Genesis of the NextGen UBE

This article originally appeared in The Bar Examiner print edition, Winter 2025-2026 (Vol. 94, No. 4), pp. 29–30.By Hon. Rebecca White Berch

Because I chaired the NCBE Board of Trustees when it appointed the Testing Task Force that led to the NextGen UBE, I was asked to pinpoint the project’s beginning. Describing the genesis of the new exam, however, hasn’t proved easy.

This is so because, in my experience, NCBE is always thinking about, reviewing, and (re)examining the bar exam, as the organization has done since its inception. Such constant work is what NCBE does, and a major part of why it remains at the forefront of bar exam innovation. It’s what drew me to serve as a volunteer. Lawyers, judges, and academicians, assisted by NCBE’s editorial staff, draft, revise, and edit bar exam questions, asking whether they are relevant and clear, and whether they address legal topics that newly licensed lawyers should know. NCBE then sends each proposed question out for reviews by subject matter experts. Questions are rediscussed and revised and then undergo pretesting by NCBE experts to determine whether they meet psychometric parameters or whether further editing is necessary.

Against this background of on­­going consideration, I hope the difficulty of determining when the idea to reconsider the bar exam came about becomes clear: it was less a break with the past than an evolution of NCBE’s long-term, continuous work. But it came as no surprise that when NCBE decided to re­­examine the bar exam, it elected to do a thorough review.

As the idea gained energy during my years on the NCBE Board of Trustees, the board and staff decided to take a fresh, all-­encompassing look at what a high-stakes test should entail, especially one designed for admission to a legal profession that was in the midst of great change. During my year as chair, the board established the Testing Task Force to oversee and direct the project. The members selected were extraordinary with regard to their experience, knowledge, and dedication to the task. And they were led by the thoughtful, analytical, and dedicated Hon. Cynthia L. Martin.

The assignment was broad. It was to examine and, if necessary, reconsider all aspects of the exam: its structure, question format, content, delivery methods, and more.

Initial listening sessions were held around the country, where feedback from young lawyers, students, academicians, supervising lawyers, judges, and others was collected. The Task Force then pursued a job analysis, or validity study, to determine what newly licensed lawyers actually did: What kinds of issues were they asked to handle, and how frequently? What skills were involved in their work, and what professionalism considerations arose? This knowledge should inform what the bar exam tests: the minimum competence required of new lawyers to practice law. NCBE, through a bidding process, then recruited a professional research company to conduct a broadly distributed survey. The response rate was excellent, and the researchers condensed and grouped the results. During the survey period, the Task Force continued meeting to shape the course of the project.

It soon became clear that, to the extent psychometrically possible, the exam should focus on the broad range of knowledge and skills that a new lawyer needs to practice law in the modern world. The test should allow applicants to show their abilities in these areas and reflect the key changes occurring in legal practice and in the profession overall. The Task Force set about to operationalize these goals.

Others are more knowledgeable about the intensive process after this point that resulted in the NextGen UBE. What I can say is that the board was dedicated from the outset to committing the resources and time necessary to pursue the goal at hand: making sure the bar exam was a high-quality, fair, and psychometrically sound exam that could assist jurisdictions in determining those applicants qualified by knowledge and skill to be admitted to the practice of law. NCBE engaged competent professional researchers, conducted the necessary investigation and research, regularly consulted the affected stakeholder communities, and conscientiously took all other relevant steps to produce a high-quality, fair product with protection of the public in mind.

So when was the genesis of the NextGen UBE? From my viewpoint, the work involved has always been ongoing. I was fortunate to have been at the helm of the board at an important moment in time.

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