Prospective law students will still go through that dreaded rite of passage, taking the LSAT or a similar test, as part of the law school application process—at least for the foreseeable future.

In an unexpected move, the American Bar Association withdrew a resolution proposing to ax the law school admission testing requirement.

Proponents of the requirement say it promotes diversity and eliminating it risks undermining public confidence in the legal profession. Others say the Law School Admission Test was designed to identify great law students, but it doesn’t identify great future lawyers.

Getting rid of the admissions test requirement “would...