This year’s entering law class is the most diverse on record, based on data from the American Bar Association (ABA) and analysis by the Law School Admission Council (LSAC). It is the third year in a row that the incoming law class has set records for race and ethnicity, and other diverse factors are also high. The data shows 40.2% of students are people of color, 55.8% are women, 14.7% identity as LGBTQ+ and 24.4% are first-generation college students.
James Leipold, senior advisor with LSAC, said the statistics are reason to celebrate, considering the legal profession has historically lagged on diversity and equity.
“The record-setting benchmarks provide a reason to applaud,” Leipold said. “But, we cannot rest on our laurels; much work remains to be done throughout the profession.”
Leipold said the U.S. Supreme Court decision in June 2023 to end race-conscious admission programs at colleges and universities means more work ahead for the profession.
“We must work even harder to advance law and justice by promoting access, equity and fairness in the profession,” Leipold said. “The ways in which we describe, measure and talk about diversity continue to evolve at a rapid pace … by any measure the most recent incoming law school class stands as the most diverse ever in the history of U.S. legal education.”
Notable details
For a detailed snapshot of the incoming class for each law school, the ABA’s Standard 509 data is useful. The link provides a means for generating a report by law school, detailing the number of students, status, race, ethnicity and gender. Report information also provides the verified Law School Admission Test (LSAT) score and undergraduate quartile grade point averages (GPAs). Published annually, this data is supplied by the ABA-accredited law schools and compiled each fall by the ABA and LSAC.
The total number of students in the incoming class is 37,797. This is a small decrease of 216 students nationwide.
No longer using the single reporting method, students can select two or more races and/or ethnicities, Leipold said.
“In recent years, the number of individuals who select two or more races and/or ethnicities has grown steadily, and now is the second largest matriculant group after Caucasian/white students, accounting for 11.1% of 2023 matriculants,” Leipold said.
Of the students in the 2023 incoming class, 44.8% selected the “two or more” category of race and/or ethnicity as Hispanic/Latinx, Leipold said.
The largest multiracial and ethnoracial groups counted in “two or more” include Hispanic/Latinx and white, Asian and white, Black and white, American Indian/Alaska Native and white and Black and Hispanic/Latinx.
“Understanding the myriad identities within the “two or more” group is also extremely important in understanding American Indian/Alaska Native representation in legal education,” Leipold said. “Students who identify exclusively as American Indian/Alaska Native represent 0.3% of 2023 matriculants, while students who identify either exclusively or in part as American Indian/Alaska Native represent 1.7% of the incoming class.”
Leipold said students who identify exclusively as Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander represent 0.1% of 2023 matriculants, while students who identify either exclusively or in part as Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander represent 0.5% of the incoming class.
Women currently represent about 38% of the overall U.S. legal profession, and less than this percentage for senior-level jobs, Leipold said.
“Women once again made up more than half of the entering class (55.8%), up from 55.2% in in 2022,” Leipold said. “Men make up 41.3% of the class of 2023, compared to 42.2% of the entering class of 2022.”
Leipold said it’s exciting to see a wide range of people from different races, ethnicities and genders in today’s law schools that better mirror our society.
