The
Lone
Star
State
is
tired
of
the
ABA
dunking
on
their
low
bar
passage
rates
and
wants
their
Supreme
Court
to
be
the
final
arbiter
of
who
gets
to
be
a
lawyer.
Kind
of
the
thing
you’d
expect
from
a
state
with
a
history
of
independence
and
secession
efforts.
Reuters
has
coverage:
The
Supreme
Court
of
Texas
said
in
an
order
on
Friday
that
it
“is
of
the
tentative
opinion
that
the
ABA
should
no
longer
have
the
final
say”
on
whether
a
law
school’s
alumni
can
sit
for
the
Texas
Bar
or
be
licensed.
The
court
itself
would
determine
which
law
schools
are
“approved”
under
the
state’s
lawyer
admissions
rules,
according
to
the
preliminary
order.
…
The
Texas
Supreme
Court
did
not
provide
details
on
how
any
new
law
school
approval
system
would
function
but
asked
the
public
to
submit
comments
on
the
proposal
by
December
1,
with
anticipated
changes
taking
effect
January
1.
Can
knowing
how
to
work
a
smoker
be
part
of
the
approval
system?
Lawyers
are
getting
a
bad
rap
right
now,
but
this
could
be
the
change
we
need.
If
being
served
notice
with
a
side
of
brisket
with
a
mean
smoke
ring
doesn’t
make
our
adversarial
system
a
little
kinder,
nothing
will.
At
the
very
least,
I’d
prefer
a
slab
to
a
mariachi
band.
On
a
more
serious
note:
things
might
not
change
much
at
the
“take
the
bar,
get
a
passing
grade
and
go
practice
level,”
but
should
courts
really
be
in
the
business
of
evaluating
law
school
efficacy?
It
is
fashionable
for
Trump-heavy
states
to
give
the
finger
to
the
ABA
right
now
—
lingering
attention
to
DEI
efforts
and
the
Association’s
outspoken
interest
in
the
rule
of
law
are
enough
for
people
to
complain
about
the
group’s
“political
engagement”
—
but
is
the
answer
really
to
have
Chief
Justice
Jimmy
Blacklock
be
the
one
to
determine
if
Texas
Southern
University
Thurgood
Marshall
School
of
Law
is
up
to
par?
Seems
like
a
lot
of
effort
just
for
the
sake
of
owning
the
libs.
In
the
meantime,
the
public
is
invited
to
submit
comments
on
the
proposed
changes
up
to
December
1st.
Best
of
luck
to
whatever
direction
Texas
ultimately
goes
with.
Texas
Plans
To
End
ABA’s
Role
In
State’s
Law
School
Oversight
[Reuters]
Chris
Williams
became
a
social
media
manager
and
assistant
editor
for
Above
the
Law
in
June
2021.
Prior
to
joining
the
staff,
he
moonlighted
as
a
minor
Memelord™
in
the
Facebook
group Law
School
Memes
for
Edgy
T14s
.
He
endured
Missouri
long
enough
to
graduate
from
Washington
University
in
St.
Louis
School
of
Law.
He
is
a
former
boatbuilder
who
is
learning
to
swim, is
interested
in
critical
race
theory,
philosophy,
and
humor,
and
has
a
love
for
cycling
that
occasionally
annoys
his
peers.
You
can
reach
him
by
email
at [email protected]
and
by
tweet
at @WritesForRent.