Bar Exams or Lack Thereof

[RTH10260]

Washington adopts new lawyer licensing paths as other states mull bar exam bypasses

By Karen Sloan
March 18, 20248:14 PM GMT+1Updated 2 days ago

March 18 (Reuters) - The Supreme Court of Washington on Friday approved several new ways for attorneys to become licensed that bypass the bar exam — adding momentum to the burgeoning alternative licensure movement.

Washington’s high court approved, opens new tab “in concept” two new licensing pathways for law school graduates. One option is a new apprenticeship program for law school graduates who would work under the supervision of an experienced lawyer for six months then submit a portfolio of work for evaluation. A separate option would allow law students to complete 12 credits of skills coursework and 500 hours of hands-on legal work before graduation, then submit a work portfolio to the Washington State Bar to become licensed.

Oregon in November adopted an apprenticeship pathway for law school graduates, joining Wisconsin and New Hampshire, which have for years offered law graduates a way to become licensed without taking the bar exam. High courts in California, Minnesota and Utah are currently considering proposals to license attorneys without the bar exam, while Nevada and South Dakota are among the states developing such proposals.

Those new options protect the public, address a "serious legal deserts problem" in Washington, and "help remedy the fairness and bias concerns with the traditional licensure,” said Seattle University School of Law Dean Anthony Varona in a statement on Friday.

Varona was co-chair of the Washington Bar Licensure Task Force, which developed the proposals at the high court’s behest. Members of that task force briefed the court on its recommendations in October after which the court gathered public comment. The court’s Friday order did not say when the new pathways would become available but directed the Washington State Bar Association to convene a committee to examine how to implement them.

The task force’s report noted studies that show the bar exam “disproportionately and unnecessarily blocks historically marginalized groups from entering the practice of law” and that the exam is a financial burden for law graduates.




https://www.reuters.com/legal/governmen ... 024-03-18/

[RTH10260]

no more

bar exam

[noblepa]

If it was good enough for Abraham Lincoln to "Read Law", its good enough for everyone, in this day and age/

[Slim Cognito]

We're not going to get any feedback from all the people who passed the bar?

Oh wait, I was thinking of student loans.

[RTH10260]

If it was good enough for Abraham Lincoln to "Read Law", its good enough for everyone, in this day and age/

Black's Law Dictionary will explain everything you need to know - the older editions are prefered among true scholars

[Ben-Prime]

If it was good enough for Abraham Lincoln to "Read Law", its good enough for everyone, in this day and age/

Black's Law Dictionary will explain everything you need to know - the older editions are prefered among true scholars

I mean, how can a dictionary series not old enough to have been referenced *by* Vattel have any meaning, I ask you?

[northland10]

Laity always likes to try and compare himself with Lincoln because he says he is also self-taught. He does miss the part where Lincoln interned in a law office.

Oh, and Lincoln was a rather bit brighter than Laity. As Stern would say, "I knew Lincoln, Lincoln was a friend of mine, and sir, you are no Abraham Lincoln."

When birthers would bring up Justinian code, Stern would also remark, "I knew Justinian, Justinian was a friend of mine..."

[realist]

If it was good enough for Abraham Lincoln to "Read Law", its good enough for everyone, in this day and age/

These new alternatives to the bar exam still require graduation from law school, it's not just "reading law" and get admitted to the bar.

Washington’s high court approved, opens new tab “in concept” two new licensing pathways for law school graduates. One option is a new apprenticeship program for law school graduates who would work under the supervision of an experienced lawyer for six months then submit a portfolio of work for evaluation. A separate option would allow law students to complete 12 credits of skills coursework and 500 hours of hands-on legal work before graduation, then submit a work portfolio to the Washington State Bar to become licensed.