Bar pass rate dips slightly among accredited law schools
More than 9 out of 10 graduates of the law school class of 2021 who took the bar within two years of graduation passed it, according to new data released by the American Bar Association’s legal education arm.
But the two-year “success” rate of 90.4% dropped nearly 1.5 percentage points from the comparable figure of 91.85% for 2020 graduates. Virtually all 2021 law school graduates were captured in the new report.
The Council of the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar, the independent arm of the ABA that accredits law schools, also reported that first-time exam takers in 2023 achieved an aggregate 79.18% pass rate (79.44% with alternative pathways), which is more than a 1 percentage point increase over the comparable 78.15% pass rate (with alternative pathways) for 2022.
The data on first-time takers is intended to provide consumer information and has no bearing on a school’s compliance with Standard 316, which requires law schools accredited by the ABA to have 75% of its test takers pass the bar within a two-year period of graduation. Alternative pathways, meanwhile, provide several ways to become licensed lawyers without taking a bar exam.
“These public reports continue to provide important consumer information for students considering whether and where to attend law school and for others with an interest in the quality of legal education,” said Bill Adams, ABA managing director for accreditation and legal education.
Adams said bar passage scores represent one of the best measures to determine if a particular law school is offering a rigorous program of legal education to students.
The new information includes aggregate data in different ethnicity categories for information collected in 2023 and 2024 broken down by gender. It shows that the two-year bar pass rate for 2021 law grads was 93% for white grads, 78% for Black grads, 86% for Hispanic grads, 90% for Asian grads, 82% for Native American grads, 66% for Hawaiian grads and 91% for U.S. nonresidents. The 2021 two-year success pass rates by gender were 90.88% for men and 90.19% for women.
But the two-year “success” rate of 90.4% dropped nearly 1.5 percentage points from the comparable figure of 91.85% for 2020 graduates. Virtually all 2021 law school graduates were captured in the new report.
The Council of the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar, the independent arm of the ABA that accredits law schools, also reported that first-time exam takers in 2023 achieved an aggregate 79.18% pass rate (79.44% with alternative pathways), which is more than a 1 percentage point increase over the comparable 78.15% pass rate (with alternative pathways) for 2022.
The data on first-time takers is intended to provide consumer information and has no bearing on a school’s compliance with Standard 316, which requires law schools accredited by the ABA to have 75% of its test takers pass the bar within a two-year period of graduation. Alternative pathways, meanwhile, provide several ways to become licensed lawyers without taking a bar exam.
“These public reports continue to provide important consumer information for students considering whether and where to attend law school and for others with an interest in the quality of legal education,” said Bill Adams, ABA managing director for accreditation and legal education.
Adams said bar passage scores represent one of the best measures to determine if a particular law school is offering a rigorous program of legal education to students.
The new information includes aggregate data in different ethnicity categories for information collected in 2023 and 2024 broken down by gender. It shows that the two-year bar pass rate for 2021 law grads was 93% for white grads, 78% for Black grads, 86% for Hispanic grads, 90% for Asian grads, 82% for Native American grads, 66% for Hawaiian grads and 91% for U.S. nonresidents. The 2021 two-year success pass rates by gender were 90.88% for men and 90.19% for women.
FBA plans ‘Gilman Award’ lunch
The Federal Bar Association, Eastern District of Michigan Chapter, will host the “2024 Leonard R. Gilman Award Luncheon” on Wednesday, April 17, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Atheneum Suites Hotel and Conference Center, 1000 Brush Street in Detroit.
The event’s keynote speaker will be U.S. Court of Appeals Chief Judge Jeffrey S. Sutton, Sixth Circuit.
Cost for the “2024 Leonard R. Gilman Award Luncheon” is $55 for FBA members and $75 for non-members/guests. To register for the luncheon, visit https://fbamich.org and click on “calendar.”
The event’s keynote speaker will be U.S. Court of Appeals Chief Judge Jeffrey S. Sutton, Sixth Circuit.
Cost for the “2024 Leonard R. Gilman Award Luncheon” is $55 for FBA members and $75 for non-members/guests. To register for the luncheon, visit https://fbamich.org and click on “calendar.”
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