The Supreme Court (SC) has ensured that the bar exam results of individual examinees are protected from access by schools without their consent.
In Bar Matter No. 4968, the SC En Banc ruled that bar exam scores constitute sensitive personal information under the Data Privacy Act of 2012.
“Pursuant to the Data Privacy Act of 2012, the Bar examinations scores of individual Bar takers are sensitive personal information that shall not be disclosed by the Supreme Court, through the OBC, without the Bar takers giving their express and prior consent to the Supreme Court for that purpose or the existence of other exceptional circumstances enumerated in Section 13 of the Data Privacy Act,” it read.
However, the SC clarified that aggregated, averaged, and anonymized scores may be disclosed to law schools, as these do not qualify as personal information under the law.
The ruling is part of the approved Guidelines on Requests for Disclosure of a Law School’s Bar Examinations Performance.
Requests from law schools must be signed by the dean or an equivalent official and must cite a legitimate purpose, such as improving academic programs or enhancing bar exam performance.
Meanwhile, results of the 2024 Bar Exams were released on December 13, with 3,962 individuals passing.
According to the bar chairperson, Associate Justice Mario Lopez, the SC lowered the passing grade from 75 to 74, resulting in a passing rate of 37.84 percent.
Follow Tan Briones & Associates on LinkedIn for more legal updates and law-related articles.