THE PROPOSED BAR admission rule contains a trap for the eager but unwary out-of-state attorney keen on practicing in New Hampshire. It would be a faulty strategy for attorneys from other states to take the bar exam, considered one of the toughest in the country, with the expectation that if they fail, the admission by waiver provision - assuming it passes - will serve as a fall-back means of admission to practice in New Hampshire.

Section 12 of the proposed rule provides that "an applicant who has failed the New Hampshire bar examination within five years of the date of filing a motion for admission without examination shall not be eligible for admission on motion." The rule also stipulates that candidates who take the test four times and fail cannot take the exam again, nor can they be admitted on motion.

These provisions may be amended based on comments received by the Rules Advisory Committee or during the Supreme Court's review process, but there's no guarantee, just as there is no guarantee that the rule itself will pass. Attorneys who wish to practice soon in New Hampshire must either study hard to ensure they will pass the exam or wait until the admission-by-motion rule is passed.

Also ineligible for admission by motion are applicants who have resigned from the New Hampshire Bar; however, they may be eligible for readmission upon compliance with the requirements of Rule 37(12-a).

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