BarBri Bar Review Hangout - February 2016 Exam Forum

[NY_Sea]

If that's the case, then I guess I'm less worried. The actual MBE in July is a blur and I don't really remember how heavy (if at all), the questions were on dates. I just remember a lot of JMOL questions

I don't really remember either, but there's really only so many things they can test when it comes to JMOL. And if you look at the sample questions on the NCBE site, they don't really get into date-specific stuff. I could be totally off, and if someone remembers July better than U and I, someone please correct me.

[NY_Sea]

MrMustache, I'm feeling you on the dread and hoping it will come together. I feel like I'm hitting that part of the bar prep where my brain is tired and my MBE scores are flagging. I'm at only 50-55% correct for Adaptibar Civ Pro, Evidence, and Contracts (for an overall average of 60% when other subjects are included), and the number has been going down especially in the last week. Friends/family tell me I look like shit (no idea why)

I think I have a harder time with Evidence and Contracts because the standards are very general and the applications very fact based... I did get 66% on both of the recent Barbri 50 Q mixed sets, so there is some hope, but my Adaptibar scores really worry me because I had the same kind of slump before the last bar.

If your scores are dropping its because you're exhausted (no you're not suddenly getting dumber). If you continue to grind like a mother fucker when you're physically and mentally exhausted, you're not really doing yourself any favors. You're not retaining a vast majority of the information when you're that exhausted, so its inefficient (and really a waste of time) to continue to grind like that. Take breaks. Eat well. Get some sleep. And relax (easier said that done I know). Then get back at it.

Ugh, I haven't been at it that hard though. 8-9 hours M-F and two half days on the weekends. I practice martial arts twice a week still. But maybe slightly more relaxing for a day or two is in order

8-9 hours a day is a lot, especially if they're pretty much consecutive hours.

Really? I'm putting in at least 12+ 7 days a week....

Maybe I'm just lazy, but even if I weren't working full time, that seems excessive... I couldn't legitimately study for 12 hours a day. Hell, I can't REALLY STUDY for even 6-8 hours a day. Good for you though... I wish I had that work ethic.

[THE_U]

I'm not working at all and have been studying 4-6 hours a day, taking Saturdays completely off.

I tried the whole study 8+ hours a day, every day, over the summer and got completely burnt out. Hell, as it is, I'm feeling burnt out today.

[cjusticenu]

MrMustache, I'm feeling you on the dread and hoping it will come together. I feel like I'm hitting that part of the bar prep where my brain is tired and my MBE scores are flagging. I'm at only 50-55% correct for Adaptibar Civ Pro, Evidence, and Contracts (for an overall average of 60% when other subjects are included), and the number has been going down especially in the last week. Friends/family tell me I look like shit (no idea why)

I think I have a harder time with Evidence and Contracts because the standards are very general and the applications very fact based... I did get 66% on both of the recent Barbri 50 Q mixed sets, so there is some hope, but my Adaptibar scores really worry me because I had the same kind of slump before the last bar.

If your scores are dropping its because you're exhausted (no you're not suddenly getting dumber). If you continue to grind like a mother fucker when you're physically and mentally exhausted, you're not really doing yourself any favors. You're not retaining a vast majority of the information when you're that exhausted, so its inefficient (and really a waste of time) to continue to grind like that. Take breaks. Eat well. Get some sleep. And relax (easier said that done I know). Then get back at it.

Ugh, I haven't been at it that hard though. 8-9 hours M-F and two half days on the weekends. I practice martial arts twice a week still. But maybe slightly more relaxing for a day or two is in order

8-9 hours a day is a lot, especially if they're pretty much consecutive hours.

Really? I'm putting in at least 12+ 7 days a week....

Maybe I'm just lazy, but even if I weren't working full time, that seems excessive... I couldn't legitimately study for 12 hours a day. Hell, I can't REALLY STUDY for even 6-8 hours a day. Good for you though... I wish I had that work ethic.

