California’s July Bar Exam To Be Administered Online

Test-takers in California will be taking the bar exam remotely in July.

The California Supreme Court decided last Friday that July’s bar exam will be given remotely. It is the third state bar exam to be held remotely, the Courthouse News Service reports.

“The circumstances surrounding the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic in California continues to severely limit the state bar’s ability to the State Bar Exam in the traditional mass, in-person format,” Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye writes. “The court hereby approves modifications to the standard schedule of the general bar exam.”

TWO-DAY FORMAT

The July exam will be issued in a two-day format beginning July 28 and running through July 29 with the first day consisting of essay questions and the 90-minute performance test and the second day including the 200-question exam.

California joins five other states including Connecticut, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Tennessee in administering the July exam online. The District of Columbia also announced that it will be administering the July exam remotely.

The COVID-19 positivity rate (14-day average) in California currently sits at 2.6%, a strikingly lower rate than 14% in January. Yet, state officials and health professionals warn that the state should continue to remain vigilant with vaccine supplies being limited and with the spread of more contagious variants posing a risk.

HOW TEST-TAKERS VIEW THE REMOTE EXAM

In a survey of 5,300 October California test-takers, a majority reported that they were satisfied with the online test taking experience.

However, respondents also highlighted challenges with the remote test taking environment and format including finding a good place to take the test and frequently changing information from the state bar.

Sources: Courthouse News Service, Law.com, Law.com, CA.gov