Record 12,000 Registrations For California's Online October Bar Exam, Perhaps Drawn By Lower Cut Score

The Recorder, Record Registrations for California's Online October Bar Exam:

A record 12,000 would-be lawyers have registered to take California’s October bar exam, even as uncertainty continues to swirl around the novel online test.

A state bar spokeswoman confirmed the five-figure registration figure Wednesday while cautioning that the number is sure to drop by the time the two-day test starts on Oct. 5. Applicants have until Sept. 8 to withdraw from the exam and receive fee refunds.

The number of applicants who actually complete the entire test typically drops off in any given year, too. While more than 10,000 law school graduates registered to take the July 2017 exam, for example, just 8,545 actually completed the test, the first to be held over three days instead of two.

Still, the enormous interest in taking the upcoming exam suggests that the new lower passing score of 139 may have attracted more test-takers than the online format has scared away, at least for now. ...

Summoned by the state Supreme Court to help applicants, California law schools are scrambling to find quiet, internet-connected spots on campuses that comply with the bar’s strict test-taking rules and California’s COVID-19 guidance.