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(Redirected from Bar Exam)
A 'bar examination' is an examination to determine whether a candidate is qualified to practice law in a given jurisdiction.
Passing the bar exam is typically only one of several steps for being licensed to practice law. For more information on the complete process, see 'admission to the bar in the United States'.
Bar examinations in the United States are administered by agencies of individual states. The state agency is invariably associated with the judicial branch of government, because American attorneys are all officers of the court of the bar(s) to which they belong.
Sometimes the agency is an office or committee of the state's highest court or intermediate appellate court. In some states which have a unified or integrated bar association (meaning that formal membership in a public corporation controlled by the judiciary is required to practice law therein), the agency is either the state bar association or a subunit thereof. Other states split the integrated bar membership and the admissions agency into different bodies within the judiciary; in Texas, the Board of Law Examiners is appointed by the Texas Supreme Court and is independent from the integrated State Bar of Texas.
In almost all jurisdictions, the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE), an ethics exam, is also administered by the National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE), which creates it and grades it. The MPRE is offered three times a year, in March, August and November.
The bar examination in most U.S. states and territories is two days long and consists of:
★ Essay questions:
★
★ Essentially all jurisdictions administer several such questions that test knowledge of general legal principles, and may also test knowledge of the state's own law (usually subjects such as wills, trusts and community property, which always vary from one state to another). Some jurisdictions choose to use the Multistate Essay Examination (MEE), drafted by the NCBE, for this purpose. Others may draft their own questions with this goal in mind, while some states both draft their own questions and use the MEE.
★
★ Some jurisdictions administer complicated questions that specifically test knowledge of that state's law.
★ The Multistate Bar Examination, a standardized, multiple-choice examination created and sold to participating state bar examiners by the National Conference of Bar Examiners. The MBE contains 200 questions which test six subjects based upon principles of common law and Article 2 of the Uniform Commercial Code (covering sales of goods) that apply throughout the United States.
A majority of U.S. jurisdictions also require a performance test as a more realistic measure of actual lawyering skill; the candidate is presented with a stack of documents representing a fictional case and is asked to draft a memorandum, motion, or opinion document. Many jurisdictions use the Multistate Performance Test (MPT), while California drafts and administers its own performance tests.
Each state controls when it administers its bar exam. Because the MBE is a standardized test, it ''must'' be administered on the same day across the country. That day occurs twice a year as the last Wednesday in July and the last Wednesday in February. Two states, Delaware and North Dakota, administer their bar exams only once, in July, since they do not have enough applicants to merit a second sitting. Most bar exams are administered on consecutive days. Louisiana is the exception, administering its three-day examination on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Also, Louisiana's examination is the longest in the country in terms of examination time, with 7 hours on each day for a total of 21 hours.
The MEE and MPT, as uniform though not standardized tests, also must be administered on the same day across the country — specifically the day before the MBE.
All examinees must be present in person, and most states have strict guidelines about what people may take into the examination room, what they may wear during the exam, and when test takers may leave their seats for any reason.
Most law schools prefer to teach students "how to think like a lawyer" but do not prepare law students for any particular bar exam. As one Harvard-trained lawyer put it:
Therefore, to learn the "black-letter rules" actually tested on the bar, most students engage in a regimen of study (called "bar review") between graduating from law school and sitting for the bar.[1]
Bar review is considered by many to be one of the most stressful and unpleasant experiences which a law student faces before becoming a lawyer.
In England and Wales, the series of exams taken to become a barrister is sometimes known as bar finals or Bar Exams/Examinations.
Nowadays these exams are usually taken as part of the Bar Vocational Course at establishments such as the College of Law.
See barrister for further information about qualifying in England and Wales.
In Brazil, there is a bar examination that occurs in each State in March, August and December. These examinations are organized by Ordem dos Advogados do Brasil, the Brazilian Bar association.
