Florida Bar Exam - Official Thread Forum

[aladdinismyprince]

Whoa, my scores were way higher than expected. Not trying to humblebrag, I just really didn't expect this and I definitely didn't feel this confident walking out of the exam room. I guess my point is that you can't always trust your gut on these things. I, like the poster above, would have settled for a 136.

[941law]

For the 2016 people..

Here is the thread following the July 2015 MBE, lots of good info in here http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 1&t=251990

[Geaux12]

For the 2016 people...

Make a schedule (not necessarily the precise schedule provided by BarBri/Kaplan), and keep it. You need to at least skim the lecture/reading material, but you shouldn't skip questions to get more "in depth" on a lecture. That was the HUGE struggle for me: I'm not the type of person to just read something once and not worry about whether I understand all the intricacies. Fact of the matter is, there's no time for that shit. I was behind all summer and it stressed me the fuck out. You need to be practicing (multiple choice questions IMO, b/c my essay formatting was bullshit and I passed easily - just know the law and vomit everything that comes into your head IMO). You'll need to be prepared for essays out of left field, because the Board has thrown away the rulebook, if one ever existed.

Bring earplugs. If you take ADHD meds, or if you have some other semi-legit excuse, have your physician write a letter to the Board explaining why you need water in the exam. Four hours at a time without water, or having to waste time getting up and walking 300 miles to the fountains, just wasn't an option for me. I was time pressed both days, all four sessions. If possible, stay in a hotel room by yourself. The Marriott works just fine, as I'm sure the other hotels in the surrounding area do - just book now.

Oh, and as someone who took Kaplan, you should pay for BarBri. Their Florida materials (particularly essays) shit on everything else I've seen.

[LAW813FL]

For the 2016 people...

Make a schedule (not necessarily the precise schedule provided by BarBri/Kaplan), and keep it. You need to at least skim the lecture/reading material, but you shouldn't skip questions to get more "in depth" on a lecture. That was the HUGE struggle for me: I'm not the type of person to just read something once and not worry about whether I understand all the intricacies. Fact of the matter is, there's no time for that shit. I was behind all summer and it stressed me the fuck out. You need to be practicing (multiple choice questions IMO, b/c my essay formatting was bullshit and I passed easily - just know the law and vomit everything that comes into your head IMO). You'll need to be prepared for essays out of left field, because the Board has thrown away the rulebook, if one ever existed.

Bring earplugs. If you take ADHD meds, or if you have some other semi-legit excuse, have your physician write a letter to the Board explaining why you need water in the exam. Four hours at a time without water, or having to waste time getting up and walking 300 miles to the fountains, just wasn't an option for me. I was time pressed both days, all four sessions. If possible, stay in a hotel room by yourself. The Marriott works just fine, as I'm sure the other hotels in the surrounding area do - just book now.

Oh, and as someone who took Kaplan, you should pay for BarBri. Their Florida materials (particularly essays) shit on everything else I've seen.

What I did was I bought the Florida testing book for Barbri for this cycle along with my Kaplan stuff. There were a few questions on the bar that were word for word the same as Barbri's. Barbri kicked Kaplan's ass in Florida MC.

[blackdrum]

Anyone know what the scale was for the Florida portion?

[TwoBars]

Following along from Geaux12.

Passing the Florida Bar exam is really an exercise of discipline. The earlier you can start reviewing the material, the better off you will be on many levels. Personally, I have a limit to how long I can effectively study at a time. 12 hours a day doesn't work for me (and probably doesn't work for most people). The benefit of the commercial programs is that you are provided a recommended schedule which saves you from having to figure out how to approach the material. Again, the earlier you start, the easier it will be to get through the material. It's nice now that the online aspect of study programs keeps track of what you have done.

My advice for those preparing for the exam. (not really in any particular order)

1. Suck it up and use a commercial study course - Barbri and Themis seem to be better for Florida exam. (I passed easily using Themis)
2. do all the supplied MC questions and actually read the supplied answer explanations.
3. Focus on issue spotting for essays and be sure to read the sample answers.
4. Force yourself to watch all the lectures, painful as it will be. 1.5x-2x speed is your friend!
5. Actually read through the long outlines at least once.

Sounds easy, doesn't it? Don't be fooled it is a ton of information to review, but stick to it and do it.

[ResIpsa305]

Anyone know what the next step is after you mail in your oath? I assume they'll send out a bar # or bar card at some point, but not sure of the timeline for that...

[tiberiusjames]

Yeah, you should get your bar card in a couple of weeks - I sent in my oath on 9/25/2015 and received the bar card earlier this week. They send a packet with your pro-rated dues and some information for CLE credits, etc.

