The Arizona Supreme Court is rolling out an innovative program aimed at expanding legal services in rural areas and bolstering the workforce in public law offices. The Arizona Lawyer Apprentice Program (ALAP), according to the official announcement, will enable those aspiring lawyers who fall short of the state's bar exam threshold to still practice law under certain conditions.
Starting September 1, hopeful lawyers can apply to the program if they score between 260 and 269 on the Uniform Bar Examination (UBE)—just below the 270 requirement. Under the ALAP guidance, despite not hitting the benchmark, practitioners can still provide legal aid in Arizona under the supervision of a seasoned attorney. "By launching the Arizona Lawyer Apprentice Program, we aim to close the access-to-justice gap and keep qualified legal professionals in our state," stated Chief Justice Ann A. Scott Timmer.
The program targets particularly those who would work in underserved rural communities or any public law office across the state. Maintaining the same character and fitness standards for all Arizona attorneys, ALAP participants will get to jump-start their legal careers without the delays typically associated with bar admission processes, gaining practical experience over two years before fully qualifying.
With Arizona ranked 49th in lawyers per capita, ALAP seeks to address this "legal desert," which profoundly affects residents' access to justice. "Each year, we lose potential lawyers to other states because of the difference in UBE passing scores," Chief Justice Timmer said, in hopes of the program fostering a growing local legal workforce and supporting Arizonans' economic and social prosperity. The initiative is seen as a measure to retain homegrown talent, preventing law graduates from relocating to states with lower pass thresholds like New Mexico and Utah.
Interested individuals who achieved a UBE score between 260 and 269 from the July 2023 exam onwards can seek application details and FAQs by visiting the ALAP - Arizona Lawyer Apprentice Program page.
