February D.C. Bar Exam At Risk
It appears that the federal government shutdown has placed the administration of the February 2019 District of Columbia Bar examination in jeopardy.
From the court’s web page
IMPORTANT NOTICES
During the federal government shutdown the Committee on Admissions is closed.
1/18/2019 Please be advised that the New Jersey Board of Bar Examiners has informed us that they’ve issued the following guidance for any New Jersey-affiliated individuals (NJ residents or Graduates of NJ Law Schools) who have applied to sit for the February 2019 DC Bar exam: https://www.njbarexams.org/news.action?id=1420
Please continue to check our website for further updates and information.
1/11/2019 Based on all available information at this time, we are still planning to administer the February 2019 bar examination as scheduled. However, we are closely monitoring any new developments with the federal government shutdown; and the status of the scheduled exam could change. We strongly encourage that prospective examinees monitor this webpage for any changes in plans to administer the February 2019 bar exam. We understand and apologize for the inconveniences that this situation presents, but we will be updating our website with any new information as we continue to learn more about the status of our operations.
1/4/2019 During the partial federal government shutdown, all functions that fall under the purview of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals’ Committee on Admissions & Unauthorized Practice of Law (COA/UPL) have been suspended. Because the COA/UPL employees have been furloughed since December 22, 2018, they have been unable to complete all of the necessary certifications and registrations in time for the January 25, 2019 swearing-in ceremonies. Accordingly, the bar swearing-in ceremonies that were previously scheduled for January 25, 2019 have been postponed. Once the federal government shutdown ends, and the COA/UPL is authorized to resume operations, a new date and time for the bar swearing-in ceremonies will be established. We regret any inconvenience that the federal government shutdown has caused in terms of limiting the COA/UPL’s ability to administer the previously scheduled bar swearing-in ceremonies. However, in the event that a rescheduled ceremony presents further inconvenience, please be advised that all successful candidates from the July 2018 bar exam who have already been certified, and duly notified by the COA/UPL, are still able to be sworn-in in absentia pursuant to DC Court of Appeals Administrative Order 03-18.
The steps for being sworn-in in absentia can be found here. Once the supplemental questionnaire form, and attorney oath of admission form have been reviewed and accepted, you will receive a confirmation email to that effect. Upon receipt of the confirmation email, pursuant to Rule 46 (k)(2), your admission is complete, and you may hold out that you are entitled to practice in the District of Columbia while your attorney license number (Bar ID) is pending.
(Mike Frisch)