Themis Bar Review Hangout - July 2014 Exam Forum

[klbisho4]

Was terrified about the FL multiple choice questions and still am. Got a little bit of relief when I took a practice exam today with BarBri questions (much more accurate to the real thing than Themis') and got 55/100. I'm starting to think I might pull this off.

[mmmnnn]

These open-ended "What are the rights of the parties?" questions can seriously go to hell. I just did an essay where it was impossible to figure out whether the issues were contract or real property. I know those areas of law well enough to pass them on the MBE, but I really didn't spot any issues throughout the entire fact pattern.

Yes, this. I'm going to cry if this shows up on the real deal.

[klbisho4]

How is this right? This explanation seems to be all over the place... an assignment is when you give all of your rights to someone else and they are now responsible for the rent. Am I crazy?


A landlord leased an apartment to a tenant by written lease for two years ending on the last day of a recent month. The lease provided for $700 monthly rental. The tenant occupied the apartment and paid the rent for the first 15 months of the lease term, until he moved to a new job in another city. Without consulting the landlord, the tenant moved a friend into the apartment and signed an informal writing transferring to the friend his "lease rights" for the remaining nine months of the lease. The friend made the next four monthly $700 rental payments to the landlord. For the final five months of the lease term, no rent was paid by anyone, and the friend moved out with three months left on the lease term. The landlord was on an extended trip abroad, and did not learn of the default and the vacancy until last week. The landlord sued the tenant and the friend, jointly and severally, for $3,500 for the last five months' rent.

What is the likely outcome of the lawsuit?
A. Both the tenant and the friend are liable for the full $3,500, because the tenant is liable on privity of contract and the friend is liable on privity of estate as assignee.
B. The friend is liable for $1,400 on privity of estate, which lasted only until he vacated, and the tenant is liable for $2,100 on privity of contract and estate for the period after the friend vacated.
C. The friend is liable for $3,500 on privity of estate and the tenant is not liable, because the landlord's failure to object to the friend's payment of rent relieved the tenant of liability.
D. The tenant is liable for $3,500 on privity of contract and the friend is not liable, because a sublessee does not have personal liability to the original landlord.

Answer choice A is correct. An assignment arises when a tenant transfers all or some of the leased premises to another for the remainder of the lease term, retaining no interest in the assigned premises. Any transfer of less than the duration of the lease is a sublease. Privity of contract is created by the signing of a lease, while the privity of estate relationship is connected through possession of the property. In this case, the tenant was in privity of contract (upon signing the lease) and privity of estate (upon taking possession) with the landlord. When the tenant transferred the remainder of his lease term to his friend, the friend was then in privity of estate with the landlord as to all covenants that run with the land, including the covenant to pay rent. Since the tenant continued to be in privity of contract because he was not released from his lease by the landlord, the tenant continued to remain fully liable to the landlord for the missing rent payments. The friend was liable for the defaulted rental payments as an assignee. Answer choice B is incorrect because during an assignment, both original tenant and assignee remain fully liable to the landlord. Answer choice C is incorrect because the landlord never released the tenant from the original lease. Answer choice D is incorrect because it assumes that the friend was a sublessee, which he was not. Here, as noted previously, the tenant transferred all the remaining time of the lease to the friend and retained no other interest.

[Rirruto]

How is this right? This explanation seems to be all over the place... an assignment is when you give all of your rights to someone else and they are now responsible for the rent. Am I crazy?

Correct. But without a novation, you're still on the hook even after you've assigned.

[klbisho4]

How is this right? This explanation seems to be all over the place... an assignment is when you give all of your rights to someone else and they are now responsible for the rent. Am I crazy?

Correct. But without a novation, you're still on the hook even after you've assigned.

Thanks, yeah I figured that out a few ago after talking with my roommate about it. The little things seem to trip me up.

[FlanAl]

SO you can access the summary outlines outside of directed study. They sent out an email in late june titled "summary outlines" that has links to all of the outlines in it.

[blue920]

Was terrified about the FL multiple choice questions and still am. Got a little bit of relief when I took a practice exam today with BarBri questions (much more accurate to the real thing than Themis') and got 55/100. I'm starting to think I might pull this off.

