A meeting of the Committee of Bar Examiners of The State Bar of California convened in closed session at 9:30 a.m., Friday, May 3, 2013, in a meeting room at the State Bar offices in San Francisco, California, Sean M. McCoy, Chair, presiding. Officers and members present were: Sean M. McCoy, Chair; James H. Aguirre, Archie “Joe” Biggers, James A. Bolton, J. Scott Bovitz, Richard A. Frankel, KV Kumar, Martha Pruden-Hamiter, Steven J. Renick, Jeanne C. Vanderhoff, Lee H. Wallach, and Alan S. Yochelson, Members. State Bar staff members in attendance were: Gayle E. Murphy, Senior Director, Admissions, George C. Leal, Director for Educational Standards, Lisa Jeong Cummins, Director for Examinations, and Greg Shin, Director for Operations and Management. Member Joel S. Miliband entered the meeting at 10:05 a.m., and Vice-Chair Larry Sheingold, Member Cometria C. Cooper, and Member Patricia P. White at 10:30 a.m. Member Sandra Mendoza was absent. Dean Jeffrey Kravitz and J. Leonard Padilla were in attendance beginning at 9:30 a.m. until 10:40 a.m. The meeting went into open session at approximately 10:45 a.m. until 12:00 noon for the purpose of receiving public input on two pending proposals. A number of individuals provided comments. Member Sandra L. Salazar, M.D. entered the meeting at 11:20 a.m. and State Bar Staff Gina Crawford, Director for Administration, Debra Murphy Lawson, Director for Moral Character Determinations, Kim Wong, Administrative Specialist, Lauren Fletcher, Senior Administrative Assistant, and Rachel S. Grunberg, Senior Assistant General Counsel, joined the meeting at approximately 10:40 a.m. The meeting went into closed session at approximately 12:45 p.m., and at which time Joseph Dunn, State Bar Executive Director, and Ginny Yee, Assistant Secretary, joined the meeting. General Counsel Starr Babcock entered the meeting at approximately 1 p.m. The session concluded at 2:15 p.m. and at which time the Committee’s subcommittees met. The meeting was reconvened into closed session at 9 a.m. on Saturday, May 4, 2013. All Committee members and staff in attendance on Friday were present on Saturday, except Richard Frankel, Lee Wallach and Lauren Fletcher. Also in attendance were Sarah Cohen, Christopher Frick, Thomas Haran, David Kelley, Dennis Peter Maio, Laura Meyers, Amanda Roze, and Paul Webb. The meeting went into open session at 10 a.m., at which time the members of Examination Development and Grading Team left the meeting and Dean Greg Brandes joined the meeting. The meeting went into closed session again at 10:40 a.m., at which time Dean Brandes left the meeting. The meeting was adjourned at 11 a.m.
It was moved, seconded and duly carried that the minutes taken during the public session of the meeting on March 22 and 23, 2013, be approved.
It was by common consent agreed that the written and oral comments received in connection with the Committee’s public forum that was held on May 3, 2013 on the proposal to amend the accredited and unaccredited law school rules and the proposal to reduce the General Bar Examination from two days to three days be received and that a working group to prepare draft rules that will require unaccredited law schools to eventually become accredited and that will permit distance learning law schools to become accredited and otherwise propose appropriate amendments for consideration by the Committee at a future meeting, be appointed by the Committee’s Chair.
It was by common consent agreed that the oral reports on the Board of Trustees Task Force on Admissions Reform activities from Richard Frankel, Patricia White and Alan Yochelson, Committee representatives on the Task Force, be received.
It was by common consent agreed that oral reports received from Committee representatives who attended the National Conference of Bar Examiners’ Annual Bar Examiners Conference, which was held in April 2013, be received.
March 2013 Key Indicators It was by common consent agreed that the March 2013 Key Indicators for the Office of Admissions/Committee of Bar Examiners be received and filed.
Schedule for June 28 and 29, 2013 Committee Meeting It was by common consent agreed that the schedule for the June 28 and 29, 2013 Committee Meeting, which will be held at The State Bar of California Offices in Los Angeles, California, be received and filed.
It was by common consent agreed that the Committee of Bar Examiners’ policy regarding announcement of examination results, be received and filed.
It was by common consent agreed that tentative conference call meetings of the Subcommittee on Examinations be scheduled for May 24, 2013 and June 13, 2013 to consider testing accommodation petition appeals filed in connection with administration of the June 2013 First-Year Law Students’ Examination and the July 2013 California Bar Examination.
2012-2013 Subcommittee on Examinations Goals
It was by common consent agreed that the 2012 – 2013 goals for the Subcommittee on Examinations be received and filed.
Presentation on Examination Development and Grading – Validity and Reliability It was by common consent agreed that the presentation from psychometrician Chad Buckendahl, Ph.D. on validity and reliability as they relate to examination development and grading be received.
It was moved, seconded and duly carried that foreign-educated attorney applicants be required to have legal education and be admitted by the professional bar admissions regulation/licensing authorities in their admitting jurisdictions in order to register as attorney applicants and that staff be directed to prepare draft guidelines for interpretation of this policy for review by the Committee at a future meeting.
Qualification of Japanese Patent Attorneys to Register as Foreign Attorney Applicants It was moved, seconded and duly carried that applicants admitted as patent attorneys in Japan who are admitted to the Japan Federation of Bar Associations, the Japan Bar Association or the Japanese Patent Bar Association and who can provide proof of their completion of substantive legal education be considered as having met the requirements and be permitted to register as foreign attorney applicants; that applicants who were admitted as patent attorneys in Japan be advised that they will be permitted to register as foreign attorney applicants if they sign a statement under penalty of perjury that they relied on advice provided by the Office of Admissions that they would be able to qualify to take the California Bar Examination based solely on their status as patent attorneys admitted in Japan; and that any exceptions to the Committee’s foreign attorney registration policy only remain in effect through administration of the July 2015 California Bar Examination.
It was by common consent agreed that the 2012 – 2013 goals for the Subcommittee on Operations and Management be received and filed.
It was moved, seconded and duly carried that the requests of John F. Kennedy University College of Law for approval of a Major Change, which would allow it to offer an online LL.M. degree, and the Committee’s acquiescence to award the degree, be received and filed and that the requests be granted.
It was by common consent agreed that the 2012 – 2013 goals for the Subcommittee on Educational Standards be received and filed.
It was by common consent agreed that the 2012 – 2013 goals for the Subcommittee on Moral Character be received and filed.
Having concluded all the business scheduled for consideration during the open and closed sessions of the meeting, the meeting was adjourned at 11 a.m., Saturday, May 4, 2013.