Downers Grove Woman Goes into Labor During Bar Exam

A Downers Grove woman showed her mental toughness by completing the Illinois Bar Exam a few hours prior to delivering a baby.

According to the Chicago Tribune, Elana Nightingale Dawson, a Northwestern University Law Student, went into labor while taking the exam. But rather than dropping everything, the future litigator toughed it out and completed the examination. She told the Tribune that the test must be complete if it is to be scored.

My goal was to get through the exam as fast as I could and leave, barring anything happening that made me think there was something more imminent going on," she told the Tribune.

Nightingale Dawson, 29, used breathing techniques she learned in birthing class to stay focused while she completed the exam – perhaps in record time. She sought permission to leave early and within two hours delivered a son through Caesarean section.