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The results for the July 2019 administration of the New York bar exam are out, and following the news that the national average score on the MBE section of the exam saw the largest increase since 2008, they’re looking fantastic.
According to the New York State Board of Law Examiners, 10,071 examinees — an increase of 392 candidates from last year — sat for the test this summer. Of those examinees, 65 percent passed the New York bar exam, an increase of 2 percentage points from the July 2018 exam. The overall pass rate for first-time takers was 76 percent, an increase of 2 percentage points from the July 2018 exam. Compared to last year, this is great news.
Look at these New York bar statistics to see how the July 2019 results compare:
| Year | All Candidates | All First-Time Takers | All First-Time ABA Takers |
| July 2004 | 67.4 percent passed | 76.5 percent passed | 83.1 percent passed |
| July 2005 | 67 percent passed | 75.9 percent passed | 82.7 percent passed |
| July 2006 | 69.5 percent passed | 79.4 percent passed | 86.7 percent passed |
| July 2007 | 70.6 percent passed | 79.1 percent passed | 87 percent passed |
| July 2008 | 74.7 percent passed | 83.2 percent passed | 90.5 percent passed |
| July 2009 | 72 percent passed | 80 percent passed | 88.2 percent passed |
| July 2010 | 70 percent passed | 78 percent passed | 86 percent passed |
| July 2011 | 69.2 percent passed | 78.5 percent passed | 86.1 percent passed |
| July 2012 | 68 percent passed | 76 percent passed | 83 percent passed |
| July 2013 | 69 percent passed | 78 percent passed | 86 percent passed |
| July 2014 | 65 percent passed | 74 percent passed | 83 percent passed |
| July 2015 | 61 percent passed | 70 percent passed | 79 percent passed |
| July 2016 | 64 percent passed | 73 percent passed | 83 percent passed |
| July 2017 | 68 percent passed | 78 percent passed | 86 percent passed |
| July 2018 | 63 percent passed | 74 percent passed | 83 percent passed |
| July 2019 | 65 percent passed | 76 percent passed | 86 percent passed |
Some may blame the record high number of foreign-educated candidates who took the exam for this past summer’s results, which were pretty good but could have been even better. For the July 2019 exam, a record 3,559 foreign-educated examinees sat for the test, accounting for 35 percent of all candidates who took the exam. The overall pass rate for this group was just 43 percent (an increase of 2 percentage points from the July 2018 exam), and the overall first-time pass rate for this group was only 53 percent (an increase of 3 percentage points from the July 2018 exam) — and while these increases are worthy of kudos, these candidates still dragged down the overall pass rates for all others who sat for the exam this summer.
Let’s get back to the good news. First-time takers from ABA-accredited law schools saw their pass rates increase by 3 percentage points from the July 2018 exam to 86 percent, matching July 2017’s success rate. The pass rate for first-time takers from New York ABA-accredited law schools also rose to 85 percent (an increase of 4 percentage points from July 2018). Since we mentioned ABA schools, now is a good time to remind law schools that just because the UBE may be “easier” to pass than prior state iterations of the test, it is no excuse to admit students whose performance and success on the bar exam may be questionable at best. Admissions standards must remain stable so that those who bet their lives and careers on a legal education don’t wind up in a worse position than what they started with.
Congratulations to you if you were able to pass the bar exam in New York this summer. If you didn’t pass, don’t despair. Many successful people have failed the bar exam (see our list of famous bar exam failures). Focus on February and develop a plan for passing. Believe in yourselves, because you can — eventually — do it!
Press Release: NY Bar Exam Results – July 2019 [New York Board of Law Examiners]
Staci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.