ED Threatens ABA's Ability to Accredit Law Schools
The Education Department has accused the American Bar Association's accreditation council of violating federal regulations in nearly 30 ways, potentially threatening law students' eligibility for federal student aid and disrupting legal education.
The ABA currently oversees nearly 200 colleges across the country and is the only federally recognized law school accreditor. In many states, a law school's graduates cannot qualify for the state license needed to practice law unless they are authorized by a federally recognized legal accreditor and/or the ABA specifically.
The Education Department released an 86-page report outlining its findings and recommending the revocation of the ABA's recognition. The report accuses the ABA's accreditation council, the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar, of violating federal regulations in nearly 30 ways.
ABA's Accreditation Under Fire
One allegation is that the Section of Legal Education is not sufficiently independent from the ABA itself. Another argues that it did not begin to change its standard for diversity within the necessary time period following the Supreme Court's 2023 ban on race-conscious admissions policies.
The council's standard requires law schools to "demonstrate by concrete action a commitment to diversity and inclusion by having a faculty and staff that are diverse with respect to gender, race, and ethnicity." It suspended that standard in February 2025 and announced that its members will convene on September 8 to vote on whether to repeal the standard entirely.
Melissa Hart, chair of the council, said she is confident that the council complies with federal law and the department's requirements for accreditors. However, the department's recommendation is not final and will be discussed by the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity on September 23 and 24.
| Accreditor | Number of Law Schools |
|---|---|
| ABA | 200 |
| Other | 0 |
If the Education Department follows through, the decision would at least upend the 13 freestanding law schools that depend on the ABA's seal of approval to access federal student aid. It would also mark the first time the Trump administration has revoked recognition from a long-standing accreditor, a move that has few precedents.
The ABA has been accused of promoting a "radical leftist" ideology and forcing institutions to adhere to allegedly illegal diversity, equity, and inclusion practices. Some state Supreme Courts have already changed their licensure requirements, allowing institutions to seek accreditation elsewhere in order to be admitted to the bar.
Uncertainty Ahead
It's uncertain exactly what the denial of recognition would mean for law schools and their students in the immediate future. The ABA will have the opportunity to appeal to the department and "if required, [seek] judicial review," Hart explained, so a final decision isn't imminent.
Peter Lake, a professor at the Stetson University College of Law, said that while he wasn't the "least bit surprised" by the department's decision, it is important not to jump to conclusions about what it will mean. For example, though it may appear that only the 13 stand-alone law schools are at risk of losing access to federal loans, the department's decision could also affect law schools that are part of a larger college or university financially, especially if they maintain an affiliation with ABA.
And even if students can still access loans, it won't matter if they can't get a license that's portable, he added. States will likely take different approaches if ABA loses recognition, with some possibly removing the requirement to attend a federally accredited school and others forcing institutions to find another accreditor.
It's also unclear what would take the ABA's place in states that continue requiring federally recognized accreditation to obtain a license or for colleges that try to maintain a partnership with the ABA and join a second federally recognized legal accreditor.
