New Admission Rules Proposed In North Dakota

The North Dakota Supreme Court has proposed amendments to its bar admission rules. The court notes:

The overall goals of the State Board of Law Examiners in proposing the amendments were cleaning up inconsistent language, conform the rules to the long term practice of the Board, and bring more transparency of the process to the applicants.

One rule change makes explicit the authority to order a medical examination as part of the admission process where deemed necessary:

Lines 150-158 allow the Board to require an applicant to undergo an independent medical evaluation. The Board believes it is already within their investigative authority to require a medical evaluation. However, because of past questions and concerns, the Board would like a rule to put applicants clearly on notice of the Board's authority. Note the Board is willing to pay the costs for any required independent medical evaluation, which is one of the concerns frequently raised.

(Mike Frisch)