangest Thing You Saw at the Bar Exam?

We’ve heard many stories of bizarre occurrences at the bar exam, and not all of them were tall tales. Last year we reported about a Northwestern law grad who went into labor during the bar exam but stayed until she had completed the test–and she passed! Last week, Bloomberg Law…

Aug 1, 2012 7:48 PM CDT