Joint Statement Regarding State Criminal Charges and Irregularities in the Supreme Court of Arkansas’s Office of Professional Programs and the Arkansas Bar Examination

LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS, November 5, 2026 –

An internal review by Robert Brech, Executive Director of the Supreme Court of Arkansas’s Office of Professional Conduct and Programs, has uncovered extensive irregularities involving the Court’s Office of Professional Programs and the administration of the Arkansas Bar Examination. The matter was turned over to state and federal authorities.

As of today, the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office for the Sixth Judicial District filed formal criminal charges against Nancie Givens for 65 counts of tampering with a public record under Arkansas Code Annotated section 5-54-121 in connection with the alleged altering of numerous Arkansas Bar Examination scores and the deletion of files purportedly intended to conceal that misconduct.

The charges followed a criminal investigation initiated in April 2026 by the Arkansas State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. As always, all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.