This panel will discuss how bar examinees from communities of color or who are neurodivergent (including examinees with learning disabilities and mental health challenges) are adversely affected by bias in the bar exam. Studies show that bar examinees from communities of color have lower pass rates than their white peers. Neurodivergent examinees encounter a range of impediments to success on the bar resulting in their underperforming their neurotypical peers. If the legal profession is to be more representative of the population as a whole, it must eliminate artificial barriers that act to reinforce racial and neurological biases. This panel seeks to help expand the conversation about these problems so we may, as a community, work together to solve them.
Moderator: Professor Scott DeVito, Ave Maria School of Law
Speakers: Professor Andi Curcio, Georgia State University College of Law; Professor David A. Green, North Carolina Central University School of Law; Professor Erin Lain, Drake University Law School; Professor Reginald J. Mitchell, Sr., Florida A&M University College of Law; Ms. Haley Moss, Haley Moss LLC