Board Approves Exam Remedies, Executive Director Search Committee, and Statement Against Chilling Federal Executive Orders

At its May 9 meeting, the State Bar Board of Trustees recommended non-scoring remedies for February 2025 Bar Exam applicants, including expanding the Provisional Licensure Program (PLP) to exam takers who were unsuccessful or withdrew. 

The PLP allows law school graduates to practice law under the supervision of fully licensed lawyers. To become licensed, applicants still must take and pass a bar exam and meet all other requirements for admission. If approved by the California Supreme Court, the PLP for the February cohort would expire two years after implementation, or December 31, 2027, whichever is later. This expiration date would apply to those currently in the program and to the new cohort. 

The PLP remedy was first proposed by the Committee of Bar Examiners (CBE) at its March 14 meeting. Other remedies recommended by the CBE for February test takers at its May 5 meeting that the Board approved Friday include:

• Recommending a path to licensure for US barred attorneys without sitting for the California Bar Exam. The recommendation is contingent on the passage of Assembly Bill 1522, which currently allows the Committee of Bar Examiners to prescribe alternative means for licensure with no bar exam requirement for those barred in other jurisdictions for at least 4 years, and a different examination requirement for those barred for less than 4 years. 
• As an interim remedy, recommending that the Court expedite a special admissions process for out-of-state attorneys.

The PLP and Barred Attorneys proposals will go to the Court for its consideration.

The Board also extended the existing fee waiver to allow applicants who were unsuccessful or withdrew in February to use the waiver of application fees for July 2025, February 2026, or July 2026 exams, whichever the applicant takes first. Additionally, those who already applied the fee waiver for July 2025 can withdraw and use the waiver for either of the following two exams. 

“These resolutions continue our efforts to find fair and appropriate solutions for February applicants,” Board Chair Brandon Stallings said. “We recognize the exam experience was frustrating, to say the least, for many. We are truly sorry for the difficulties that were endured. The Board’s actions today demonstrate our continuing focus on how we can help applicants successfully become practicing attorneys while remaining committed to our public protection mission.” 

The Board also passed a resolution recommending the Committee of Bar Examiners reconvene to address concerns heard from February 2025 test takers and consider whether further adjustments are needed, including: 

• Taking the higher of the first and second read scores by response, as opposed to averaging them. 
• Creating an appeal process for those who scored near the pass line. 
• Permitting a retake of the Performance Test (PT) on the July 2025 Bar Exam and substituting that score for the PT score received in February. 
• Exploring comments made that some applicants received answers belonging to other test takers, were denied accommodations, and other issues to determine if further remedies are warranted.

Exam results across all applicant types and demographic groups showed notable increases. The overall pass rate for the General Bar Exam reached 55.9 percent—the highest for any February or spring administration since 1965. The pass rate for the Attorneys’ Exam was 76.5 percent, far exceeding the 10-year average of 49 percent. 

• The difference in pass rates between Black test takers and white test takers decreased from a 10-year average of 20 percentage points, to approximately 11 points.  
• For Hispanic/Latino test takers, the difference narrowed from 17 percentage points to 12.  
• The pass rate for all test takers with approved Testing Accommodations on the February 2025 California Bar Examination was 65.1 percent, an increase from 37 percent in February 2023 and 40 percent in 2024 and is above the 10-year average of 31 percent for this group for the years 2015 to 2024.  

In other actions, the Board approved: 

• Establishing a search committee for the next Executive Director following Leah Wilson’s recent announcement to retire from state service, effective July 7, 2025. Deputy Executive Director Erika Doherty will assume Interim Executive Director duties on July 8, 2025, once Wilson departs, and until a new Executive Director is hired by the Board. 
• The Board approved a statement on Recent Executive Actions Threatening the Availability of Legal Counsel and the Rule of Law:  

The State Bar reaffirms that attorneys have an ethical duty to provide competent representation regardless of how controversial their clients' causes may be and must exercise independent professional judgment free from external influences. Recent actions by the federal administration threaten these core principles. These actions imperil lawyers' ability to competently represent clients and create a chilling effect on availability of legal services, threatening access to justice and the rule of law. The State Bar encourages California attorneys to speak out in support of the right to competent legal counsel for all and of the rule of law. 

The Board also approved amicus participation in the lawsuits challenging executive orders at the appropriate time. 

Original source can be found here.