UPDATE:  VICTORY! We're excited to report the Kentucky Office of Bar Examiners has granted our appeal on behalf of a mom-to-be that applied for special accommodations to pump breastmilk during the upcoming bar exam! J. will now be able to pump on a schedule recommended by her doctor, and take the exam on a slightly modified schedule. (You can read the letter we received granting accommodations here.)


While this is a victory we celebrate, there is still work to do. The Kentucky Bar has NOT announced a policy change in regards to the needs of nursing moms. Nursing Kentucky mothers should not have to obtain attorneys to secure these kinds of accommodations. The ACLU Nationwide has launched a campaign to get policies updated across the country. We are collecting stories to get this campaign off the ground. You can submit your story here.

No woman should be expected to put her career on hold just because she’s breastfeeding.

Yet bar exam takers in Kentucky who are nursing mothers are not guaranteed accommodations – like short breaks to pump breast milk – while they sit through an exam that is key to their careers.

The Kentucky Office of Bar Admissions, like most exam boards, doesn’t have sufficient nursing accommodation policies in place.

We're appealing the Office of Bar Admissions recent decision to deny Jacquelyn Bryant-Hayes breaks her doctor estimates she will need every 2 hours to pump breastmilk for her baby that will be just four weeks old on the day of the test.

As it stands now, nursing mothers around the country have to appeal, one by one, for accommodations. Many who are told “no” probably give in without a fight.  

Denying accommodations to pump breast milk during the bar exam is sex discrimination. It disadvantages new moms who need accommodations for nursing, and sends the message that they should put their careers on hold just because they’re breastfeeding.

Why make it this hard for new mothers to get access to the accommodations they need to protect their health?

We'll keep you posted on our appeal.  In the meantime, learn more about the national campaign the ACLU Women's Rights Project is launching to secure adequate nursing accommodation policies in all 50 states here.

Learn more about how you can help by telling us your story.