Earlier this day, we examined the law schools with the highest bar passage rates for 2023. Top law schools fancy themselves as the ideal institutions shaping their graduates for the most notable, yet demanding, test of minimum competence for lawyers – the bar exam. However, this theory does not always hold. Still, it’s true that graduates from these top tier institutions generally excel in this exam.
So, which law schools didn’t quite hit the mark regarding the bar exam passage rate?
According to the ABA Journal, Western Michigan University’s Thomas M. Cooley Law School had the least impressive two-year bar passage rate for their 2021 graduates among all the ABA-accredited law schools. The data revealed a dismal two-year bar passage rate of just 55.87% for Cooley’s 2021 law grads.
In the realm of for-profit education, the InfiLaw schools have slowly vanished, although not without putting up a struggle. In their wake, Thomas M. Cooley Law School has emerged due to their track record of underperforming and scandalous moves like releasing their own law school rankings where they ranked themselves second only to Harvard. You can find this move critiqued here.
The reputational decline of Cooley law school has unfortunately reflected upon its students and alumni. Furthermore, their failure in meeting the ABA accreditation standards denotes a significant issue. As an example, a two-year bar exam passage rate falling under 75% is not compliant with the ABA accreditation norms. It was reported that Cooley had previously asked for an extension to contest their inability to meet this said standard before.
Beyond this, some other institutions struggled with their bar passage rates too. The University of the District of Columbia Law managed a pass rate of 57.14%. Two Puerto Rican schools – Pontifical Catholic and Inter-American University of Puerto Rico, managed bar passage rates of 63.33% and 65.84% respectively. With a score of 68.42%, was Western State College of Law, the last remaining for-profit law school after Charleston alters its status. Learn more about it here. Additionally, Southern University Law Center narrowly missed the 75% line with a 72.15% score.
Undoubtedly, the bar exam has been a hurdle for many qualified law practitioners. However, if almost half of a law school’s graduates fail to pass the bar exam in a span of two years, it raises serious concerns about the institution’s credibility to effectively train attorneys. Until we make radical changes to the testing procedure, students who have invested greatly in their professional degrees continue to bear the brunt of not being able to practice law and secure their licenses.
Currently, Cooley lies at the base of the totem pole. Its students and alumni merit far better representation and outcomes. For more detailed reading on this matter, check out the original article on bar passage rates here.