A Clearer Picture: July 2025 Bar Exam Results Across 31 Jurisdictions

(Follow-up to “Early Signals from July 2025 Bar Exam Results,” Sept. 9, 2025)

The early snapshots are beginning to take shape.

As of this week, the National Conference of Bar Examiners has posted first-time bar passage rates for 31 jurisdictions from the July 2025 bar exam. That’s still far from a complete national picture. Several states have yet to report their results; and other states have released results but haven’t yet been added to the NCBE dataset (for example, Texas posted results on October 6, but its first-time pass rate hasn’t appeared on the NCBE site).

Even so, these 31 jurisdictions provide a clearer picture, and some early trends are starting to emerge.

The Scorecard So Far

Of the 31 jurisdictions reported by the NCBE:

• 20 jurisdictions improved their first-time pass rates compared to July 2024.

  
  

• 11 jurisdictions declined, and

  
  

• 1 jurisdiction remained unchanged.

That’s about a two-to-one ratio of improvement, which is a sign that, nationally, July 2025 is shaping up as a stronger administration for first-time takers.

Source: https://www.ncbex.org/statistics-research/bar-exam-results-jurisdiction

The upward movement aligns with expectations. Earlier this year, the NCBE reported a higher scaled mean on the July 2025 Multistate Bar Examination, and historically, a higher scaled mean correlates with improved pass rates. These data now suggest that correlation may be playing out in real time.

Still, the story is far from finished. Several large jurisdictions—whose data can meaningfully shift national averages—are not yet represented in the NCBE’s compilation. For example, results from California, Florida, Illinois, and Texas could materially change the national trend once published.

Stay tuned.