Legal Education

Law school diversity standard could be axed this month, despite House of Delegates opposition

The council for the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar could vote as soon as this month to eliminate the contentious law school accreditation standard focused on diversity and inclusion.

Aug 6, 2026 9:24 AM CDT

Bar candidate whose care was delayed after heart attack sues university

Updated: A July 2025 bar candidate who slumped out of her chair, lost consciousness and suffered a brain injury during the July 2025 New York bar exam is suing Hofstra University, which hosted the exam’s administration.

Aug 5, 2026 12:41 PM CDT

ABA House adopts policies on professional independence, legal education, law enforcement at Annual Conference

The American Bar Association House of Delegates adopted more than 40 policy matters on a wide variety of issues including the independence of the legal profession and judiciary, warrantless immigration searches and arrests, law enforcement protocols, law student recruitment, funding for Historically Black Colleges and University law schools as well as several lawyer ethics and model rules when it met during the 2026 ABA Annual Conference.

Aug 4, 2026 1:24 PM CDT

The hidden backbone of the courthouse

“We basically just work ourselves to death and stay unnoticed,” the judicial assistant said with a wide smile when I asked what her day to day looked like. It had only been a few minutes since I walked into chambers to meet the judge for whom I would be interning.

Aug 4, 2026 10:40 AM CDT

Test-takers with accommodations in Washington were able to finish NextGen UBE

Despite a decision last week by Washington to cancel the inaugural administration of the NextGen Uniform Bar Examination because of technical issues, those with approved accommodations were able to complete the test.

Aug 3, 2026 11:34 AM CDT

New pathway to bar approved in this state

The New Mexico Supreme Court has officially adopted a skills-based pathway to the bar, which aims to increase the number of lawyers who could service people living in the state’s legal deserts.

Aug 3, 2026 10:27 AM CDT

HBO’s John Oliver dares popular chain Buc-ee’s to sue him over mascot use

Comedian John Oliver is daring travel center chain Buc-ee’s to sue him over his use of a bucktoothed “Buc-Off” mascot.

Aug 3, 2026 9:54 AM CDT

Defense attorneys should cautiously adopt AI, new study says

Defense lawyers have an “ethical obligation” to responsibly adopt certain artificial intelligence tools just as prosecutors increasingly utilize the technology, according to a report released Thursday by the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.

Jul 31, 2026 10:32 AM CDT

Washington law deans demand diploma privilege after aborted NextGen UBE administration

Updated: The deans of all three ABA-accredited law schools in Washington have each written to the state supreme court, asking that nearly 700 candidates unable to take the new NextGen Uniform Bar Examination this week because of technical issues be granted diploma privilege.

Jul 30, 2026 1:49 PM CDT

Washington calls off bar exam after NextGen UBE has tech issues

The first administration of the NextGen Uniform Bar Examination, a substantial shift in the high-stakes test planned for eight years, was marred Tuesday by connectivity issues in three of the 10 jurisdictions using the new test this week, forcing the two-day exam to be entirely canceled in Washington

Jul 29, 2026 2:10 PM CDT

Large majority of test-takers pass first step of new three-pronged Nevada bar exam

The pass rate of the inaugural administration of the Foundational Law Exam, the first step of Nevada’s new three-pronged bar exam, reached 76%, according to the State Bar of Nevada.

Jul 29, 2026 9:09 AM CDT

Dean of Pennsylvania State University’s Dickinson Law steps down

Danielle Conway stepped down Friday as the dean of Pennsylvania State University’s Dickinson Law and the university’s School of International Affairs, effective immediately, returning to a faculty position.

Jul 27, 2026 11:26 AM CDT

How to close the legal experience gap with simulation-based learning platforms

Generative artificial intelligence has proven to be a truly disruptive technology. In just a few short years, AI’s effects have been felt in every industry and across most professions. It has impacted financial markets, company structures and the way that work gets done.

Jul 24, 2026 1:56 PM CDT

Financial pressures lead law deans to leave their posts, new study finds

The average tenure for law school deans has shrunk from 10.3 years in the 1950s to 2.8 years since 2020—and financial pressures are largely to blame.

Jul 24, 2026 9:11 AM CDT

‘The most important criminal case of the term’—SCOTUS takes on plea bargaining

In Hunter v. United States, the court held 8-1 that a defendant’s agreement not to appeal a sentence—as part of an appeal waiver in a plea agreement—is unenforceable it it would result in a miscarriage of justice.

Jul 23, 2026 9:10 AM CDT