I feel like I don't have a choice. I don't remember nearly any of this stuff from law school. Luckily evidence comes easily to me, and I was in the world of torts before I started law school so I've got the negligence stuff down pat. Everything else is a complete blank, which is why my essays are terrible. I just feel that with the pass rates so much lower in the winter, I'm at a HUGE disadvantage (plus, a lot of the people I'm competing with had already sat through and studied for this test before). Long story short, I feel totally fucked, and even with my head in a book or flashcards trying to memorize for that long, I'm still not going to pass.

[MrMustache]

I start at 9, and work till around 6-8pm (depending on the day) with about 2 hours in between for lunch or random screwing around like TLS for a quick mental break.

So I only really work about 7-9 hours a day. But I feel like this is the most I can realistically do, if even this is not enough to pass CA bar, I don't think I have it in me to ever pass and will have to forget about my 250k debt and go find a new profession or something.

Maybe get one PhD from another and die as one of the most educated and indebted people in history?

[jackbauer10]

Did anyone else just get completely pwned by the CA simulated essays?

I need reassurance that if I spend the next 12 days focused on essays with some MBE refreshers thrown in I'll still be okay . . .

[Fenixdown]

Hi everyone. Jersey retaker.

Got a 122 on the simulated MBE and a 60 just now on the MBE refresher.

I challenge you to pull me out of my massive depression right now.

[DueProcessDoWheelies]

Hi everyone. Jersey retaker.

Got a 122 on the simulated MBE and a 60 just now on the MBE refresher.

I challenge you to pull me out of my massive depression right now.

Those are both good scores...

Isn't the average for the refresher like 52?

[cat_lady]

Hi all! First time Connecticut taker. I've also been out of law school for a loooooooooong time. I took and passed one state bar (also a long time ago), but it was in Washington and they were doing their own thing back then. Prepping for this is a whole other animal.

I work part-time and spend most of the rest of my time studying. And it still feels like it's not enough. I dreamt about random MBE Evidence questions last night - just question after question after question. I am also fretting about essays. I know the general concepts, but I haven't memorized every element or the exact wording of a definition.

But I do remember from last time that this is a high stress time and two weeks is still a decent amount of time to put in the work and let it all gel. Just keep plugging along (at least, that's what I keep telling myself).

[ReachTheBar79]

What are everyone's scoring goals for the MIXED MBE SETS? I don't see goals posted anywhere by BarBri (if they are please let me know).
Do you feel the mixed sets vary in difficulty like the subject-specific MBE sets?

I'm not sure what the goals are. For the first set, I got 39 right out of 50. Not sure if that's good. They feel easy, but I'm usually torn between two each time.

[cjusticenu]

Mixed Subject Question Sets (50 questions each)
Set 1 – 31 correct (62%)
Set 2 – 33 correct (66%)
Set 3 – 33 correct (66%)
Set 4 – 34 correct (68%)
Set 5 – 34 correct (68%)
Set 6 – 34 correct (68%)
Set 7 – 34 correct (68%)

Here you go guys...

[Fenixdown]

I got a 37/50. On that last one. If I remember correctly it was like a 73% or a 74%.

[gtg]

Question: the Mixed Subjects Questions Sets 5,6 and 7 are not assigned correct, we can do them on our own? And the Half and Full Day at the end of the MPQ book, those are also not assigned? Thanks
Edit: also, tomorrow's NY Simulated Written Exam is not in any of the books, right? We have to print it from barbri.com?

[rocket32]

I am totally confused about the shelter rule and am hoping some of you smart people can help me out.

So as I appreciate it, there are three types of notice – actual notice, inquiry notice, and record notice. But under the shelter rule, even if you have notice, you can still be a bona fide purchaser as long as the person you’re buying the property from was a bona fide purchaser without notice.

As an example – there’s an unrecorded easement on A’s property. A has no idea that there’s an easement and is planning to sell the property to B. Neighbor tells B that there’s an easement. So even though B has actual (or at least inquiry) notice, B is still a bona fide purchaser because A was a bona fide purchaser. (Right?)

