Courts, Law Schools

Delaware's Supreme Court Raised The Bar For Administering The Bar Exam

The bar exam sucks. The necessary evil camp tends to say that some standardized test needs to stand as the great hurdle to make sure that not just any mouth breather who finishes a JD program can practice willy-nilly — if the bar is the bar, so be it.  The much cooler, down-to-earth and better-dressed camp tends to say that the bar does a better job of hazing aspiring attorneys than it measures competency to practice. And while they aren’t full on abolishing the bar, Delaware’s recent adjustments to the process are good reasons for the latter camp to be a little appreciative. From Reuters:

Delaware’s top court on Tuesday lowered the score required to pass the state’s bar exam and adopted other changes to lawyer licensing requirements in the state, which is a major hub for business litigation.

The Delaware Supreme Court said in a statement that the changes include reducing the “cut” score from a scale of 145 to 143 on the bar exam and offering the test twice a year instead of once.

These are some powerful quality-of-life adjustments. Sure, the score change is cool and all, but doubling the amount of times the test is offered is a much-needed game changer.

Chief Justice Collins J. Seitz Jr in the court’s announcement called the changes a “modernization” of the admission process to better match requirements in other states rather than a “lowering of standards.” He said the revisions will help the state stay competitive in attracting legal talent.

Seitz in a statement said Delaware is the only state to offer the exam only once a year, which can “frustrate applicants” if they fail and have to wait a year to retake the test and could imperil their ability to work in the state.

In addition to the doubled opportunity to sit for the exam, the Delaware bar has also made some much appreciated substantive adjustments.

The number of essays on the exam is also being reduced from eight to four, which will shorten the test duration from its current two and a half days to two days, according to a memo from the Delaware Board of Bar Examiners, whose recommendations the court adopted. The number of essay topics will also decrease.

While taking the bar sucks, hopefully it’ll suck a little bit less. If it remains a pain in the ass despite the QOL changes, you can have some peace of mind knowing that you’ll have double the opportunity to voice your complaints to tips@abovethelaw.com

Delaware Lowers Bar Pass Score, Eases Path For Lawyer Licensing [Reuters]

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Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord™ in the Facebook group Law School Memes for Edgy T14s.  He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boatbuilder who cannot swim, a published author on critical race theory, philosophy, and humor, and has a love for cycling that occasionally annoys his peers. You can reach him by email at cwilliams@abovethelaw.com and by tweet at @WritesForRent.