NY is the same - I bombed the NY MC simulated practice test, but got 44% on my most recent practice set and was thrilled.

[blue920]

Alright, now that we're getting down to the wire here, a practical question about test day(s).

What are you planning to do for lunch? I'm at Empire State Plaza in Albany and while there are lots of restaurants, they're half a mile away and I'm not familiar with the area. I'd like to bring lunch, but the bar committee has been sending out these ominous warnings about how long the line for the personal belongings room will be (which I assume is where we have to store lunch, right?). I'm thinking I'll bring lunch and keep it in a cooler in my car - hopefully it won't get too hot.

I've been reading bar exam day advice and seperac had a good suggestion for lunch - go back to your car, get your notes, and study the subjects you think will be coming up in the afternoon. Since NY basically guarantees wills, torts, family law, and contracts (and to a lesser extent corporations, real property, and civ pro), I'm going to do some skimming on whatever hasn't come up in the morning session.

I took the NY bar in 2009 - passed. My location was at a funky hotel in Albany. I brought a cooler in my car with some sandwiches and a bottle of water. I sat and listened to calm music in the car while I ate my lunch. It worked very well. I'm taking in Florida this time and plan on doing something similar, haven't worked out the logistics yet. But the key is to avoid any unnecessary stress so that you only have to deal with the necessary stress (the actual exam).

So, in an effort to make sure I was all set for lunch on exam day, I went onto my hotel website to see if they mentioned if the refrigerators had little freezer compartments for my ice packs - and my room didn't have a refrigerator at all! Spent the evening rebooking, calling hotels to make sure my new room would have a fridge (it seems many hotels east of Albany don't), and texting with a friend about whether I would hit less traffic coming from west or east of the convention center.

On the plus side, my new room is bigger, cheaper, only a mile further away (and I was already driving anyway), and has a fridge. I'm glad I didn't find this out next Monday.

[iLoveFruits&Veggies]

Alright, now that we're getting down to the wire here, a practical question about test day(s).

What are you planning to do for lunch? I'm at Empire State Plaza in Albany and while there are lots of restaurants, they're half a mile away and I'm not familiar with the area. I'd like to bring lunch, but the bar committee has been sending out these ominous warnings about how long the line for the personal belongings room will be (which I assume is where we have to store lunch, right?). I'm thinking I'll bring lunch and keep it in a cooler in my car - hopefully it won't get too hot.

I've been reading bar exam day advice and seperac had a good suggestion for lunch - go back to your car, get your notes, and study the subjects you think will be coming up in the afternoon. Since NY basically guarantees wills, torts, family law, and contracts (and to a lesser extent corporations, real property, and civ pro), I'm going to do some skimming on whatever hasn't come up in the morning session.

I took the NY bar in 2009 - passed. My location was at a funky hotel in Albany. I brought a cooler in my car with some sandwiches and a bottle of water. I sat and listened to calm music in the car while I ate my lunch. It worked very well. I'm taking in Florida this time and plan on doing something similar, haven't worked out the logistics yet. But the key is to avoid any unnecessary stress so that you only have to deal with the necessary stress (the actual exam).

So, in an effort to make sure I was all set for lunch on exam day, I went onto my hotel website to see if they mentioned if the refrigerators had little freezer compartments for my ice packs - and my room didn't have a refrigerator at all! Spent the evening rebooking, calling hotels to make sure my new room would have a fridge (it seems many hotels east of Albany don't), and texting with a friend about whether I would hit less traffic coming from west or east of the convention center.

On the plus side, my new room is bigger, cheaper, only a mile further away (and I was already driving anyway), and has a fridge. I'm glad I didn't find this out next Monday.

I called my hotel about the SAME thing this afternoon! To see if the little fridge had a freezer! They said it does.... I sure hope it's true!! glad you found another place (for cheaper!) that has one too!

[Gotti]

NY takers...

