
Should Lawyers be Licensed without Passing the Bar Exam?
From Beneath the Law by Stories and Strategies
December 23, 2025 · 30 min · Season 1 · Episode 58
About this episode
Gavin Tighe and Stephen Thiele discuss the implications of the Law Society of Ontario's proposal to eliminate bar exams for lawyers.
Send us Fan Mail If becoming a lawyer no longer requires proving what you know, what does the profession really stand for? Gavin Tighe and Stephen Thiele take on the Law Society of Ontario’s proposal to scrap bar exams in favor of a training course, arguing that removing substantive testing undermines both public protection and the meaning of being called to the bar. Drawing on their own experiences in law school and practice, they explore how legal education has changed, why base...
People in this episode
Hosts: Gavin Tighe, Stephen Thiele
Topics covered
- law education
- bar exam
- legal profession
- public protection
- Ontario
Keywords
- lawyer licensing
- bar exam
- legal education
- public protection
- Ontario law
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Law Society of Ontario
More episodes of Beneath the Law
- Google Got Summoned: Digital Privacy and Political Speech in Canada · June 9, 2026 · 29 min
- When Judges Become Social Engineers · May 26, 2026 · 37 min
- The Fake Case Crisis: How AI is Shaking Trust in the Courts · May 19, 2026 · 31 min
- Lied on Resume but Sued for Wrongful Dismissal Anyway · May 5, 2026 · 31 min
- Absolute Privilege or Absolute Overreach: The Sex Tape That Broke Litigation Immunity · March 31, 2026 · 23 min
- The Tumbler Ridge Tragedy: Is AI Above the Law? · March 17, 2026 · 27 min
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Beneath the Law podcast page.