Lawyers and law school graduates on Monday pleaded with California state bar officials to support the adoption of a lower passing, or cut, score on the bar exam.

A bar-commissioned study released last month concluded that California could reduce its second-highest-in-the-nation cut score from 144 to 141 and still ensure that newly minted lawyers meet minimum competency requirements.

The bar's Committee of Bar Examiners is now taking public comments on the study's findings. On Monday, panel members met in Los Angeles where they heard more than two hours of testimony, almost all from lawyers, students and law school educators who favor lowering the cut score to 141, or an even lower number.