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.
The New Mexico Skills-Based Assessment, introduced last month, mandates that candidates graduate from an ABA-accredited school, perform 675 hours of supervised practice within a year, produce a skills-based portfolio, and pass the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination and a character and fitness review, according to the justices’ report, Rural Justice and Modernizing the Legal Profession in New Mexico.
The program would complement the state’s existing Rural Justice Initiative, which added rural externships and incubators.
The graduates, known as “authorized justice practitioners,” could start paid supervised practice while working at a host organization instead of taking the bar exam and waiting several months for results. They will offer limited legal advice, draft documents and handle hearing preparation, among other tasks. At the midpoint of the program, candidates will submit a work product to bar examiners, according to the plan.
The report noted that 22 of the state’s 33 counties have less than 1 lawyer per 1,000 residents, with 85% of lawyers clustered in the state’s larger cities. New Mexico is home to one law school.
New Mexico’s plan follows other states that have developed new pathways to the bar in recent years. The plan has similarities to those in Oregon, Utah and Minnesota.
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