The Law School Survey for Student Engagement has found female students and students who do not identify with their gender assigned at birth are more likely to participate in classes if they are online. The LSSSE surveyed more than 13,000 law students at 70 law schools in 2022. The goal of the survey, which was administered by…
The Evolution of Professionalism as a Mode of Regulation: Evidence from the United States
Opinion is divided on how far and in what ways professionalism as a mode of regulation has evolved. To date, attention has focused on the impact of neoliberal political and economic ideologies that challenge the idea that professions should be trusted to regulate themselves. This article further examines the impact of these attacks on professionalism…
American Bar Association Consultation on removing standardised entry requirements for law schools closes
The comment period for a proposal to do away with the American Bar Association’s standardized admissions test requirement for law schools closed Sept. 1 with more than 100 comments posted, laying bare the divisiveness of the issue. The topic appears to have garnered the most feedback of any issue posted to the ABA website’s Notice and Comment section since…
Evidence-Based Lawyer Regulation
Chambliss, E. (2019). Evidence-Based Lawyer Regulation. Wash. UL Rev., 97, 297. The legal profession is losing its authority over the regulation of legal services. Recent changes in antitrust law have put state bar associations under a spotlight. Competition from technology companies and concerns about access to justice have increased political pressure for market liberalization. Independent research is…
Evidence-based promulgation: reconsidering the rulemaking process for rules of professional conduct
Much like the indomitable Pippi Longstocking, the legal profession has succeeded for decades in asserting its right to self-regulate. Judges play a key role in this regulatory regime, serving as both rulemakers and enforcers. Indeed, prompted by the efforts of the organized bar, the judiciary claims the inherent—and exclusive—right to regulate the practice of law…
A US study has found that recent law graduates in hybrid working have highest job satisfaction
A new survey by the National Association for Law Placement and the NALP Foundation has found that fully remote work may be losing some of its appeal — at least for lawyers in the early stage of their careers working across the legal profession. For those fully working remotely, the numbers of recent law grads…
The American Bar Association provides some expert tips for practicing ethically
Theresa Gronkiewicz writes that after a career of representing lawyers in complaints issues there are a number of issues that come up time and again which could be avoided by implementing a strong practice management system and common-sense approach to law. There are 12 tips including: Implement strong law office management procedures Learn to identify…
I Think I Can: How Self-Efficacy and Self-Regulation Impacts Black and Latinx Bar Examinees
This study examined experiences of bar exam takers of color who passed on either the first or the second time. The theories of self-efficacy and self-regulation served as a conceptual framework for this study and were used to shape the interview questions as well as the data analysis. Eight participants were interviewed who graduated from…
The Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers United States recommends lawyers be permitted to practice in any state
The Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers (APRL), a group of 400 lawyers who advise on ethics matters, has recommended that lawyers admitted to a US jurisdiction be able to practice across any state. The Association suggests the ABA Model Rule 5.5, which was adopted in 2002 to prohibit lawyers from practicing in jurisdictions they had…
The US National Conference of Bar Examiners holds consultation on exam content for the new bar entrance exams
The National Conference of Bar Examiners has sought the input of the US legal market as it continues its plans to implement a new bar entrance exam. The new exam will place greater emphasis on essential lawyering skills while decreasing the number of legal subjects tested. The proposed changes are the result of an effort…