The ABA will host its Midyear Meeting February 1-6, 2023, in New Orleans, Louisiana. The schedule of events includes session titles like “How the ‘Fourth Branch’ Can Help Preserve the Rule of Law in Elections,” “Forced Climate Displacement: A Case for Protection [in] the U.S. Immigration Law,” and “Present and Powerful Speaker Series – Featuring Donna Brazile: A Wine and Cheese Reception.” 

The ABA recently noted in its “Top Legal News of the Week” that a panel of current and former judges will speak at a program regarding improving juvenile justice. The “Dare to Be Different: Think Outside the Box to Improve Juvenile Justice in Your Community” session “aims to inspire judges and other advocates to think about early interventions that could keep children in courts from graduating to more serious judicial involvement.” 

The meeting will also include votes on controversial issues. The Council of the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar will vote on whether to remove the requirement for a “valid and reliable” admission test for law school from ABA Standard 503. The new recommended language for the standard would state that “A law school may use admission tests as part of sound admission practices and policies. The law school shall identify in its admission policies any test it accepts.” Opponents of the standard change have expressed concerns about a possible negative impact on law school diversity, decreased transparency in the admissions process, and an eventual “race to the bottom” if law schools abandon admissions tests. This includes a comment letter from over 50 law school deans who stated, “Although these proposed revisions are well intentioned, we believe that their adoption would be premature and could have effects directly contrary to what is desired.” The letter called for more study on the possible effects of the proposal. The Board of Governors is also scheduled to determine the ABA’s legislative priorities for the 118th Congress during the meeting.

Fall 2022 Law School Demographic Data Available

The ABA recently released law school fall 2022 demographic data at www.abarequireddisclosures.org. The data sets include admissions data, tuition and fees, enrollment data, faculty information, employment outcomes, and bar passage rates, among other things. Standard 509 of the Standards and Rules of Procedure for Approval of Law Schools requires law schools to make this information available on their websites. It is also reported to the ABA. Bill Adams, the Managing Director of ABA accreditation and legal education, stated in a press release that “This series of public reports—including bar passage and employment reports to be released separately next year—provide important consumer information for students considering whether and where to attend law school and for others with an interest in legal education.”

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