SolutionsHire top legal talent for any scope of workGet Started Contact us to find the best fit for any in-house or law firm role Testimonials Trusted by the world's leading legal departments FAQ Frequently asked questions about working with Legal.ioEmployer Resources Tools and guides for hiring managers Utah opened for public feedback a proposal to allow law graduates to become licensed without taking the bar exam, following the lead of other states that have adopted alternative licensing pathways in recent months.
Utah’s new proposal may allow law graduates to bypass the bar exam after supervised practice.
The state Supreme Court will take public feedback until December 19 before deciding.
Similar reforms have been implemented in Oregon, Washington, and Arizona.
The Utah Supreme Court has introduced a proposal that would enable law graduates from American Bar Association-accredited schools to practice law in the state without taking the bar exam, according to a Reuters report.
Under the proposal, graduates would need to complete 240 hours of supervised practice with an experienced attorney before being allowed to practice in the state.
Participants in the alternative pathway would also have to complete a series of courses while in law school and pass a written exam that’s similar to the Multistate Performance Test currently part of the national bar exam.
Law graduates could still opt to sit for the bar exam.
The plan, open for public feedback through December 19, aims to broaden pathways into the legal profession and reduce reliance on the traditional bar exam. This initiative is the latest in a growing list of states, including Oregon, Washington, and Arizona, that are exploring or have implemented alternative licensing methods in recent months.
The Utah Supreme Court’s proposal is the product of a working group convened in 2020 to assess alternatives to the bar exam.
The Utah working group concluded that:
the bar exam is “not the only or the best way to ensure that those admitted to practice have the requisite skill to practice law,”
the exam does not gauge the full breadth of knowledge and skills new lawyers need,
it does not protect the public,
score gaps between white and minority test takers are an ongoing problem,
the cost of studying for and taking the bar exam is too high.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Utah temporarily waived the bar exam, offering diploma privilege to law graduates as an emergency measure, Brigham Young University law professor and working group member Catherine Bramble said.
The success of that program could bolster support for the alternative pathway proposal. "My hope is that this could be implemented as soon as next summer," Bramble said.
The Utah proposal follows other similar measures taken over the last few months. The current licensure reform movement began with Oregon in 2023, when the state adopted an apprenticeship pathway for law school graduates that does not require taking the bar.
Washington followed with a similar approach in March, and in July, Arizona put a plan in motion that lets law grads who fail the bar exam obtain a license through a practical skills program. A similar proposal was rejected by the California Supreme Court in October for posing an "array of ethical and practical problems."
Liz Fischer has been appointed as the first Chief Legal Officer at Rocket Software
Couche Tard has proposed a $31 billion acquisition of Seven & i Holdings, aiming to create the world’s largest convenience store operator. It could be the largest acquisition of a Japanese company on record.
In-house legal professionals weigh in on their experiences being a GC/AGC.
Milbank announced year-end bonuses for its associates, and industry insiders said it's likely that other firms will issue associate bonuses but it was unclear whether any year-end bonuses would include summer bonuses, which had earlier been skipped over.
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission adopted a final rule, called the “click to cancel” rule, requiring businesses to make it as easy to cancel subscriptions and memberships as it is to sign up.
In-house legal professionals talk about their experiences with lengthy in-house position searches.
Join our host and CEO, Pieter Gunst, as he dives into the career journey of Kim Perry, Legal Operations Principal at Blackbaud.
Asking for a promotion is no easy task. You might be struggling to find the right moment, and you might be worried that you’ll come across as arrogant or self-serving. But if you’re looking to get ahead in your career, then you’re going to need to be able to ask for what you want. After all, not everybody wants to get to the top of their organization. You may well be eager to advance; but many people are happy remaining at the level they’re at, perhaps being unwilling to take on extra responsibility leading to more time in the office making difficult decisions. And that’s absolutely fine - everybody is different. The point is that it’s not necessarily going to be obvious to your company’s senior staff that you are looking for that promotion. So if you don’t communicate your ambitions, the powers that be won’t necessarily assume they exist. Okay – so you know that you need to ask. But how to do it? Let’s consider some ideas.
Published weekly on Friday, the Legal.io Newsletter covers the latest in legal, talent & tech.