If you go on the FL Bar website and search for your name under attorney it will pop up with your bar number about a week or two before you get your paperwork from what I understand - you might already have a profile assigned and a bar number even though you haven't received your paperwork yet.

[not guilty]

Failed July 15'. Used Barbri. I'm using Barbri again. I did about 60% of the work last time. I felt like the Fla Essays were easy, Fla MC was tough. MBE was inconsistent. I'm starting tomorrow as day 1 for studying. I moved out of State (now I'm back) so unfortunately I'm off to a late start by my standards. For those of you hoping I'm going to be a library of information and help - I'm sorry. My scores are below. Those were very shocking to me. I scored a 115 on Barbri's Midterm and really thought I did well on the Essays. I suppose the internet can be a distraction, but not if we attempt to better ourselves. Good luck to all.

[img]http://i64.tinypic.com/20j4b5u.png[/img]

> http://i64.tinypic.com/20j4b5u.png

[not guilty]

Anyone else taking Feb.?

[rocket32]

I am. Only part A though.

[not guilty]

I am. Only part A though.

What's your schedule and what materials are you using?

[THE_U]

Anyone else taking Feb.?

Yep. Part B.

I am. Only part A though.

What's your schedule and what materials are you using?

I know this wasn't directed towards me but, I'm studying 5-6 days a week for about 5 hours a day. I did the whole 8+ hours a day, every day, during the summer and just got totally burnt out. I feel much fresher and have retained more by scaling it back a little bit. I'll probably go a little more intense in Feb.

Using my Barbri outlines from the summer with Adaptibar. I also have the red PMBR book that I think I'll use for a change of pace or when I run out of Adaptibar questions.

[not guilty]

What essays do you think we will get?

[THE_U]

What essays do you think we will get?

Not taking Part A, so I dunno. But, http://www.aplusebooks.com/bar-exam/ has been pretty solid in predicting what essays and MC subjects will be tested in Florida. I don't think they have released their Feb. 2016 predictions yet, but I'd keep checking.

[727law]

What essays do you think we will get?

The topics that were tested in July make this pretty unpredictable (as it always is anyway) and while I plan on being prepared for any subject, I do want to know a couple subjects exceptionally well. First, Trusts, because it's easy to learn as there are not nearly as many issues as other subjects and with Florida wills being tested in July and a two test drought on this subject, I believe there is a high probability of getting a Trust Essay. The other main areas of focus for me will be Fl Con law, Property, and Family law. Because there are many subjects ripe for testing, I think we will get a combination essay or two and all three of those could be tested in conjunction with one another fairly easily. Family is very common in February, and It's important to know because the essay scores tend to be higher in that subject but I predict (but will study everything) Trust, Prop/Conlaw (such as a homestead question or a taking or tax issue) and a contract/property (such as a ucc 9 secured transaction question with recording, mortgages, etc).

Just guessing for fun, I would emphasize knowing as much as you can. I didnt study Torts in July because I didnt expect it and I thought I could write a tort essay easy from MBE knowledge and my essay scores were 50/50/28(tort essay) totaling a 134 scaled and will now be sitting for a second time

[not guilty]

What essays do you think we will get?

The topics that were tested in July make this pretty unpredictable (as it always is anyway) and while I plan on being prepared for any subject, I do want to know a couple subjects exceptionally well. First, Trusts, because it's easy to learn as there are not nearly as many issues as other subjects and with Florida wills being tested in July and a two test drought on this subject, I believe there is a high probability of getting a Trust Essay. The other main areas of focus for me will be Fl Con law, Property, and Family law. Because there are many subjects ripe for testing, I think we will get a combination essay or two and all three of those could be tested in conjunction with one another fairly easily. Family is very common in February, and It's important to know because the essay scores tend to be higher in that subject but I predict (but will study everything) Trust, Prop/Conlaw (such as a homestead question or a taking or tax issue) and a contract/property (such as a ucc 9 secured transaction question with recording, mortgages, etc).

Just guessing for fun, I would emphasize knowing as much as you can. I didnt study Torts in July because I didnt expect it and I thought I could write a tort essay easy from MBE knowledge and my essay scores were 50/50/28(tort essay) totaling a 134 scaled and will now be sitting for a second time

That's an interesting score breakdown. How is Part A calculated? Essays are 100 points each and MC is 100...

And yes, people underestimate the Florida distinctions in a simple subject like torts.
Well that confuses me because I thought the essay scores got added straight up along with the fl mc

[rocket32]

What essays do you think we will get?

