Delaware lowers bar pass score, eases path for lawyer licensing

(Reuters) - Delaware's top court on Tuesday lowered the score required to pass the state's bar exam and adopted other changes to lawyer licensing requirements in the state, which is a major hub for business litigation.

The Delaware Supreme Court said in a statement that the changes include reducing the "cut" score from a scale of 145 to 143 on the bar exam and offering the test twice a year instead of once.

The number of essays on the exam is also being reduced from eight to four, which will shorten the test duration from its current two and a half days to two days, according to a memo from the Delaware Board of Bar Examiners, whose recommendations the court adopted. The number of essay topics will also decrease.

The adjustments will take effect before July's bar exam. The exam will also be offered in February beginning in 2024, the court said.

Chief Justice Collins J. Seitz Jr in the court's announcement called the changes a "modernization" of the admission process to better match requirements in other states rather than a "lowering of standards." He said the revisions will help the state stay competitive in attracting legal talent.

Seitz in a statement said Delaware is the only state to offer the exam only once a year, which can "frustrate applicants" if they fail and have to wait a year to retake the test and could imperil their ability to work in the state.

The court said the Delaware bar examination board undertook a two-year review of the test and was partly informed by a 2022 report by a court-created committee focused on diversity in Delaware's legal community.

The report said components of Delaware's bar licensing process "may be potential barriers to admission to the practice of law for people from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups who may nonetheless be qualified to practice in the State."

The state Supreme Court on Tuesday also trimmed the number of categories of legal proceedings an applicant must observe and the number of weeks of clerkship required before licensing.

The processes for admitting would-be lawyers into both law schools and legal practice has been under increased pressure to change in recent years. Several other states, including California, have lowered their bar exams' passing score.

Earlier this month, the American Bar Association's policymaking body rejected a bid to end a longstanding requirement that law schools use the LSAT or other standardized test in admissions. It was a controversial proposal, with its impact on law student diversity as the primary point of contention.

The ABA section that oversees law schools on Friday revived the effort by voting to resubmit the proposal.

Read more: