Lowering the Bar to Raise the Bar: Licensing Difficulty and Attorney Quality in Japan

35 Pages Posted: 11 Jul 2013

See all articles by J. Mark Ramseyer

J. Mark Ramseyer

Harvard Law School

Eric Bennett Rasmusen

Indiana University - Kelley School of Business - Department of Business Economics & Public Policy

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Date Written: July 10, 2013

Abstract

Under certain circumstance, a relaxation in occupational licensing standards can increase the quality of those who enter the industry. The effect turns on the opportunity costs of preparing for the licensing examination: making the test easier can increase the quality of those passing if it lowers the opportunity costs enough to increase the number of those willing to go to the trouble of taking the test. We explore the theoretical circumstances under which this can occur and the actual effect of the relaxation of the difficulty of the bar exam in Japan from 1992 to 2011.

Keywords: Tests, occupational licensing, legal profession, screening, Japan, deregulation

JEL Classification: D73, J23, J24, J31, J44, D45, D83

Suggested Citation

Ramseyer, J. Mark and Rasmusen, Eric Bennett, Lowering the Bar to Raise the Bar: Licensing Difficulty and Attorney Quality in Japan (July 10, 2013). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2292078 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2292078

J. Mark Ramseyer

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