Bar Exams

California Law School Deans Are None Too Pleased That The Bar Exam’s Passing Score Will Not Be Lowered

One law dean called it a 'tragedy.'

By Staci Zaretsky on October 20, 2017 2:42 pm

I’m deeply disappointed by the court’s decision not to support an interim change to the cut score. There’s no evidence that California’s current, atypically high cut score produces better lawyers. I, and virtually all my fellow law deans, strongly believe that the current cut score hurts California law students, the diversity of California’s lawyers, and that it has far more costs than benefits to our state as a whole. I’m sorry that the court didn’t reach a similar decision.

— Dean Jennifer Mnookin of the UCLA School of Law, commenting on the California Supreme Court’s decision not to change the passing score on the state’s bar exam. The score needed to pass the California bar exam will remain 144, which is higher than that of 48 other states, with only Delaware’s cut score being higher. The law deans of UC Hastings, the University of San Diego, and UC Davis also provided their remarks to The Recorder.

Staci ZaretskyStaci Zaretsky has been an editor at Above the Law since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.