In January, an initial certificate of limited partnership to form Limited Partnership was created and entrusted to partnership's attorney for filing. Unbeknownst to Limited Partnership, the attorney failed to file the certificate with the department of state. In July, Limited Partnership opened an investment account with Firm. Within one year of opening the account, Limited Partnership's investments lost more than half their value, and Limited Partnership commenced an action against Firm seeking damages for negligence in managing its funds. A summons and complaint were served on Firm in October of the following year. Two years later, Limited Partnership filed the initial certificate upon discovery that their attorney had failed to do so. Firm moved to dismiss the complaint, asserting that the consequence of Limited Partnership's failure to file the initial certificate prior to commencement of the action resulted in a lack of capacity to enter into an agreement or bring suit.
Will Firm prevail in its motion to dismiss?

A. Yes, because filing a certificate of limited partnership is mandatory and conclusive evidence that a limited partnership is in existence.
B. Yes, because failure to comply with legal requirements estops a litigant from defending itself in a lawsuit before the state court.
C. No, because Firm derived a benefit from its agreement with Limited Partnership, and its investment services were not dependent in any way on the nature of Limited Partnership.
D. No, because the only requirement for formation of a Limited Partnership is an oral or written agreement between the parties.

Answer choice C is correct. Filing a certificate is conclusive evidence of the formation of a limited partnership and is required by the Revised Uniform Limited Partnership Act (RULPA); thus, answer choice D is incorrect. However, one who has recognized the organization in business dealings may not be allowed to deny its existence in matters before the court and may be estopped from doing so. Here, Firm derived a benefit from the agreement, and the services it provided did not depend on the certificate of limited partnership being properly filed. Therefore answer choices A and B are incorrect, and Firm is estopped from denying Limited Partnership's validity. Note that if Limited Partnership were the party seeking to file a lawsuit, the court would be more likely to find it was estopped as a result of its failure to properly file its certificate of formation.

Is it just late or does the last sentence not make sense since LP did file the lawsuit...?

[iLoveFruits&Veggies]

Just curious as to what folks are using as their "attack plan" for each essay subject? Are you just using the "themis technique" list at the top of each essay review? Or making your own? Any advice/tips/what seems to work, what doesn't?

[blue920]

NY takers...

In January, an initial certificate of limited partnership to form Limited Partnership was created and entrusted to partnership's attorney for filing. Unbeknownst to Limited Partnership, the attorney failed to file the certificate with the department of state. In July, Limited Partnership opened an investment account with Firm. Within one year of opening the account, Limited Partnership's investments lost more than half their value, and Limited Partnership commenced an action against Firm seeking damages for negligence in managing its funds. A summons and complaint were served on Firm in October of the following year. Two years later, Limited Partnership filed the initial certificate upon discovery that their attorney had failed to do so. Firm moved to dismiss the complaint, asserting that the consequence of Limited Partnership's failure to file the initial certificate prior to commencement of the action resulted in a lack of capacity to enter into an agreement or bring suit.
Will Firm prevail in its motion to dismiss?

A. Yes, because filing a certificate of limited partnership is mandatory and conclusive evidence that a limited partnership is in existence.
B. Yes, because failure to comply with legal requirements estops a litigant from defending itself in a lawsuit before the state court.
C. No, because Firm derived a benefit from its agreement with Limited Partnership, and its investment services were not dependent in any way on the nature of Limited Partnership.
D. No, because the only requirement for formation of a Limited Partnership is an oral or written agreement between the parties.

Answer choice C is correct. Filing a certificate is conclusive evidence of the formation of a limited partnership and is required by the Revised Uniform Limited Partnership Act (RULPA); thus, answer choice D is incorrect. However, one who has recognized the organization in business dealings may not be allowed to deny its existence in matters before the court and may be estopped from doing so. Here, Firm derived a benefit from the agreement, and the services it provided did not depend on the certificate of limited partnership being properly filed. Therefore answer choices A and B are incorrect, and Firm is estopped from denying Limited Partnership's validity. Note that if Limited Partnership were the party seeking to file a lawsuit, the court would be more likely to find it was estopped as a result of its failure to properly file its certificate of formation.

Is it just late or does the last sentence not make sense since LP did file the lawsuit...?

I think it's saying if the explanation was reversed, B might be the answer - Yes, because failure to comply with legal requirements estops a litigant from bringing a lawsuit before the state court. I read B and instantly dismissed it because they're not defendants in this lawsuit.

