To be
considered for admission to the Connecticut Bar, law students endure a lengthy
application process. Article VI of the Connecticut Bar
Examining Committee Regulations allows the committee to specifically ask applicants about
their treatment for “mental health and chemical or psychological dependency
matters.” The committee asks these questions as a means of fulfilling its duty
to those seeking legal services and because the committee wants to ensure that
a mental health condition will not interfere with an applicant’s ability to
practice law.
These mental health questions have always been controversial.
Many argue that these questions
prevent law students from seeking much needed treatment for fear that they will
not be admitted to the bar. Additionally, many argue that only medical
professionals should be privy to the confidential information these questions
yield. The Bar Examining Committee has attempted over the years to
narrow the questions in order to comply with the Americans
with Disabilities Act. A new call to
review these questions was initiated this past December when David Borden, a
former Connecticut Supreme Court Justice, raised the issue at a meeting of the
Connecticut Bar Examining Committee.
Approximately one-fourth
of adult Americans have some form of mental illness. Hartford Hospital’s Stop
the Stigma! campaign represents a Connecticut effort to reduce the stigma
surrounding mental health. With this growing discussion on mental health, it
will be interesting to see whether the Connecticut Bar Examining Committee will
make any changes to the bar examination application.
