The requirement will be paused until August 31
Photo: Tony Webster, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
The American Bar Association has paused the enforcement of its requirement for US law schools to consider diversity and inclusion criteria in recruitment, admissions, and programming, reported Reuters.
The temporary suspension was voted into force by the ABA's Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar on Friday. The suspension will hold until August 31.
The council’s standards committee said it would be evaluating proposed amendments to the diversity and inclusion requirement for compliance with the law.
In 2023, the US Supreme Court prohibited the consideration of race in college admissions. US President Donald Trump’s administration has also declared that it would cut federal funding for academic institutions and universities that ran diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.
In August 2024, the ABA initially removed references to race, ethnicity, and gender in the standard; however, the move was met with backlash. The association presented a new proposal that required schools to display a commitment to the inclusion of groups that were highlighted as having been traditionally excluded from the profession “due to race, color, ethnicity, religion, national origin, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, disability, military status, Native American tribal citizenship, and/or socioeconomic background.”
Last month, 21 attorneys general from Republican-led US states opposed the pitched revisions in a letter, saying in a statement published by Reuters that they “impermissibly impose race-based admissions and hiring requirements as a condition of accreditation.”
In October 2024, the ABA amended its Judicial Clerkship Program to eliminate language referring to minority students and communities of color. In December 2024, the Florida Bar eliminated its internal diversity and inclusion policy in the face of pressure from the Florida Supreme Court.
The US Department of Education designated the ABA as the national accreditor of almost 200 law schools. The ABA’s standards must be adhered to by all schools.