But that would conflict with the actual answer and you'd have two potentially correct choices...which wouldn't be unheard of for bar exam MC questions. I love it when I pick D and read yes, D is correct but C is the better answer...

I've given up on trying to make sense of the NY questions - all I want is enough knowledge to get 50% and I don't care about anything else. This was another NY question I had an issue with:

Defendant, a shoe importer/exporter, telephoned Plaintiff, a shoe wholesaler. Defendant and Plaintiff regularly did business, both buying and selling shoes to each other. In December, the parties discussed the purchase of shoes. After the conversation, Plaintiff sent Defendant a dated confirmation slip, which included the following terms: "WE HAVE SOLD TO YOU 250,000 SHOES." The confirmation slip called for delivery the following August. Defendant's treasurer signed the slip and returned it to Plaintiff five days later. By letter dated in July, Plaintiff notified Defendant that he was awaiting instructions on how to deliver the shoes to Plaintiff. Defendant responded by letter stating that Plaintiff was mistaken, and that Defendant intended to sell shoes to Plaintiff rather than make a purchase. To cover, Plaintiff sold the shoes at a loss and brought suit against Defendant. Plaintiff moved for summary judgment, and Defendant sought admission of parol evidence to prove that the parties' intent was to purchase shoes from rather than to sell shoes to Plaintiff. How should the court rule on Defendant's request for admission of parol evidence?

Umm, isn't that what they actually did?

I've concluded that expecting the NY questions to actually make sense is asking too much.

[dtl]

I am not sure if my hotel has a fridge, but I am going to bring a cooler (maybe with dry ice) in my car. That way I don't have to scramble for lunch either.

I have another question! Themis outline says that California allows witnesses to be hypnotized to recall events. Everything else I have been able to find contradicts this. Am I right in that California only allows hypnotized witnesses under very very narrow circumstances? (Police doing it without suggestion)

[blue920]

Have any of you bought SmartBarPrep to complement Themis for NY bar essays, and if so, what do you think of it? Thanks in advance for any thoughts. (I'm actually a BARBRI person, but I figured there may be people in here as worried about essays as I am...)

I just bought it (hadn't heard of it until your post). I think it could be very useful for my lunchtime studying on Tuesday. It's very comprehensive, and I like how everything is broken down into elements. If this helps me with contracts (my worst subject by far, and one that's tested not infrequently on the NY bar - and obviously the MBE), I'll consider it $100 well spent.

[jigglypuffdreams]

Just curious as to what folks are using as their "attack plan" for each essay subject? Are you just using the "themis technique" list at the top of each essay review? Or making your own? Any advice/tips/what seems to work, what doesn't?

Can I just say I'm mildly jealous of you guys? In Michigan we only had one essay workshop, and it just went over how to write a torts essay in Themis TRAC style. And no short outlines either. I even looked into leansheets for the hell of it but they had no Michigan specific law, just generic corporations and secured transactions and shit if I wanted it. So I've been looking through the outlines and trying to make sure I get the parts of each law that are frequently tested. Or stealing rule statements from model answers so I can spit out what happens every time a person with a will leaves a wife behind and they need an intestate share. There are certain things that it seems like you always have to know, so I'm making sure I know those things down cold.

[bport hopeful]

Anecdotal, but hopefully up lifting. Took a graded essay that I didn't really know the law on or at least I didn't think I knew the law on and got a 65 on it. NY. Hopefully we'll all get in the test room and be surprised with how much we can actually put to paper.

[northwood]

Anecdotal, but hopefully up lifting. Took a graded essay that I didn't really know the law on or at least I didn't think I knew the law on and got a 65 on it. NY. Hopefully we'll all get in the test room and be surprised with how much we can actually put to paper.

i think well all be pleasantly surprised as to how much law we know and can apply on the exam

[Tanicius]

To get back to a subject from earlier -- SofTest/ExamSoft... Does anyone know if our formatting is actually going to show up on the real thing? My formatting kept getting fucked up for my graded essays, and I want to make sure when I bold, underline and italicize things on the exam that it's actually getting bolded, underlined and italicized.

