Bar-Exam Changes and Alternatives to the Bar Exam
Learn more about the recently approved alternative pathways to lawyer licensure in Washington state.
On March 15, 2024, the Washington Supreme Court filed two orders approving alternative pathways to lawyer licensure: order 25700-B-710 adopting the NextGen Bar Exam starting with the July 2026 examination and reducing the minimum UBE passing score in Washington from 270 to 266 for all bar exams administered from July 2020 through the implementation of the NextGen Bar Exam, and order 25700-B-711 adopting in concept the recommendations from the Washington Bar Licensure Task Force relating to graduate apprenticeship, law school experiential pathway, APR 6 apprenticeship, alternative assessments and interventions, and reciprocity.
The Supreme Court also directed the Executive Director of the WSBA to convene and support an implementation committee to propose rule changes and identify next steps necessary to implement the recommendations.
Prospective applicants: The recommended alternative pathways to licensure, adopted in concept by the Court, have not been implemented yet. Therefore, currently there is no application available for these alternative pathways.
Continue to check here for more information as it becomes available. Please email alternativepathways@wsba.org for any other questions.
Washington Courts News
Washington Supreme Court Approves New Pathways to Lawyer Licensure
