Oklahoma has oil and gas, and lots of it. That’s why 18,000 attorneys call Oklahoma home. It’s where the wind comes crashing down the plains, but it’s more noteworthy for its ancient mountain ranges, mesas and eastern forests. Twenty-five native languages are still spoken in Oklahoma, but one language is universal. That’s oil or black gold. Towns grew fast, spawning population and wealth. The state is the third largest domestic producer of natural gas, and it ranks number two in drilling rigs. Oklahoma is also the number five producer of wheat. If you want to become a lawyer in Oklahoma, here’s what you need to do.
Get Your Bachelor’s Degree
The Oklahoma Board of Bar Examiners makes it mandatory that you have at least a bachelor’s degree before you begin law school to take the bar exam. The American Bar Association requires that your education be accredited by the U.S. Department of Education in order to have your degree fully recognized. There is no such thing as a pre-law degree though, so can take any course of study that you choose from aerospace engineering to designing clothes. What matter to admission committees is that you’re challenged by your major. Sure, classes like political science, literature, sociology or psychology are definitely going to help you get into law school, it’s a challenging major that’s the key. If you’re challenged, you’re grade point average will be higher. We all know what admission committees think of high grade point averages.
Taking the LSAT in Oklahoma
The LSAT is the Law School Admission Test. It’s a 3.5 hour exam that doesn’t really have anything to do with the law, but is a good predictor of how a student might fare in law school. It’s a standardized test that’s given nationally. It tests your abilities on analytical thinking, rational thinking, reading comprehension and a writing sample too. Some questions will be in the form of an essay question, while others will be in multiple choice form. The test if given on Mondays and Saturdays in at least five locations. You’ll want to prepare for this exam. Find a commercial preparation class and take it. Itlikely going to make a big difference in your score. How big? It could make the difference in going to law school and not going to law school.
LSAT Results
About three weeks after taking the test, you’ll get your results. Scores are a minimum low if 120 and a maximum high of 180. At the three ABA accredited law schools in Oklahoma, the last verifiable scores of 2022 were as follow:
- University of Oklahoma 167
- University of Tulsa 164
- Oklahoma City University 149
Credential Assembly Service
All ABA accredited law schools nationwide require you to use the Credential Assembly Service (CAS). At a cost of $195 and $45 per school that you apply to, CAS will assemble all of your transcripts, letters of recommendations, evaluations writing samples and LSATs in a single package and ship them out to the schools that you apply to. There are more than 200 accredited law schools in the United States. If you’ve gone this far, it’s likely that you’ll get in somewhere. Don’t make the mistake of limiting yourself geographically. You can always take the bar exam in Oklahoma if you’re so predisposed at doing so.
The Bar Exam
Oklahoma requires you to have a handle on the following subjects, any of which will be tested on the bar exam: Oklahoma Rules of Professional Conduct, contracts, property, Uniform Commercial Code, criminal law and procedure, civil law and procedure, business associations, constitutional law, torts, wills and trusts, conflicts of law and family law. An internship will most likely be required too. You’ll be graded on it, so give it your best effort. The bar exam in Oklahoma is a two -day ordeal. The first day involves 16 essay questions at 30 minutes per question. The second day involves 200 multiple choice questions with 100 in the morning session, and 100 more during the afternoon session. Don’t forget about the Multistate Professional Responsibility Test either. You must take the test within one year of being admitted to the Oklahoma bar with a passing score of 75 or above. Hundreds of people will be taking the Oklahoma bar exam with you. Just about all of them will be taking a commercial preparation class for the exam. Ask fellow student which exam they’re taking and take that class too. Take your practice seriously and answer the questions at the end. You’ll be in good hands.
The Application Process and Pass Rates
Complete the Oklahoma Board of Bar Examiners application. The cost is $400, but late fees apply. Pay special attention to all instructions. There was a pass rate of about 81% of all people taking the exam in the spring of 2022.
You’ll get your bar exam results about nine weeks after the exam. Then, you’ll be advised of the place and time of the admission ceremony. Then, it’s congratulations, you’re an attorney! You can practice anywhere in the Oklahoma state courts.
