The Florida bar exam was moved to an online format due to COVID-19, but the test takers say the software has caused major issues.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla — The future of Florida's future lawyers is up in the air as COVID-19 has pushed back the bar exam once again.
The Florida Board of Bar Examiners' Executive Director Michelle Gavagni tells First Coast News that nearly 3,400 people are registered for the exam.
The FBBE said Sunday night, three days before the exam, that the test will be delayed until October due to technological reasons. The FBBE website says "it was determined that administering a secure and reliable remote bar examination in August was not technically feasible."
The trial test was scheduled for Monday, but that was also canceled. Now thousands of young professionals wait in limbo for a career and a test they paid thousands of dollars for.
Tech issues. Data breaches. Bank info compromised. Potential for cheating. These are a few issues I've heard future lawyers and @BarPetition talk about in regards to the online Florida Bar Exam. Overnight, the Florida Board of Bar Examiners postponed the test until October. #GMJ pic.twitter.com/DshkSpEObd
— Leah Shields (@LeahShieldsNews) August 17, 2020
The bar exam was moved online due to COVID-19, and that was only the first hurdle. When test takers started downloading the software, people were reporting issues like data breaches, bank account information being compromised, and glitches in the system allowing people to open their notes while they had the software running.
“Issues surrounding the integrity of the test and people not cheating is the upmost concern to us to say the least," said Alec Waid, law school graduate.
Waid is ready to take the exam this week, but that won't be happening. He's on hold to start at job as the Pinellas County Assistant State Attorney.
“Under normal circumstance, the bar exam is one of the most stressful things young lawyers do so having all of this hanging over our head, the uncertainty, only adds to that stress and adds to that anxiety," Waid said.
The software for the test comes from the company ILG, which Florida Representative Carlos Smith and the group "Diploma Privilege for Florida" have been vocal about explaining that other states have had issues with their software when they tried to hold the bar exam online.
Representative Smith and Representative Anna Eskamani sent a letter to the Supreme Court of Florida and the Florida Board of Bar Examiners explaining the issues and calling for a one-time emergency licensure for everyone registered for the exam.
They explain there would be additional provisions, but this would allow the thousands of people to find a job as a lawyer and gain health care during the pandemic.
We heard from countless examiners frustrated the 8/19 online bar exam software is overrun w/tech & security issues ignored by FBBE. Now we're urging @flcourts to offer alternatives to get FL's newest lawyers into the field, without sacrificing the integrity of the legal practice. pic.twitter.com/IBWTfKNLqc
— Rep. Carlos G Smith (@CarlosGSmith) August 14, 2020
The FBBE website says "The board remains committed to offering an examination to applicants in 2020 and will reschedule the examination for a date to be determined in October." The organization is also offering a supervised practice program for those registered to practice with a member of the Florida Bar.
Waid, and many other future lawyers, have expressed their frustration and want better communication from FBBE.