The Massachusetts bar exam for newly minted law school graduates will be postponed from July to the fall amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to the state Supreme Judicial Court and Board of Bar Examiners.
The two entities confirmed the delay in a statement Monday. The two-day exam, which law school graduates must pass to practice in Massachusetts, was initially scheduled for July 28 and July 29. It’s been rescheduled for the fall on “dates to be determined,” the statement said.
Officials said the Board of Bar Examiners, in conjunction with the SJC, will continue to monitor the public health and safety guidelines, including prohibitions on large public gatherings, stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic.
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“In the event that limitations on large gatherings continue to interfere with a fall administration of the Massachusetts bar examination, alternative means for testing of applicants for Massachusetts bar admission will be devised and announced,” the statement said.
Governor Charlie Baker last week ordered all nonessential businesses in Massachusetts to close and urged the state’s nearly 7 million people to stay home in the face of the novel coronavirus’s rapidly growing, and increasingly deadly, spread.
“We’re asking everyone to use their common sense, think about the impact this virus is having on the sick and elderly, and to limit their interactions with other people,” Baker said at a State House news conference last week.
Matt Stout of the Globe Staff contributed to this report.
Travis Andersen can be reached at travis.andersen@globe.com.