So then what happens if B wants to sell the property to C? Does C “inherit” status as a bona fide purchaser because B “inherited” it from A, even though B had notice of the easement? Also, does the shelter rule ever come into play if there is record notice? I can’t think of a situation.

Thanks in advance!

[BVest]

The key to the shelter rule is that if you take from a BFP for value or from someone who took from a BFP for value -- even if you are a donee or if you have notice of an outstanding claim -- then you step into the shoes of the BFP for value. If they would have prevailed on the claim, then you will prevail on the claim.

Here's the rationale. Say A sells blackacre to B with an unrecorded easement. B pays A $100k, which is the market value of the land without an easement, so B is a BFP for value. A few years later, B wants to sell to C. The neighbor tells C (and the entire town) about the easement. If C couldn't step into B's shoes under the shelter rule, B could never sell the property for market value of the land without the easement, thus depriving B of the value of the easement. To avoid doing that, subsequent grantees are sheltered by B's status.

[MrMustache]

The key to the shelter rule is that if you take from a BFP for value or from someone who took from a BFP for value -- even if you are a donee or if you have notice of an outstanding claim -- then you step into the shoes of the BFP for value. If they would have prevailed on the claim, then you will prevail on the claim.

Here's the rationale. Say A sells blackacre to B with an unrecorded easement. B pays A $100k, which is the market value of the land without an easement, so B is a BFP for value. A few years later, B wants to sell to C. The neighbor tells C (and the entire town) about the easement. If C couldn't step into B's shoes under the shelter rule, B could never sell the property for market value of the land without the easement, thus depriving B of the value of the easement. To avoid doing that, subsequent grantees are sheltered by B's status.

I thought that a properly executed easement (in writing, signed by the holder of the servient estate) passes with land even without ever being mentioned in the deed. The seller of the servient estate who's trying to sell the land is trying to pass an unmarketable title, if the buyer finds out about the easement he can refuse to buy the land, but if the deal goes through, buyer is out of luck. So in this case, A is subject to the easement even if he is a bona fide purchaser, because he steps into the shoes of a proper buyer and he'll likewise pass the title he has to a person protected by the shelter rule - in this case B. B now has the easement and will pass it on to C.

Looking at it from the dominant estate, just because my "servant" didn't record the easement, doesn't mean that you can take MY property right away from me. I have no duty, and no right, to alter the servient estate's deed to include my easement.

[rocket32]

The key to the shelter rule is that if you take from a BFP for value or from someone who took from a BFP for value -- even if you are a donee or if you have notice of an outstanding claim -- then you step into the shoes of the BFP for value. If they would have prevailed on the claim, then you will prevail on the claim.

Here's the rationale. Say A sells blackacre to B with an unrecorded easement. B pays A $100k, which is the market value of the land without an easement, so B is a BFP for value. A few years later, B wants to sell to C. The neighbor tells C (and the entire town) about the easement. If C couldn't step into B's shoes under the shelter rule, B could never sell the property for market value of the land without the easement, thus depriving B of the value of the easement. To avoid doing that, subsequent grantees are sheltered by B's status.

You had me until "thus depriving B of the value of the easement." The property would be worth less because there's an easement on it (the property is the servient estate). So this is protecting B so he can sell the property for what he paid for it without knowing that there was an easement?

[rocket32]

The key to the shelter rule is that if you take from a BFP for value or from someone who took from a BFP for value -- even if you are a donee or if you have notice of an outstanding claim -- then you step into the shoes of the BFP for value. If they would have prevailed on the claim, then you will prevail on the claim.

Here's the rationale. Say A sells blackacre to B with an unrecorded easement. B pays A $100k, which is the market value of the land without an easement, so B is a BFP for value. A few years later, B wants to sell to C. The neighbor tells C (and the entire town) about the easement. If C couldn't step into B's shoes under the shelter rule, B could never sell the property for market value of the land without the easement, thus depriving B of the value of the easement. To avoid doing that, subsequent grantees are sheltered by B's status.