In Hungary the Bar Examination is called "'Jogi Szakvizsga'", can be translated as "Legal Profession Examination". This exam is composed of 3 parts:
1. Criminal Law, Criminal Procedural Law and Penal Law
2. Civil Law, Civil Procedural Law and Economy Law
3. Constitutional Law, Administrative Law and Law of the European Union.
After passing these exams the candidate can be a barrister or secretary at the court or at the public prosecutor's office or legal executive or may operate individually at any field of law.
A statement by the Society of American Law Teachers (SALT) articulates many criticisms of the bar exam. The SALT statement, however, does propose some alternative methods of bar admission that are partially test-based. The statement can be found at http://www.saltlaw.org/positionbarexam.htm. This statement was also published in 54 JOURNAL OF LEGAL EDUCATION 442–458.
The National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE) regularly provides articles relating to the bar examination process. Typically, they are in favor of it. To see a general collection of the articles available, go to:
http://www.ncbex.org/pubs/bar_examiner/most_recent.htm
The NCBE published an article in 2005 addressing alternatives to the bar exam, including a discussion of the Daniel Webster Scholar Honors Program, an alternate certification program introduced at Franklin Pierce Law Center in New Hampshire in that year. The article can be found at:
http://www.ncbex.org/pubs/pdf/2005_Volume74/740405/740405_Essay.pdf
★ Bar association
★ IRAC for essay tips and strategies.
★ State Judicial Exam
★ National Conference of Bar Examiners: Makers of the Multistate Bar Exam
★ ABA
1. Mark E. Steiner, "International Conference on Legal Education Reform: Cram Schooled," 24 Wis. Int'l L.J. 377, 392 (2006). This article contrasts American bar review courses against the 18-month cram schools used in Japan, Germany, Korea, and Taiwan, and argues that the short length of American bar review is due to the superior pedagogical methods of American law schools and the American tradition of relatively easy access to the legal profession (in comparison to most countries).
★ The Louisiana Supreme Court Committee on Bar Admissions.
A 'bar examination' is an examination to determine whether a candidate is qualified to practice law in a given jurisdiction.
United States
Passing the bar exam is typically only one of several steps for being licensed to practice law. For more information on the complete process, see 'admission to the bar in the United States'.
Bar examinations in the United States are administered by agencies of individual states. The state agency is invariably associated with the judicial branch of government, because American attorneys are all officers of the court of the bar(s) to which they belong.
Sometimes the agency is an office or committee of the state's highest court or intermediate appellate court. In some states which have a unified or integrated bar association (meaning that formal membership in a public corporation controlled by the judiciary is required to practice law therein), the agency is either the state bar association or a subunit thereof. Other states split the integrated bar membership and the admissions agency into different bodies within the judiciary; in Texas, the Board of Law Examiners is appointed by the Texas Supreme Court and is independent from the integrated State Bar of Texas.
In almost all jurisdictions, the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE), an ethics exam, is also administered by the National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE), which creates it and grades it. The MPRE is offered three times a year, in March, August and November.
The bar examination in most U.S. states and territories is two days long and consists of:
★ Essay questions:
★
★ Essentially all jurisdictions administer several such questions that test knowledge of general legal principles, and may also test knowledge of the state's own law (usually subjects such as wills, trusts and community property, which always vary from one state to another). Some jurisdictions choose to use the Multistate Essay Examination (MEE), drafted by the NCBE, for this purpose. Others may draft their own questions with this goal in mind, while some states both draft their own questions and use the MEE.
★
★ Some jurisdictions administer complicated questions that specifically test knowledge of that state's law.
★ The Multistate Bar Examination, a standardized, multiple-choice examination created and sold to participating state bar examiners by the National Conference of Bar Examiners. The MBE contains 200 questions which test six subjects based upon principles of common law and Article 2 of the Uniform Commercial Code (covering sales of goods) that apply throughout the United States.
A majority of U.S. jurisdictions also require a performance test as a more realistic measure of actual lawyering skill; the candidate is presented with a stack of documents representing a fictional case and is asked to draft a memorandum, motion, or opinion document. Many jurisdictions use the Multistate Performance Test (MPT), while California drafts and administers its own performance tests.
