Story perspectives

Education Department urges ABA accreditation power stripped from law schools

8/22/2026

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Education Dept Targets ABA

On August 21, 2026, the Education Department issued a staff report recommending the American Bar Association’s Accreditation Council lose authority to accredit law schools.
The recommendation could cut federal student-loan eligibility for law schools, jeopardizing students’ ability to finance their legal education.
Assistant Secretary David Barker called accreditation a cartel that lets accreditors impose political preferences.
Affiliated schools would shift to their university’s accreditor; independent schools must secure a new accreditor.

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Education Dept Challenges ABA

The Education Department issued a staff report recommending that the American Bar Association’s accreditation council lose authority to accredit law schools.
The administration claims the ABA functions as a cartel that advances progressive diversity, equity and inclusion policies through its accreditation power.
If the council loses authority, freestanding law schools could lose federal loan access because no other J.D. accreditor exists.

History

Historical Context

In 1972 a federal rule tied American Bar Association law-school accreditation to student-loan eligibility, echoing the year’s broader federal expansions when President Richard Nixon signed Title IX into law and approved a $5.3 billion boost to Social Security, a climate that frames today’s debate over ABA authority.

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Education Dept Targets ABA

On August 21, 2026, the Education Department issued a staff report recommending the American Bar Association’s Accreditation Council lose authority to accredit law schools.
The recommendation could cut federal student-loan eligibility for law schools, jeopardizing students’ ability to finance their legal education.
Assistant Secretary David Barker called accreditation a cartel that lets accreditors impose political preferences.
Affiliated schools would shift to their university’s accreditor; independent schools must secure a new accreditor.

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