Wake Forest University School of Law graduates top N.C. bar passage rate two years in a row
Posted: 09-03-2009 : WINSTON-SALEM, N.C.

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- For the second year in a row, Wake Forest University School of Law graduates had the top bar passage rate among North Carolina universities for first timers taking the N.C. bar exam in July 2009.

Ninety-two percent of Wake Forest graduates taking the state bar exam for the first time passed, according to the N.C. Board of Law Examiners.

Wake Forest graduates tied with Campbell University graduates for the top bar passage rate, which includes first-timers as well as students who were repeating the exam, at 91 percent.

Of Wake Forest’s 73 first-time bar exam takers, 67 passed, while one of two repeaters passed.

“We are obviously pleased with the results,” said Wake Forest University School of Law Dean Blake Morant. “The exemplary bar passage rate is a testament to our students’ hard work and determination, and hopefully signals the strength of our academic program.”

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill had an 87 percent passage rate, Duke University had an 85 percent passage rate, Elon University had an 83 percent passage rate, North Carolina Central University had a 77 percent passage rate and Charlotte Law School.

The two-section exam includes 12 essay questions designed to test knowledge of North Carolina law and 200 multiple-choice questions that test general knowledge of U.S. law.

The Wake Forest University School of Law offers five degree programs: the JD, the JD/MDiv http://law.wfu.edu/academics/degree/mdiv/ , the JD/MA in Religion and in BioEthics, the Master of Laws in American Law and the JD/MBA in conjunction with the university’s Babcock Graduate School of Management.