WA: No bar exam needed and we will lower standards

Seems dumb. Probably raise the barrier to entry for teachers. Just to be on a dumb roll. Should consider cutting med school enrollment while they're at it.

 

Doesn't matter too much, AI is going to do a lot more damage to Lawyers than a Bar exam.

 

It's going to decimate research clerks, legal assistants and the like way more than it will hurt trial lawyers. Who it will hurt are the guys churning traffic violations and such

 

<George Santos moves to WA>

 

There is nothing magical about the bar exam. And it often is just another financial barrier. Go to law school for three years at exorbitant cost then immediately drop a few more grand into a study program so that you can actually pass the bar. "Reading the law" in most states is also not a real path. In Virginia you had to essentially do a full-time unpaid internship with a willing lawyer for years. If I could do that I would probably not bother, seems pretty burdensome for someone who clearly doesn't have to work for a living.

Everyone I knew in law school passed the bar, including the absolute slack jaws. It isn't as if the bar was keeping morons out. Although some did require more than one attempt. I kicked one of them out of our fantasy football league because he couldn't understand the rules and would spend days texting the group his "reasoning." He started in the DA's office in New Mexico (you know, like Saul), moved to private for a bit, and now is with the Army (he is a Navy vet.) Doing just fine as a lawyer, but still struggling to absorb what a dynasty league entails.

 

Washington is just following Oregon. As of this year the bar exam isn’t required in Oregon.

 

“Did you know there are more students in law school than there are lawyers walking the Earth? We're coming out, guns blazing! ….. all of us, acquittal after acquittal after acquittal... “

John Milton

 

insert all the well known lawyer jokes here:

 

“You can give me an hour alone in a bank
Pay all my tickets, wipe the slate blank
You could buy me a car, fill up the tank
Tell me a boat full of lawyers just sank”

Robert Cray

 

I don’t know a lot about the law and various other lawyerings, but I am sympathetic to the idea that in general many state required credentials hurt industries more than they help them because the costs of erecting barriers to entry tend to outweigh the benefits of ensuring the capability of its practitioners. In fact, often the market does just fine filtering out inferior products. All legal firm partners have a vested interest in maintaining the quality of their employees’ work.

 

But there is no such measuring stick to protect the public and ensure someone given the privilege to practice law has a basic, core understanding of legal principles. While a law firm can certainly filter who they hire, not all lawyers are employed by law firms. A lawyer can hang the shingle and take on clients, regardless of competence. One might argue that all a lawyer needs to get clients is a good advertising budget. A bar exam provides that base line that needs to be crossed to engage in the practice of law. I think it is dangerous to erase that line.

 

According to the article there are just different alternatives to be able to practice instead of just passing the bar exam, though they havent yet been established. To me this just sounds like how in some college programs you can do a non-thesis option by doing different things that still require you establish some kind of mastery of the material. It doesnt sound like anyone can just decide they are a lawyer without establishing some kind of competency. Some people just dont do good on tests, and if there are other ways to establish they are competent, I dont see a huge issue with that.

 

I wonder if attorneys think the MCAT should be eliminated as well?

 

Yep. Even Cousin Vinne passed the bar, albeit after six tries. And look at how he prevailed in court.

 

I might have misconstrued your point but I want individuals I rely on to be certified or licensed. From accountants to surgeons to lawyers. Maybe there should be more uniformity in certifications, but it’s reassuring to know my Uber driver at least has a drivers license. And overall I don’t like how our society seems to be lowering reqmts across the board. for example not enough students pass so make it easier or lower reqmts to get A’s. The same for our work force

 

Exactly my thoughts. I’d think we’d want our professionals to pass a rigorous vetting to ensure base competence. I took the bar exam (33 years ago). I hated it, but it was necessary. And now it’s necessary for me to take continued education courses every cycle, in every place I am licensed. And that is a good thing, at least in my opinion.

 

The con man in Catch Me if You Can passed the Louisiana bar exam without going to law school and learned how to be a lawyer by watching TV

 

I’ve take 3 bar exams and am 3 for 3. Personally I want other new attorneys to feel the pain.