US EditionState Bar’s botched exam for new lawyers is California’s latest entry to the hall of shame
- The State Bar of California administered a flawed bar exam in February 2025 through Measure Learning, which led to widespread problems across the state.
- The State Bar had recently changed the test format and used AI-generated questions without disclosing this, causing technical failures and disputes over results.
- Applicants faced repeated platform crashes, inability to copy and paste, screen lags, and error messages, severely impairing their exam experience and causing frustration.
- Following a reduction in the required passing score by the state Supreme Court, 55.9% of those who took the February exam succeeded, resulting in 2,436 newly licensed attorneys, while the State Bar filed a fraud lawsuit against Measure Learning.
- The exam debacle prompted the resignation announcement of State Bar executive director Leah T. Wilson, highlighting California’s ongoing challenges with high-profile management failures.
19 Articles
19 Articles
Bar exam screwup just latest entry in state’s hall of shame
Is there something in California’s water that induces the state’s bureaucrats to make boneheaded errors of judgment? It would seem so, given the sorry history of monumental screwups. Many of the state government’s wrongheaded actions involve abortive efforts to use advanced technology. The poster child for those high-tech basket cases has been Financial Information System for California, dubbed FI$Cal, which was supposed to be a comprehensive fi…
Daily Bulletin
State Bar’s botched exam for new lawyers is California’s latest entry to the hall of shame
Is there something in California’s water that induces the state’s bureaucrats to make boneheaded errors of judgment? It would seem so, given the sorry history of monumental screwups. Many of the state government’s wrongheaded actions involve abortive efforts to use advanced technology. The poster child for those high-tech basket cases has been Financial Information System for California, dubbed FI$Cal, which was supposed to be a comprehensive fi…
After A.I. bar exam fiasco, State Bar of California faces deeper financial crisis
The State Bar expects to pay around $5.6 million to offer free exams to test takers, book in-person testing sites and return the exam to its traditional system of questions for its July test.
State Bar’s Botched Exam for New Lawyers Is CA's Latest Entry to the Hall of Shame
This commentary was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. Is there something in California’s water that induces the state’s bureaucrats to make boneheaded errors of judgment? It would seem so, given the sorry history of monumental screwups. By Dan Walters CalMatters Opinion Many of the state government’s wrongheaded actions involve abortive efforts to use advanced technology. A History of High-Tech Failures The post…
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 70% of the sources are Center
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
Ownership
To view ownership data please Upgrade to Vantage
