Little Rock, Arkansas: Former Bar Exam Official Charged With 65 Felonies in Score Tampering Case

A former Arkansas Supreme Court official who ran the office that administers the state bar examination has been charged with 65 felony counts of tampering with a public record, after an internal review found that bar exam scores were moved from some examinees to others and about 11,400 files were deleted.

Nancie Givens was executive director of the Supreme Court's Office of Professional Programs, the office responsible for the accuracy of bar exam results and the records behind them. She resigned in February 2026. Sixth Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney Will Jones announced the charges on Thursday, and court records show Givens pleaded not guilty on Wednesday. The case is Arkansas v. Nancie Michelle Givens, No. 26-5292, in Little Rock District Court.

Points taken from some, given to others

In a joint statement, six justices of the Arkansas Supreme Court said the review found evidence that Givens took points from a number of examinees and added them to the scores of other examinees who took the same exam. The changes lifted some applicants to at least 270, the minimum passing score on the Arkansas bar exam.

The irregularities covered at least eight administrations of the exam between July 2020 and July 2025. In at least one case, the justices said, changes may have cut the score of an examinee who should have passed down to a failing score. In another, the examinee who should have had the highest score on an exam had points deducted, and a different applicant was named as the top scorer.

"If these allegations are true, these actions constitute an unprecedented breach of public trust," the six justices said.

About 11,400 files deleted

After Givens resigned, the court put Robert Brech, executive director of its Office of Professional Conduct, in charge of the programs office. His review found that numerous files and electronic communications had been modified or deleted in early January. About 11,400 files were deleted or made unavailable, most of them bar exam applications, applicant profiles and score sheets that court rules require the office to keep for 25 years.

Chief Justice Karen Baker issued a separate, shorter statement confirming the investigation and the charges and declining further comment while the investigation continues. The FBI and the Arkansas State Police opened a criminal investigation in April 2026. Givens has also been referred to the Office of Professional Conduct for a separate review of possible violations of the Arkansas Rules of Professional Conduct.

What it means for examinees

The court said the vast majority of applicants who were told they had passed did pass. Applicants whose results were affected will be notified by the Office of Professional Conduct once their status can be confirmed for certain. The court said it is working with state and federal authorities to recover the deleted data and recheck every exam administration in the period.

New testing procedures and security measures were put in place for the February 2026 bar examination, the court said. The statements did not say how many applicants received wrong scores, or whether anyone was admitted to practice law on an altered result. The charges are allegations, and Givens is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.