Recently, the Law Society of Ontario (LSO) issued a newsletter addressing some concerns relating to the decision of moving to an in-person examination method for the 2022-2023 licensing cycle. This update arrived as a consequence of the cancellation of the summer examinations announced by the LSO in March 2022. The decision to cancel the summer examinations was made due to the examination content being improperly accessed by some candidates and/or third parties.
Expectantly, this decision severely affected approximately 1,100 candidates, who were set to write their online examinations. In an open letter directed to the LSO and the Attorney General of Ontario, licensing candidates expressed their frustration and disappointment regarding the LSO’s decision to postpone the June 2022 bar exams to July 2022, in addition to cancelling online assessments. Lawyers and students have also expressed their confusion with returning to an in-person format – solely because the examination content was leaked, as they argue that it can potentially be leaked again even if they were to cancel online assessments.