When the Oregon State Board of Bar Examiners opened up applications for its Supervised Practice Portfolio Examination in May, some members of its Licensure Pathway Development Committee were nervous.

They knew the success of the program allowing ABA-accredited law school graduates to work closely with a supervising attorney instead of taking the bar exam hinged on the buy-in from the state’s potential employers. If no licensed lawyers signed up for the program, which consisted of a 675-hour paid apprenticeship under a qualified supervising state-licensed lawyer, there would be no places for the candidates to work and the program would fall apart.

Instead, within a month, 62 attorneys from 57 employers had applied to serve as supervisors. By early October, those numbers had grown to 101 attorneys from 87 employers ranging from Nike to Public Defender Services of Lane County to the Oregon Judicial Department.

“It’s more popular than we could even have imagined,” says Joanna Perini-Abbott, co-chair of the committee and a professor at Lewis & Clark Law School. Taking the traditional bar exam produced by the National Conference of Bar Examiners remains an option to join the bar.

Other states are considering Oregon-style plans. In March, the Washington Supreme Court approved, in concept, additional pathways to the bar involving supervised practice. Nevada’s new three-pronged licensure plan includes supervised practice. And members of Oregon’s committee have consulted their counterparts in Ohio, Minnesota and Utah, says Addie Tobin Smith, the other committee co-chair and a legal consultant in Portland.

Brian Gallini, a former dean of Willamette University School of Law and a former committee member, believes the portfolio exam can do to the traditional bar exam what “the iPhone did to the Blackberry.

“Oh, wait—we can help people get licensed while addressing legal deserts and racial disparities and a host of other issues? Sign me up,” he says.

The committee was made up of 14 members, including deans of the state’s three law schools, a law student, practicing attorneys, the CEO of the Oregon State Bar, and representatives of the Oregon State Bar Board of Bar Examiners, the Oregon State Bar Board of Governors and the Oregon bench. A separate working group representing various stakeholders also offered input, Smith says.

The state’s move comes as jurisdictions consider if and when they will use the NextGen Bar Exam in place of the NCBE’s Uniform Bar Exam, which sunsets in 2028.

But the glimmer of inspiration dates back to just before the pandemic, Perini-Abbott says, as data emerged showing racial disparities in bar exam performance and other research questioned whether the bar exam was a good measure of minimum competence. Then when COVID-19 hit, Oregon scrapped the rigid rules surrounding the UBE and offered an option to take the bar exam remotely and grant diploma privilege to 2020 graduates.

In May, the council of the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar approved a policy shift allowing states to use methods of licensure beyond the traditional bar exam. The May 2024 graduating class is the first to be offered the new pathway. By October, 49 applicants had received their provisional licenses to practice law and 27 were in process, according to the committee.

“It is not a rubber stamp,” says Smith, who has graded some of the provisional attorneys’ portfolio work, some of which did not meet standards. “It’s still an exam.”

Legal Rebels Class of 2025

Rodrigo Camarena

Roy Ferguson

Joan Howarth and Deborah Jones Merritt

Oregon Board of Bar Examiners

Swapna Reddy

Jacqueline Schafer

Noella Sudbury

In This Podcast:

When the Oregon State Board of Bar Examiners opened up applications for its Supervised Practice Portfolio Examination in May, some members of its Licensure Pathway Development Committee were nervous.

They knew the success of the program allowing ABA-accredited law school graduates to work closely with a supervising attorney instead of taking the bar exam hinged on the buy-in from the state’s potential employers. If no licensed lawyers signed up for the program, which consisted of a 675-hour paid apprenticeship under a qualified supervising state-licensed lawyer, there would be no places for the candidates to work and the program would fall apart.

Instead, within a month, 62 attorneys from 57 employers had applied to serve as supervisors. By early October, those numbers had grown to 101 attorneys from 87 employers ranging from Nike to Public Defender Services of Lane County to the Oregon Judicial Department.

“It’s more popular than we could even have imagined,” says Joanna Perini-Abbott, co-chair of the committee and a professor at Lewis & Clark Law School. Taking the traditional bar exam produced by the National Conference of Bar Examiners remains an option to join the bar.

