Posted on 03/21/2017 4:00:16 PM PDT by ConservativeStatement
When the University of Arizona started accepting a generic graduate school exam for law school applicants last year, the national group that oversees such admissions chastised the university and threatened to oust it from its membership.
But now that Harvard, the gold standard, is following suit, there is growing hope that dropping the traditional Law School Admissions Test as a requirement for applicants across the country could lead to a larger and more diverse group of lawyers entering the field.
(Excerpt) Read more at bostonglobe.com ...
You need to be transgender and gay and a minority ..then you have a shot. Otherwise..you better have a relative or friend who is an alumni.
Just what you want - an affirmative action attorney. Next up, aa surgeons.
I’m going to play devil’s advocate and say this is a good thing.
The GRE is a general test of knowledge. lawyers are not, as they like to portray themselves, demi-gods or keepers of some sort of sacred flame. In reality they are not much different from mechanic or plumbers They are just technicians in a field. There is very little, if anything about the law that anyone with a bachelor’s degree in any field could not understand.
If you can pass the bar exam you should be able to become a lawyer regardless of weather you have a law degree or not.
If we triple the number of lawyers their fees will fall.
It might make a difference for some applicants. It’s been a couple decades since I did those tests, but the LSAT never included math while the GRE & GMAT did. If math is your thing, you now have an opportunity to impress Harvard Law with your quantitative skills.
Heck! Judge Roy Bean, the only law West of the Pecos did that. If he could, why not others?
Just what we need. More effing lawyers.
You’re getting more lawyers either way. Now you will get more stupid lawyers.
There are far too many lawyers in the world.
“Test preparation process,” HA!!! The LSAT is essentially an adapted IQ test designed to see if the taker can think like a lawyer. The Best preparation is a good night’s sleep. I know. I got excellent gradesbon it and in law school and a good night’s sleep was my only preparation.
But then my niece is a recent HLS grad and as fine and bright a young woman as ever drew breath.
The people applying are the same people who went to the same schools and got the same grades. The only difference is the test they take.
Supposedly the LSAT gives a measure of raw intelligence and logical ability. But intelligence is almost always applied. And some people have a greater ability to bring what intelligence have to bear on the problems they face.
Besides, if we are talking about some raw or absolute measure of intelligence, wouldn't the math section of the GRE give an indication of that as much as the non-math LSAT does?
Math!, well that might mean logic & rigorous proof might seep into future legal minds.
Nah can’t happen!
Some of your comments I agree with.
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Okay, LOL. I understand where you are coming from. I can’t agree with the idea we need more attorneys and their fees will fall if there are more.
In the field of law, if you can convince someone they have a grievance and get them into court, you get paid.
What is the downside of having a whole slew of new diverse attorneys? Well, let’s look at immigration. Wouldn’t it be grand to have twice as many attorneys representing illegal aliens?
That’s just one example. These folks will gum up the works for decades. If anything, we need far less attorneys.
Yes, if I have a problem I want an attorney. If I have a problem, it will be a genuine problem. I don’t look for ways to get a big payday. Not insinuating you do either, but with more attorneys around, that’s what many people will wind up doing.
“Hey, I can get you an attorney cheap. He’ll get in court in no time. He’ll only ask for 75% of your settlement. Are you in?”
“Well, let me see. 25% of $100k sounds pretty good right now. Sure, I’m in. Hook me up.”
Maybe I’m the only one that thinks along these lines, but that’s how I see it.
As for the diversity part of it, again, just what we need, someone looking out for innocent immigrants who haven’t gotten their fair share of the pie yet. Or perhaps it would be some Latina who was in line for four minutes, and the check-stand nearby opened up and someone else beat her to it. Aha, racism!!!!
I’m glad it takes time and determination to become an attorney. Stack on another required six years for all I care.
Again, perhaps folks will agree with you.
It’s an odd time to worry about the need for more lawyers. They are in over-supply.
Oh, I know why. Law school admissions are down, a lot.
There’s your answer. I had to think for a moment because I’m so old I remember when students were the focus of the education industry.
“...Because Obama’s sons and daughters can’t pass the LSAT...”
Exactly. I just read “The Bell Curve”. Our own daughter scored fairly well on the LSAT and ended up in a top 50 (top tier) law school and is now working in a law firm in NYC. This process is meant to separate and sort the chaff from the wheat. We cannot have dumb lawyers. It won’t work and will create chaos throughout the entire legal system.
I am aware that lawyers are often hated, but in their defense, many are ethical and high intelligence is needed along with a well developed ethical conscience to form the best possible advocates. Think of Thomas More Society type lawyers for example. To dumb the process down makes it meaningless.
Will they dumb down the bar exams next??
Lest I seem racist (I am not) - there are qualified “diverse” students that do well on the LSAT - so what if there are less of them? How about quality instead of quantity? Why do numbers matter so much? (rhetorical)
Hahahahahahaha!...koff...sniff...ah...haha!...ah...ha...that's a good one!
“....Hahahahaha...”
OK hehehe! I concede it is bad enough! But it would be even worse if they were stupid on top of it all! Think about it!
Decades ago, I took both the LSAT and the GRE. I scored about the same on both. (Higher than you, thanks for asking. ;-) ) Of course, these tests were essentially IQ tests back then. I don’t know how they’ve changed in the meantime.
Personally I identify as a lawyer. See how that works.
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