Supreme Court eyes adopting NextGen Bar Exam in 2026

The Supreme Court is looking to adopt the NextGen Bar Exam for all future candidates for admission to the Commonwealth Bar Association starting in 2026.

In an e-filing notice to intent, the court said it has carefully studied the new format and consulted with legal educators and practitioners. After these deliberations, the court has been recommended to adopt the NextGen Bar Exam.

This determination is in line with the Commonwealth’s goal of maintaining a high standard of competency and ethics for all practicing attorneys and a continuing interest in reaching full reciprocity with UBE jurisdictions when practicable in the future. All jurisdictions which administer the UBE must transition to the NextGen Bar Exam by July 2028, when the UBE is phased out permanently. The court was left with a decision of not whether, but when, to adopt the NextGen Bar Exam.

“The court has the responsibility of regulating admission to the Commonwealth Bar Association to ensure that candidates possess the requisite knowledge and skills to effectively represent the interests of the public and the legal community. Since 2014, the Commonwealth has administered the UBE, a standardized, 12-hour test designed to assess fundamental legal principles applicable to many jurisdictions across the United States. The bar exam also includes two essay questions based on local law, the Local Content Essays,” the court said.

The National Conference of Bar Examiners announced that the NextGen Bar Exam will begin to replace the Uniform Bar Examination starting in July 2026, introducing the updated format concurrently with the UBE for two years before the UBE will be made unavailable for any jurisdiction to use as a test for law licensure.

The NCBE recently undertook a comprehensive, multiyear review of the existing bar exam structure to modernize the exam and align it with the true demands of the legal profession.

As a result, the NCBE developed the NextGen Bar Exam, which is designed to better integrate testing of both substantive law and practical skills. The NextGen Bar Exam will focus on assessing competencies essential for newly licensed lawyers, such as legal research, client communication, and negotiation, while reducing the emphasis on rote memorization of specific legal doctrines. The exam will be shorter, at nine hours, compared with the current 12-hour UBE, but will still be administered across two days. Where the current bar exam must be completed by hand, the NextGen Bar Exam will be administered electronically.

The Commonwealth does not engage in reciprocity with UBE jurisdictions, but administers the full UBE by utilizing all three of its components: the Multistate Essay Examination, Multistate Performance Test, and Multistate Bar Examination. Sitting for the Commonwealth Bar Exam does not provide examinees with a UBE score that is portable to other jurisdictions. (Saipan Tribune)