More than 80 percent of legal trainees failed the cumulative bar test: out of 586 applicants, 486 were not approved. In the regional councils of Évora and Madeira, the rejection rate was 100% (the total number of applicants was very low). In Faro they failed by 94.7%, in Porto by 83.8%, in Coimbra by 75%, in Lisbon by 68.4% and in the Azores by 62.5%.
Now, only in 2025, trainee lawyers will have a new entrance exam: enrolling and passing a new test costs 1,500 euros. The deadline for requesting a revision of the classifications of the written aggregation test ends on the 13th.
In SIC Notícias, Lawyers president Fernanda de Almeida Pinheiro attributed the high failure rate to the effects of the pandemic. “Classes were mostly held at a distance, which punished” the candidates. The person in charge ensured that the AA “has no interest in firing young lawyers”, but that it has a “duty” to ensure quality.
ABOUT cm requested further clarification from the president of the AA, but to no avail.