Canadian Privacy Commissioners Conduct Probe into LSAT Fingerprinting Practice

The privacy commissioners of Canada, Alberta and British Columbia have agreed to conduct a joint probe into the long-standing requirement that Canadian students must provide a thumbprint when writing the ubiquitous law school entrance exam, known as the Law School Aptitude Test (LSAT). The probe is the first-ever joint action by Canadian privacy commissioners and will investigate the practices of the administrator of the LSAT, the US-based Law School Admission Council (LSAC), during a period when the existence of the USA Patriot Act has heightened fears of outsourcing personal information across borders. Central to the controversy is whether it is appropriate to require that an LSAT test-taker provide a thumbprint, or whether some other identifier would be more appropriate. A twist to the investigation is that each statute under which the investigation will take place reflects the 'Limiting Collection' principle differently, with the federal legislation being the most restrictive. LSAC has stated that the US government has never requested information on an LSAT test-taker. However, under the USA Patriot Act if such information were requested, LSAC would be precluded by law from disclosing whether the FBI had made such a request. For CBC articles on the topic, visit here and here (including links to LSAC and the USA Patriot Act). For the reaction of the Council of Canadian Law Deans, visit its home page and find a link to its February 10 press release: http://www.canadalawschools.ca/home.html Summary by: Jason Young