July 2020 Bar Examination and the Coronavirus Pandemic

The Supreme Court of South Carolina intends to administer the July Bar Examination on July 28-29, 2020.  The Court will continue to evaluate the COVID-19 crisis, including state and federal directives and guidance, to determine if the Bar Examination can be safely administered in July.  If it is not possible to conduct the examination in July, the Court intends to administer the Bar Examination on September 9-10, 2020, to the applicants who would have taken the Examination in July.

Regardless of whether the Bar Examination is conducted in July or September, applicants should be aware that they may be required to wear face masks or comply with other requirements to reduce the possibility of COVID-19 infection during the administration of the Examination. Any applicant who fails to fully comply with these requirements, or exhibits fever or other symptoms of COVID-19 infection, may be excluded from the Examination.  Further, the time to register applicants before each session may be significantly longer than normal.  Applicants will be advised of the COVID-19 related requirements in the letter authorizing them to sit for the July Examination, and it is anticipated this letter will be sent out by July 1, 2020. 

The Court is aware that applicants may be hesitant to take the Examination in July due to the risk posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, or that some applicants may not desire to take the Examination under the restrictions which may be imposed.  Therefore, if an applicant withdraws his or her application to sit for the July 2020 Bar Examination by July 1, 2020, the applicant will be allowed to apply for the February 2021 Bar Examination without paying any additional filing fee.

The Court deeply regrets the stress and uncertainty the COVID-19 crisis has caused the applicants for the July 2020 Bar Examination. 

This webpage will be updated to reflect any changes that are made to the status of the July Bar Examination.