[blindlaw] Federal Judge Orders the National Conference ofBarExaminers .

Fri Feb 12 12:24:53 UTC 2010

If my understanding is correct, the appellate court will only look for
errors, procedural etc., not revisit the facts. (?)
Is there a chance other law students face this and could become a class
action?

Cathryn

-----Original Message-----
From: blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of AZNOR99 at aol.com
Sent: Thursday, February 11, 2010 7:32 PM
To: blindlaw at nfbnet.org
Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Federal Judge Orders the National Conference
ofBarExaminers .

I believe clerkships such as hers have a time limit, so it's pretty likely  
she won't have a job for long.  She's already had to wait over a year for  
the NCBE, meaning her life has been in limbo, her earned income potential is

 lower than had she taken and passed a Bar Exam, and her future is  
uncertain.  And really, if they're so worried about their security, then
why are 
States providing their essay exams in electronic format?  That's  saying 
nothing of Government Agency employment exams, the Foreign Service Exam,
and 
tests such as AP and CLEP.  Why can't they incrypt the data like  government

agencies and corporations do?  

Keep fighting, Stephanie!  Common sense will succeed in the end.

Ronza

In a message dated 2/11/2010 7:20:17 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,  
cdanielsen8 at aol.com writes:

These  guys are so gonna lose. How can they argue that waiting for  
appellate
review will not harm Stephanie? It puts her career on hold. Sure,  she has a
job, but her opportunities would be greater financially and  otherwise if 
she
were licensed. I cannot see how they win on the  merits.

Chris

-----Original Message-----
From:  blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf  Of AZNOR99 at aol.com
Sent: Thursday, February 11, 2010 10:47 AM
To:  blindlaw at nfbnet.org
Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Federal Judge Orders the  National Conference of
BarExaminers ...

It's not over yet. See  article below from ABA Journal.
_http://ow.ly/16y2Fp_ (http://ow.ly/16y2Fp)  

Blind Student's Bar Exam Battle Isn't Over: Test Firm Seeks  Emergency 9th
Cir. Software Ban

A federal judge's ruling last  month that Stephanie Enyart must be allowed 
to  use screen-reader  software when taking the Multistate Bar Examination 
might not  be the  final answer for the blind law graduate. 
In a filing yesterday, the  National Conference of  Bar Examiners seeks an 
emergency ruling from  the San Francisco-based 9th U.S.  Circuit Court of 
Appeals suspending  a district court order that Enyart must be  allowed to
use 
the  software during the California bar exam later this month, the  _San   
Francisco Chronicle_  
(http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/02/10/BA911BV6LN.DTL)
reports.  
The NCBE, which administers the test throughout the country, contends  that 

having to wait a few more months for appellate review of the  federal 
district  court's decision in Enyart's favor would not pose a  hardship to
her, the 
newspaper says. 
Attorney Anna Levine of  Disability Rights Advocates represents Enyart. She 

calls the  appellate filing "flabbergasting ... irrational and  
mean-spirited."  
The NCBE objects to the software, which magnifies the test text and reads  
the  material into earbuds worn by the user because of security  concerns. 
Enyart says  that a human reader, which the NCBE would  permit, is less 
efficient at the job  and a potential distraction  during the exam. 
Earlier coverage:

In a message dated 2/11/2010  9:03:38 A.M. Eastern Standard Time,  
JFreeh at nfb.org  writes:

FOR IMMEDIATE  RELEASE

CONTACT:

Chris  Danielsen, National  Federation of the Blind, (410) 659-9314, ext.  
2330

Scott  LaBarre, LaBarre Law Offices, P.C., (303)  504-5979

Daniel  Goldstein, Brown, Goldstein & Levy, LLP, (410)  962-1030

Anna  Levine, Disability Rights Advocates, (510)   665-8644

Federal Judge Orders the National Conference of  Bar  Examiners
to Provide Individualized Testing  Accommodations

to Blind  Law School Graduate

San  Francisco, California (February 5,  2010):  A federal court has  
ruled that the National Conference of Bar  Examiners (NCBE) will  cause 
a blind law school graduate irreparable harm  unless it  provides her 
the technology-based testing accommodations she  needs  to take two 
exams required to become a member of the State Bar of   
California.  The court issued its ruling in an order granting the  law  
school graduate's motion for preliminary injunction on  Thursday,  
February 4, 2010.  The court's ruling allows the  plaintiff, Stephanie  
Enyart, to take the February 2010 Multistate  Bar Examination (MBE) 
and  March 2010 Multistate Professional  Responsibility Examination 
(MPRE) on a  laptop computer equipped with  the assistive technology 
software Ms. Enyart  relies upon for screen  reading (JAWS) and screen 
magnification   (ZoomText).

Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the National   Federation of the Blind, 
said: "The National Federation of the Blind  is  extremely pleased with 
the ruling in this case.  Law and  equity  simply do not permit the 
NCBE to dictate a one-size-fits-all  solution for  all bar candidates 
with disabilities.  We hope  that this ruling will  cause the NCBE to 
think long and hard before  it denies the requested  accommodations of 
applicants to take its  examinations."

The  plaintiff, Stephanie Enyart, said: "A  little over a year ago I 
sent my  first request for accommodations on  the March 2009 MPRE, and 
tonight I can  go to sleep knowing when and  how I can effectively take 
the exams to  fulfill my  dreams."

Anna Levine of Disability Rights Advocates,  an  attorney representing 
the plaintiff, said: "I hope that our  hard-fought  victory here will 
send a message to testing  organizations that they need  to comply with 
the ADA and provide each  individual test taker with a  disability the 
accommodations that he  or she needs to demonstrate his or  her actual 
knowledge, skills, and  abilities."

The suit was  filed on November 3, 2009, due  to the NCBE's refusal, on 
multiple  occasions during the past year,  to allow Ms. Enyart to use 
the same  technology on the MBE and MPRE  that she has used on 
university and law  school exams and in various  jobs and 
internships.  The suit charged  that the NCBE violated  the Americans 
with Disabilities Act (ADA) and  California's Unruh  Civil Rights Act 
by denying accommodations on the MBE  and the  MPRE.

NCBE had argued that it fulfilled its legal   obligations to Ms. Enyart 
by offering alternative accommodations, such  as  a human reader, 
notwithstanding evidence that these alternatives  did not,  in fact, 
accommodate Ms. Enyart's disability.  In  rejecting NCBE's  argument, 
the court's ruling paves the way for  other individuals prevented  from 
pursuing their professional dreams  by high stakes testing providers  
who take a rigid approach to  disability accommodations.

The  plaintiff is represented  with the support of the National 
Federation of  the Blind by LaBarre  Law Offices, P.C., in Denver, 
Colorado, and by Brown,  Goldstein  & Levy, LLP, in Baltimore, 
Maryland.  The plaintiff is   further represented by Disability Rights 
Advocates, a nonprofit law  center  that specializes in civil rights 
cases on behalf of persons  with  disabilities, based in Berkeley,   
California.

###

About the  National  Federation of the Blind

With more than 50,000  members, the  National Federation of the Blind 
(NFB) is the largest  and most influential  membership organization of 
blind people in the  United States.  The  NFB improves blind people's 
lives through  advocacy, education, research,  technology, and programs 
encouraging  independence and  self-confidence.  It is the leading 
force in  the blindness field  today and the voice of the nation's 
blind.   In January 2004 the NFB  opened the National Federation of the 
Blind  Jernigan Institute, the first  research and training center in 
the  United States for the blind led by the  blind.

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