The process for law school accreditation by the American Bar Association is under severe attack as being too rigid and too expensive, amid rising tuition costs and a tight job market. Even President Barack Obama weighed in on August 23, suggesting that the third year of law school should be outsourced to firms and legal organizations to engage in yearlong externships.
In the discussions that have followed, it is important to separate the two related strands of thought: that three years is too long and can be shortened, and that the time on task — meaning the minutes of instruction ABA-accredited schools must provide to law students — can be cut to allow law students to opt out of a third year and become partially licensed.
