Derek Muller quoted in "California won't make its attorney licensing exam easier" -- Associated Press

October 23, 2017 | By Kylie Larkin -- Professor Derek Muller is quoted in the recent Associated Press article, "California won't make its attorney licensing exam easier." The article considers the California Supreme Court decision to not lower the minimum passing score on the California Bar Exam. California's minimum pass score of 144 is the second-highest in the nation.

Via Associated Press:

In California, the proposal to lower the minimum score ignited a broader debate about racial diversity among attorneys, the quality of law schools and their students, and the skills lawyers need most.

"The declining passing rate has become a proxy for so many issues in the legal field," said Derek Muller, a professor at Pepperdine University School of Law in Los Angeles who has studied legal education and standards.

Law school deans in the state say California's higher minimum score is unjustified, does not produce better lawyers and disproportionately keeps African-American and Hispanic applicants from becoming attorneys.