[northwood]

speaking of examsoft I know there are things you can do if exam soft is going slow on your computer( you are experiencing lag) does anyone know how to remedy these issues( make sure they do not occur)?

[numbertwo88]

Just curious as to what folks are using as their "attack plan" for each essay subject? Are you just using the "themis technique" list at the top of each essay review? Or making your own? Any advice/tips/what seems to work, what doesn't?

I'm making "short" outlines (2-3 pages) based on the topics they say are tested the most within each essay subject. I compared it to a list of Barbri issues they say are tested most frequently as well and I'm only studying the issues Themis/Barbri have as being tested frequently. If it isn't on the list, I am not studying it because there is no time.

How am I memorizing it? Still working that part out ...

[champ33]

Just curious as to what folks are using as their "attack plan" for each essay subject? Are you just using the "themis technique" list at the top of each essay review? Or making your own? Any advice/tips/what seems to work, what doesn't?

On most of the practices I have been able to spot the issues pretty quickly and get them all jotted down on the page within 10 minutes or so of opening the question. My problem is going to be spending the rest of the time putting down the actual rule for that issue coherently and without missing too many elements.

[blue920]

Alright, now that we're getting down to the wire here, a practical question about test day(s).

What are you planning to do for lunch? I'm at Empire State Plaza in Albany and while there are lots of restaurants, they're half a mile away and I'm not familiar with the area. I'd like to bring lunch, but the bar committee has been sending out these ominous warnings about how long the line for the personal belongings room will be (which I assume is where we have to store lunch, right?). I'm thinking I'll bring lunch and keep it in a cooler in my car - hopefully it won't get too hot.

I've been reading bar exam day advice and seperac had a good suggestion for lunch - go back to your car, get your notes, and study the subjects you think will be coming up in the afternoon. Since NY basically guarantees wills, torts, family law, and contracts (and to a lesser extent corporations, real property, and civ pro), I'm going to do some skimming on whatever hasn't come up in the morning session.

I took the NY bar in 2009 - passed. My location was at a funky hotel in Albany. I brought a cooler in my car with some sandwiches and a bottle of water. I sat and listened to calm music in the car while I ate my lunch. It worked very well. I'm taking in Florida this time and plan on doing something similar, haven't worked out the logistics yet. But the key is to avoid any unnecessary stress so that you only have to deal with the necessary stress (the actual exam).

So, in an effort to make sure I was all set for lunch on exam day, I went onto my hotel website to see if they mentioned if the refrigerators had little freezer compartments for my ice packs - and my room didn't have a refrigerator at all! Spent the evening rebooking, calling hotels to make sure my new room would have a fridge (it seems many hotels east of Albany don't), and texting with a friend about whether I would hit less traffic coming from west or east of the convention center.

On the plus side, my new room is bigger, cheaper, only a mile further away (and I was already driving anyway), and has a fridge. I'm glad I didn't find this out next Monday.

I called my hotel about the SAME thing this afternoon! To see if the little fridge had a freezer! They said it does.... I sure hope it's true!! glad you found another place (for cheaper!) that has one too!

Thanks! You know, after all that I still don't know if my new room has a freezer compartment! But I called twice yesterday and didn't want to be that person by calling again. My lunch should be okay either way - at least it's only supposed to be about 80 next week in Albany.

[bkenney2]

ExamSoft sent out an email today about how to use it, what features were included in my state, ect. Pretty nice of them.

Relevant for those wondering about their state's software.

[nog]

To get back to a subject from earlier -- SofTest/ExamSoft... Does anyone know if our formatting is actually going to show up on the real thing? My formatting kept getting fucked up for my graded essays, and I want to make sure when I bold, underline and italicize things on the exam that it's actually getting bolded, underlined and italicized.

Yes, ExamSoft allows you to do basic formatting, like bold, italic, and underlining. Much easier to use than the Themis interface. I'd definitely recommend doing a practice essay before the exam if you haven't used it; ExamSoft is easy to use, but it definitely has a few quirks, so I'd take a few minutes to figure it out before the bar if you can.

[lawyerwannabe]

What are everyone's thoughts on essay format? Is anything necessary besides IRACing all the issues (e.g. underlining, bolding, etc.)?