Controversial Bar Passage Standard Adopted by ABA Legal Ed Council

A controversial change to the law school bar passage standard passed the ABA’s legal education council May 17.

Law schools will have to achieve a 75 percent pass rate for students within two years of graduation to keep their accreditation.

The vote at the council’s meeting in Chicago came after more than an hour of debate. It follows a previous council decision in February to defer action on the standard and consider concerns expressed by those opposing it.

The council first approved the revised standard in 2016 but passage has been stymied by the ABA House of Delegates, which has ...