A video posted to the social media website TikTok features a Washington man explaining to viewers that he was one of over 600 students who were affected by the cancellation of Washington’s July NextGen bar exam. Like many others, he scheduled important events around the exam, which cost him a significant amount of time and money.
Various commenters appeared to be in shock at this incident, especially considering the fact that the cancellation happened as a result of technical difficulties. Many even offered the ironic advice of joining a class action lawsuit.
The video above features just one of the hundreds of students affected. He can be heard saying, “I spent a thousand dollars to register for this exam, I spent four thousand dollars on Bar prep, and then I spent 90 days, approximately, just doing nothing but studying for this test. Then I come and it’s just not administered.”
As a result, he had to spend an additional day in town to see if the issues could be resolved with the test, costing him $150. This incident is not exclusive to this creator, with many others driving into Yakima County, Washington, from out of town or flying from across the country.
The email that applicants received concerning the cancellation can be seen posted behind the creator. According to this, the reason given for the cancellation is, “We do not have sufficient confidence that the technology issues have been resolved to attempt administration of the exam tomorrow. We sincerely apologize.”
Options are allegedly being looked into by the Washington State Bar Association, but three options are being given to test-takers, including attending a make-up exam scheduled for September 1 and 2, transferring the application to the February 2027 administration, or withdrawing the application completely. For many, neither is an option.
Comments and Reactions Toward Cancellation of Bar Exam in Washington
Some commenters took the opportunity to discuss the irony of the situation, with one person writing, “This is the perfect test for you. Figure out how to sue them.” Similarly, another commenter wrote, “class action time!! all the studying is being put into practice! (i’m so sorry!!)“
Others criticized the WSBA for allegedly not having a backup plan, with another user writing, “It’s actually insane they didn’t 1) work out the issues 2) have a backup plan for when something didn’t work or 3) have literally anything else to say besides it’s cancelled.”
The situation is still going viral, and various other individuals were also affected by the cancellation. Currently, users are continuing to leave their opinions and replies in the comments below the video.
