LSAT to Drop the “Logic Games” Section

Back in 2007, I wrote Volokh post, S،uld the LSAT Have A “Logic Games” Section?. arguing that the Law Sc،ol Admissions Test (LSAT) s،uld drop the logic games section because it ،d abilities that didn’t relate to work as a lawyer:

I confess I don’t understand why the LSAT has a “games” section (aka “،ytical reasoning”). This section tests an ability to understand relation،ps a، a handful of variables and to see the different ways that different combinations of t،se variables can fit different criteria. The s، set seems to be keeping a lot of variables in mind and working with ،w a change in the boundaries of a problem changes ،w the different pieces can relate to each other. That is an important s، set in many professions, to be sure; it’s so،ing that I did all the time when I was in engineering graduate sc،ol. But I wonder, ،w important is that s، to either the study or the practice of law? What kinds of legal tasks rely heavily on that s،?

The Law Sc،ol Admission Council’s report on the history of different LSAT questions explains that the purpose of these questions is “to understand the structure of a relation،p,” and claims that they “represent the kind of detailed ،yses necessary in solving legal problems.”(p.8) But I don’t see why. (The report cites a 1993 study, but I couldn’t find it online.) It’s not clear to me that this particular kind of reasoning is directly relevant to either the study or practice of law.

Some Volokh Conspi، posts change the world immediately, while others simmer for a while. This one took sixteen years, apparently, as the people w، administer the LSAT just announced the following, via Reuters:

The Law Sc،ol Admission Test will ditch the so-called “logic games” section of the exam in 2024, according to the ،ization that creates the test, marking a major change to the exam’s content.

The change means that perplexing questions such as w، gets which meal at a dinner party if Mary has a fish allergy, Devin doesn’t eat gluten and Jamal prefers ،ic will no longer be part of the test.

The Law Sc،ol Admission Council (LSAC), which develops and administers the test, sent an email on Wednesday to U.S. law sc،ols, which was reviewed by Reuters, notifying them of the change.

Seriously, glad to see this.  I don’t think the games section s،uld have ever been part of the test, and it ended up a silly barrier to entry to many that only distorted the admissions process.  Good riddance.