PPT Urges Education Secretary to Terminate American Bar Association’s Accreditation Power

Federal government’s official law school accreditor is not qualified for the role

Protect the Public’s Trust (PPT) submitted a letter to the offices of the U.S. Secretary of Education and the Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education urging them not to renew the American Bar Association’s (ABA) role as the nation’s exclusive law school accreditor. Among the reasons cited by PPT was the continued existence of the ABA’s discriminatory diversity, equity and inclusion (“DEI”) policies.

This letter comes in the days leading to the ABA’s September accreditation renewal hearing before the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI). From there the committee will recommend to the Education Secretary whether or not to renew the ABA’s accreditation powers. PPT’s letter alleges that the ABA’s DEI policies, a lengthy track record of abusing its accreditation power to enforce ideological conformity, engaging in anti-competitive behavior that could violate antitrust law, and participating in partisan political behavior render it ill-suited and unqualified to serve in such a crucial role as a neutral gatekeeper to the legal profession.

Among these policies is the ABA’s “Member Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Plan.” It declares that “Diversity, equity, and inclusion is a strategic imperative for the American Bar Association and for the legal profession” and that “all ABA entities and members are responsible for advancing ABA Goal III [to eliminate bias and enhance diversity].” The plan adds that advancing diversity “permeates everything we do internally and externally as an Association.”

The ABA’s accreditation policy also effectively requires schools to find ways to avoid constitutional or statutory requirements that conflict with its DEI mandates, specifically stating that being subject to statutes which “prohibit consideration of gender, race, ethnicity, or national origin in admissions or employment decisions is not a justification for a school’s non-compliance” of its policies. Though enforcement of this policy has been suspended and the ABA has voted to terminate it, that decision has not gone through a formal review by the ABA House of Delegates, meaning it is effectively still alive and could be revived when a friendly administration controls the executive branch.

ABA’s discriminatory policies are in direct violation of the law and President Donald Trump’s second term executive order, titled, “Reforming Accreditation to Strengthen Higher Education.” This EO mandates that the Education Secretary discipline accreditors accountable for promoting these policies, even to the point of removing their accreditation authority entirely.

PPT urges the Education Secretary not to renew the ABA’s accreditation capacity so that its policies will not strong-arm American law schools into forcing racially discriminatory and other political agendas down students’ throats, while neglecting their educational opportunities.

“The ABA has a lengthy record of misusing its accreditation power to enforce ideological conformity, require discriminatory DEI policies, and engage in partisan and potentially anti-competitive conduct. It has proven itself completely unqualified to serve as a neutral gatekeeper to the legal profession,” said PPT communications director Alexa Moutevelis. “The Department of Education should no longer allow this organization to strong-arm law schools into forcing racially discriminatory programing requirements and admissions standards. The freedom of our nation’s brightest young legal minds depends on it.”

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