What You Need To Know About The New California Bar Exam

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THE NEW CALIFORNIA BAR EXAM

Beginning in July 2017, the new California Bar Exam will be a two-day exam consisting of five one-hour essays, one 90 minute performance test and 200 MBE questions. The first day will be the written portion of the exam. Applicants have three hours during the morning session to answer three essay questions; during the afternoon session, applicants will have three hours and 30 minutes to answer two essay questions and one performance test. The MBE will be administered on the second day. Each portion of the exam is worth 50%.

Day 1: Essay Questions

The essay questions are designed to measure an applicants ability to identify and analyze legal issues arising from specific fact patterns. Those fact patterns could involve the following subject matter: business associations (including but not limited to corporations, sole-proprietorship, partnerships, joint ventures, limited liabilities companies, as well as the principles of agency inherent in business relationships), civil procedure (Federal and California rules), community property, constitutional law, contracts (including UCC Arts. 1, 2, and 9 (provisions relating to fixtures)), criminal law and procedure, evidence (Federal and California rules), professional responsibility, real property, remedies, torts, trusts, and wills and succession.

According to the State Bar of California, “[a]nswers are expected to demonstrate the applicant’s ability to analyze the facts in the question, to tell the difference between material facts and immaterial facts, and to discern the points of law and fact upon which the question turns.” Applicants are expected to do more than regurgitate rules of law. They are expected to demonstrate proficiency in using those rules of law, applying them to specific fact patterns and ultimately reaching a well-reasoned conclusion, answering the questions asked.

Day 1: Performance Test

The performance test is designed to evaluate an applicant’s ability to use fundamental skills in a realistic situation and complete a task that any new lawyer should be able to accomplish. This aspect of the bar exam is not a test of substantive knowledge. Rather, it is practicum designed to evaluate certain fundamental skills lawyers are expected to demonstrate regardless of the area of law in which the skills are applied. These skills include: legal analysis and reasoning, fact analysis, fact gathering, problem solving, and recognizing and resolving ethical dilemmas. The performance test also tests an applicant’s ability to communicate, to organize and to manage a legal task. The question consists of a file and a library with instructions advising the applicant what assignment(s) should be completed. The bar examiners could ask applicants to draft any of the following: a memorandum of law, a persuasive brief, a memorandum to a judge, an opinion letter, letter to opposing counsel, dispute resolution statements, opening or closing statements, even drafting exercises – such as a writing will or contract provisions. Ultimately, the performance test is graded on the applicants ability to follow directions, answer the questions asked, and complete the assigned task(s) in ninety minutes.

Day 2: MBE

The MBE is a six-hour, 200-question multiple-choice examination developed by the National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE). The purpose of the MBE is to assess the extent to which an applicant can apply fundamental legal principles and legal reasoning to analyze given fact patterns. Each MBE multiple choice question has four possible answers and applicants are expected to choose the best answer.

Beginning with the February 2017 MBE, 175 out of the 200 questions are scored questions and the remaining 25 questions are unscored pretest questions (i.e., experimental questions). According to the NCBE, the pretest questions are indistinguishable from the scored questions. The 175 scored questions are distributed evenly, with 25 questions from the following subjects: civil procedure, constitutional law, contracts, criminal law and procedure, evidence, real property, and torts. Sample MBE questions can be found on the National Conference of Bar Examiners website.

Selecting a Bar Review Course

Now that you have a better understanding of the components of the CA bar exam, you should take care in deciding how to prepare for the bar. There are various local and national bar review companies, but not all bar review courses are created equal. The most expensive course is not always the best fit for an applicant and a local California specific course is also not a guarantee to success. We at Fortnight Bar Prep suggest that you consider your learning style and the specifics of each bar review company before signing up for a bar review course. Traditional bar review companies have live lectures, group review of prerecorded lectures, or online lectures. Consider whether you study better surrounded by your peers or by yourself. Consider whether the cost of commuting to a specific bar review course location is worth the benefit of sitting with your peers. The old adage “misery loves company” is not always helpful or beneficial in this case. Factor in time for family, work, exercise, sleep, downtime, etc.

Understand that bar review is not law school. The lecturers are not trying to teach you how to analytically reason or arrive at a logical conclusion; their job is to disseminate as much substantive law as possible in a 3-4 hour lecture. Then, your job is to learn that law on your own. You repeat this exercise usually for 30+ days and covering approximately 20 different legal subjects. It is imperative that you give yourself sufficient time each day to not only watch the video lectures but also to review and practice that substantive material.

Practicing to Maximize Points

Once you’ve selected a bar review company you need start practicing and working with the material from the outset. DO NOT WAIT to begin writing essays, performance tests, or doing multiple choice questions until you feel substantively comfortable. NEWS FLASH – By the time you start to feel substantively proficient in a topic, your bar review course will have moved on to the next topics and you will have fallen behind. The bar exam is not about memorizing every rule of law for every topic. You need to know a little about a lot and know how to maximize points on the different sections of the bar examination.

So – to get better at writing essays and performance tests, you need to write essays and performance tests. To get better at multiple choice, you need to practice multiple choice questions. Start by using your notes, if necessary, and then review every answer. If you don’t understand the answer – stop and figure it out. Use the voluminous material your bar review company provides to make sure you understand why the answer is the way it is. Don’t just go through the motions completing your bar review assignments. Most applicants do not learn by passively watching videos or reading an outline. You have to actively prepare for the bar exam by doing timed essays, timed performance tests, and timed multiple choice.

Recognize that working with a bar tutor might be exactly what you need to make sure you are on the right track. Bar exam tutoring is not remedial. It is not like getting a tutor for college or law school. Select a tutor that will help you master the bar exam. We at Fortnight Bar Prep have tutored hundreds of students taking the bar exam and can assist in improving your essay writing, tackling timing issues on the performance test, as well as teaching you tools and techniques necessary to conquer the MBE.

Final Steps to Conquer the Bar

Applicants routinely ask themselves, “How do I memorize all this law?” The bar examination is not about memorizing subjects, it is about memorizing rules. As we stated above, you need to know a little about a lot. In order to do that, you need to focus on memorization during the final two weeks of bar preparation. It is extremely difficult to memorize all of this material for longer than two weeks. That is why the focus of bar preparation has been on learning and applying the law!

Look at your bar review schedule for the final two weeks? Are you still listening to lectures and learning new law? If so, you will likely feel extremely anxious and stressed out. If possible, finish the substantive component your bar review course by the first week of the month of the bar exam to give yourself enough time to put it all together.

Not sure how to do that – let us help. BarSiege is all you need!  BarSiege is a daily schedule that provides an hour-by-hour guide on how to study for the Bar Exam over the final two weeks, helping you refine your focus, improve memorization, write practice essays and performance tests, and answer multiple choice questions on all areas of the law. Don’t stress, don’t cram, simply follow the schedule for success!