When exams occur
Each state controls when it administers its bar exam. Because the MBE is a standardized test, it ''must'' be administered on the same day across the country. That day occurs twice a year as the last Wednesday in July and the last Wednesday in February. Two states, Delaware and North Dakota, administer their bar exams only once, in July, since they do not have enough applicants to merit a second sitting. Most bar exams are administered on consecutive days. Louisiana is the exception, administering its three-day examination on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Also, Louisiana's examination is the longest in the country in terms of examination time, with 7 hours on each day for a total of 21 hours.
The MEE and MPT, as uniform though not standardized tests, also must be administered on the same day across the country — specifically the day before the MBE.
All examinees must be present in person, and most states have strict guidelines about what people may take into the examination room, what they may wear during the exam, and when test takers may leave their seats for any reason.
Preparation for the exam
Most law schools prefer to teach students "how to think like a lawyer" but do not prepare law students for any particular bar exam. As one Harvard-trained lawyer put it:
Therefore, to learn the "black-letter rules" actually tested on the bar, most students engage in a regimen of study (called "bar review") between graduating from law school and sitting for the bar.[1]
Bar review is considered by many to be one of the most stressful and unpleasant experiences which a law student faces before becoming a lawyer.
England and Wales
In England and Wales, the series of exams taken to become a barrister is sometimes known as bar finals or Bar Exams/Examinations.
Nowadays these exams are usually taken as part of the Bar Vocational Course at establishments such as the College of Law.
See barrister for further information about qualifying in England and Wales.
Brazil
In Brazil, there is a bar examination that occurs in each State in March, August and December. These examinations are organized by Ordem dos Advogados do Brasil, the Brazilian Bar association.
Hungary
In Hungary the Bar Examination is called "'Jogi Szakvizsga'", can be translated as "Legal Profession Examination". This exam is composed of 3 parts:
1. Criminal Law, Criminal Procedural Law and Penal Law
2. Civil Law, Civil Procedural Law and Economy Law
3. Constitutional Law, Administrative Law and Law of the European Union.
After passing these exams the candidate can be a barrister or secretary at the court or at the public prosecutor's office or legal executive or may operate individually at any field of law.
Controversy
Arguments against the bar exam
A statement by the Society of American Law Teachers (SALT) articulates many criticisms of the bar exam. The SALT statement, however, does propose some alternative methods of bar admission that are partially test-based. The statement can be found at http://www.saltlaw.org/positionbarexam.htm. This statement was also published in 54 JOURNAL OF LEGAL EDUCATION 442–458.
Arguments in favor of the bar exam
The National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE) regularly provides articles relating to the bar examination process. Typically, they are in favor of it. To see a general collection of the articles available, go to:
http://www.ncbex.org/pubs/bar_examiner/most_recent.htm
Arguments for alternatives to the bar exam
The NCBE published an article in 2005 addressing alternatives to the bar exam, including a discussion of the Daniel Webster Scholar Honors Program, an alternate certification program introduced at Franklin Pierce Law Center in New Hampshire in that year. The article can be found at:
http://www.ncbex.org/pubs/pdf/2005_Volume74/740405/740405_Essay.pdf
See also
★ Bar association
★ IRAC for essay tips and strategies.
★ State Judicial Exam
★ National Conference of Bar Examiners: Makers of the Multistate Bar Exam
★ ABA
References
1. Mark E. Steiner, "International Conference on Legal Education Reform: Cram Schooled," 24 Wis. Int'l L.J. 377, 392 (2006). This article contrasts American bar review courses against the 18-month cram schools used in Japan, Germany, Korea, and Taiwan, and argues that the short length of American bar review is due to the superior pedagogical methods of American law schools and the American tradition of relatively easy access to the legal profession (in comparison to most countries).
★ The Louisiana Supreme Court Committee on Bar Admissions.
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