Other states are considering Oregon-style plans. In March, the Washington Supreme Court approved, in concept, additional pathways to the bar involving supervised practice. Nevada’s new three-pronged licensure plan includes supervised practice. And members of Oregon’s committee have consulted their counterparts in Ohio, Minnesota and Utah, says Addie Tobin Smith, the other committee co-chair and a legal consultant in Portland.

Brian Gallini, a former dean of Willamette University School of Law and a former committee member, believes the portfolio exam can do to the traditional bar exam what “the iPhone did to the Blackberry.

“Oh, wait—we can help people get licensed while addressing legal deserts and racial disparities and a host of other issues? Sign me up,” he says.

The committee was made up of 14 members, including deans of the state’s three law schools, a law student, practicing attorneys, the CEO of the Oregon State Bar, and representatives of the Oregon State Bar Board of Bar Examiners, the Oregon State Bar Board of Governors and the Oregon bench. A separate working group representing various stakeholders also offered input, Smith says.

The state’s move comes as jurisdictions consider if and when they will use the NextGen Bar Exam in place of the NCBE’s Uniform Bar Exam, which sunsets in 2028.

But the glimmer of inspiration dates back to just before the pandemic, Perini-Abbott says, as data emerged showing racial disparities in bar exam performance and other research questioned whether the bar exam was a good measure of minimum competence. Then when COVID-19 hit, Oregon scrapped the rigid rules surrounding the UBE and offered an option to take the bar exam remotely and grant diploma privilege to 2020 graduates.

In May, the council of the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar approved a policy shift allowing states to use methods of licensure beyond the traditional bar exam. The May 2024 graduating class is the first to be offered the new pathway. By October, 49 applicants had received their provisional licenses to practice law and 27 were in process, according to the committee.

“It is not a rubber stamp,” says Smith, who has graded some of the provisional attorneys’ portfolio work, some of which did not meet standards. “It’s still an exam.”

Legal Rebels Class of 2025

Rodrigo Camarena

Roy Ferguson

Joan Howarth and Deborah Jones Merritt

Oregon Board of Bar Examiners

Swapna Reddy

Jacqueline Schafer

Noella Sudbury

In This Podcast:

UKIAH, Calif. — The Bureau of Land Management has selected Neal Craig as the Ukiah Field Manager who will oversee management of more than 270,000 acres of public lands within Marin, Mendocino, Lake, Sonoma, Napa, Colusa, Glenn, Yolo, and Solano counties. 

The Ukiah Field Office also manages parts of the California Coastal National Monument in the Point Arena-Stornetta area and the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument, managed jointly with the Mendocino National Forest. The field office also administers geothermal leasing at The Geysers, the world’s largest geothermal steam field and the Cow Mountain Recreation Area, which includes the first Congressionally designated OHV area. 

“I’m very grateful for the opportunity to work collaboratively with our stakeholders and the public to manage the Ukiah Field Office,” Craig says.  “I look forward to developing new and existing projects and programs that serve the surrounding communities, while balancing our multiple-use mission.” 

Neal brings a broad background in natural resource management, sustainable agriculture, and organizational development in both the government and private sectors. Most recently, Neal has served as the Assistant Field Manager in the BLM Bishop Field Office where he supervised the multi-resources staff and provided leadership in several program development areas. He previously worked for the U.S. Geologic Survey, serving as a technical expert, project manager, and supervisor in water quality and water quantity projects in Colorado, Michigan, Kentucky, and other states. Throughout his career, he has focused on employee training, mentoring, engagement and advancing organizational change. He has also owned and operated a sustainable farm that utilized livestock grazing systems, soil health improvement, and watershed restoration projects.  

“We are fortunate to have Neal on our team,” says BLM Central California District Manager Gabe Garcia. “His experience and leadership in natural resource management combined with his knowledge of watershed restoration projects will be valuable additions to our Ukiah Field Office.” 

Neal graduated from the University of Memphis with a Bachelor of Science in geography. When not in the office, Neal is an avid runner, small batch coffee roaster, and explorer of diverse social viewpoints. Craig succeeds Nick Lavrov, who took a position with another government agency.