The topics that were tested in July make this pretty unpredictable (as it always is anyway) and while I plan on being prepared for any subject, I do want to know a couple subjects exceptionally well. First, Trusts, because it's easy to learn as there are not nearly as many issues as other subjects and with Florida wills being tested in July and a two test drought on this subject, I believe there is a high probability of getting a Trust Essay. The other main areas of focus for me will be Fl Con law, Property, and Family law. Because there are many subjects ripe for testing, I think we will get a combination essay or two and all three of those could be tested in conjunction with one another fairly easily. Family is very common in February, and It's important to know because the essay scores tend to be higher in that subject but I predict (but will study everything) Trust, Prop/Conlaw (such as a homestead question or a taking or tax issue) and a contract/property (such as a ucc 9 secured transaction question with recording, mortgages, etc).

Just guessing for fun, I would emphasize knowing as much as you can. I didnt study Torts in July because I didnt expect it and I thought I could write a tort essay easy from MBE knowledge and my essay scores were 50/50/28(tort essay) totaling a 134 scaled and will now be sitting for a second time

I also think Trusts is likely. It seems like the examiners tend to either test Trusts in the essays or Wills in the multiple choice, but not both together. Since Wills has been tested on the last two exams and the last four February administrations, I could see them testing Trusts this time.

[727law]

What essays do you think we will get?

The topics that were tested in July make this pretty unpredictable (as it always is anyway) and while I plan on being prepared for any subject, I do want to know a couple subjects exceptionally well. First, Trusts, because it's easy to learn as there are not nearly as many issues as other subjects and with Florida wills being tested in July and a two test drought on this subject, I believe there is a high probability of getting a Trust Essay. The other main areas of focus for me will be Fl Con law, Property, and Family law. Because there are many subjects ripe for testing, I think we will get a combination essay or two and all three of those could be tested in conjunction with one another fairly easily. Family is very common in February, and It's important to know because the essay scores tend to be higher in that subject but I predict (but will study everything) Trust, Prop/Conlaw (such as a homestead question or a taking or tax issue) and a contract/property (such as a ucc 9 secured transaction question with recording, mortgages, etc).

Just guessing for fun, I would emphasize knowing as much as you can. I didnt study Torts in July because I didnt expect it and I thought I could write a tort essay easy from MBE knowledge and my essay scores were 50/50/28(tort essay) totaling a 134 scaled and will now be sitting for a second time

That's an interesting score breakdown. How is Part A calculated? Essays are 100 points each and MC is 100...

And yes, people underestimate the Florida distinctions in a simple subject like torts.
Well that confuses me because I thought the essay scores got added straight up along with the fl mc

Yes the breakdown is 100 for each essay and 100 mc questions and they all get added and scaled together. I didnt include the MC questions to my original answer as a factor in my not passing because I was simply showing that one essay can hurt you, so be prepared for all topics. Unfortunately I cannot find my rejection letter and don't remember my exact percentage of mc questions but it was slightly under the average, probably around 45-50%. The average essay scores were roughly 49/40/40 so although the two 50s look decent, I probably needed about another 7pts from essays or 5 more mc questions correct to pass

[not guilty]

Yes, the essays are scaled down. Supposedly the MC is not scaled down. So although 3 strong essays will garner you a bunch of points (lets say 75), you will still need a good showing in the multiple choice.

"Minimum competency" must be concerning the material because it's not in reference to the points

[starry24]

Anyone else taking Feb.?

I am taking Feb. First time taker.

[not guilty]

Almost February 1st - not happy.

[Geaux12]

Just wanted to check in and wish my homies taking the February bar good luck. Every day you're closer to blacking out at obnoxious South Howard bars. If you're the type who plays well with others, spend this home stretch with (hardworking, intelligent) friends. I literally moved in with three of my best friends from law school for the last two weeks - it was so awesome talking out issues, quizzing each other, etc. I actually remember that time fondly.

Just to reiterate: don't worry so much about making your essays pretty, regardless of what BarBri/Kaplan graders tell you. Mine was absolutely terrible. I focused on vomiting all of the knowledge I could onto the page. Literally run through a checklist in your head of every subject that's tested on the bar exam, and ask yourself if you could possibly apply any law from any of those subjects to the facts of the essay. If you see a crime being committed, you know for a fact that you can talk about criminal law, criminal procedure, evidence and constitutional law (both FL and US), and you can discuss the potential civil/tort implications as well. This is an exercise in bullshitting. Throw everything at the wall and see what sticks. Have the obvious answers like "The right to privacy is enshrined in FL's constitution, but this protection is not absolute blah blah" and shit like that memorized.

Be on the look out for one or two land use/variance questions; I was totally unprepared for those. Understanding the most basic shit about nonconforming use should be sufficient.

Watch the final rap battle from 8 Mile on repeat. Listen to "1998 Freestyle" by Big L. Make this test your bitch. Peace & Love.

[starry24]

Anyone else struggling with trusts?

[not guilty]

Anyone else struggling with trusts?

In certain areas in certain subjects. Like hearsay. Only subject I just literally don't know a thing is Business Entities.