Page 16 - CLT060721

16 ■ JUNE 7, 2021 NEWS

Remote Bar Exams Are Out. In-Person

Testing to Return in February

By Karen Sloan

t seems that the in-person bar exam is making a
comeback.
I The National Conference of Bar Examiners an-
nounced Tuesday that it is not planning to make a
remote bar exam available to jurisdictions for the
February 2022 exam, and will instead only offer
materials for an in-person exam. The National Con-
ference, which develops the three main bar exam
components, has since October 2020 given states
the option to choose between remote and onsite ex-
ams due to the COVID-19 pandemic. That means
the upcoming July 2021 test will be the final national
online bar exam.
“Remote exams have been a valuable stopgap for
jurisdictions during this time, allowing examinees Credit: Mangostar/Shutterstock.com
to take the test without having to gather in a larger cheating.) Critics have also argued that online ex-
group,” said Beth Hill, the national conference’s di- ams are unfair to lower-income test takers without
rector of test development, operations, and security reliable internet and people who lack a quiet place
in an announcement of the move. “However, remote to sit for the exam, and to racial minorities who may
exams create challenges for exam security and uni- not be recognized by online facial recognition tech-
formity, and for this reason, we have consistently nology. What’s more, some said the software they
advocated for in-person testing had to download to their personal
as the best option whenever pos- computers may have left the vul-
sible.” nerable to security breaches.
The remote bar exam has proven Bar exam officials, however,
polarizing. Some recent bar exam- have said that the online exams
inees were happy to not have to The National Conference of given thus far in October 2020 and
show up at convention centers and Bar Examiners announced February 2021 were largely suc-
other large venues with hundreds that July 2021 will be the cessful, with few examinees facing
of other test takers during the last time it offers states an technical issues.
pandemic. But others criticized online bar exam option. According to the National
the move to online testing, citing Conference, 29 jurisdictions are
concerns over potential cheating planning to give a remote exam
and the rules imposed to prevent next month, while 24 are admin-
it—such as requiring test takers istering it in person. California,
to remain in their seats for long New York, Florida and Pennsyl-
periods of time and prohibiting them from look- vania are among the states planning to give remote
ing away from their computer screens. (Computer exams. Texas, Minnesota and Virginia are giving in-
cameras and microphones were used to monitor for exams July 27 and 28.

CONNECTICUT
Law Tribune