I thought that a properly executed easement (in writing, signed by the holder of the servient estate) passes with land even without ever being mentioned in the deed. The seller of the servient estate who's trying to sell the land is trying to pass an unmarketable title, if the buyer finds out about the easement he can refuse to buy the land, but if the deal goes through, buyer is out of luck. So in this case, A is subject to the easement even if he is a bona fide purchaser, because he steps into the shoes of a proper buyer and he'll likewise pass the title he has to a person protected by the shelter rule - in this case B. B now has the easement and will pass it on to C.

Looking at it from the dominant estate, just because my "servant" didn't record the easement, doesn't mean that you can take MY property right away from me. I have no duty, and no right, to alter the servient estate's deed to include my easement.

My understanding is that a properly executed easement will pass with the servient estate unless the new owner of the servient estate was a BFP without notice. Also if you are the dominant estate, I think it's on you to make sure the easement is recorded. The owner of the servient estate isn't going to care whether or not the easement is recorded, because the servient estate is the one subject to the burden. If the easement is recorded, B has record notice, so he would not be a BFP, and he could not pass that BFP status to C.

[ReachTheBar79]

The key to the shelter rule is that if you take from a BFP for value or from someone who took from a BFP for value -- even if you are a donee or if you have notice of an outstanding claim -- then you step into the shoes of the BFP for value. If they would have prevailed on the claim, then you will prevail on the claim.

Here's the rationale. Say A sells blackacre to B with an unrecorded easement. B pays A $100k, which is the market value of the land without an easement, so B is a BFP for value. A few years later, B wants to sell to C. The neighbor tells C (and the entire town) about the easement. If C couldn't step into B's shoes under the shelter rule, B could never sell the property for market value of the land without the easement, thus depriving B of the value of the easement. To avoid doing that, subsequent grantees are sheltered by B's status.

I thought that a properly executed easement (in writing, signed by the holder of the servient estate) passes with land even without ever being mentioned in the deed. The seller of the servient estate who's trying to sell the land is trying to pass an unmarketable title, if the buyer finds out about the easement he can refuse to buy the land, but if the deal goes through, buyer is out of luck. So in this case, A is subject to the easement even if he is a bona fide purchaser, because he steps into the shoes of a proper buyer and he'll likewise pass the title he has to a person protected by the shelter rule - in this case B. B now has the easement and will pass it on to C.

Looking at it from the dominant estate, just because my "servant" didn't record the easement, doesn't mean that you can take MY property right away from me. I have no duty, and no right, to alter the servient estate's deed to include my easement.

My understanding is that a properly executed easement will pass with the servient estate unless the new owner of the servient estate was a BFP without notice. Also if you are the dominant estate, I think it's on you to make sure the easement is recorded. The owner of the servient estate isn't going to care whether or not the easement is recorded, because the servient estate is the one subject to the burden. If the easement is recorded, B has record notice, so he would not be a BFP, and he could not pass that BFP status to C.

FYI, the shelter rule doesn't just apply to easements.

[BVest]

That's what I get for commenting on one BLL without making sure about the other BLL that I throw in as part of an example.

[ReachTheBar79]

That's what I get for commenting on one BLL without making sure about the other BLL that I throw in as part of an example.

Don't beat yourself up! I just wanted to make sure no one thought it only applied to easements!

[rinkrat19]

Just got 39/50 (78%) on Mixed Set 7. First good news I've had in weeks.

[Carly12]

Do you guys know if we can find the MBE refresher set of 100 questions in pdf in our enrolled student center?

[fest212]

Hi, in desperate need of some good concise notes on NY Professional Responsibility - Anybody able to share? Tnx!

[THE_U]

Do you guys know if we can find the MBE refresher set of 100 questions in pdf in our enrolled student center?

They aren't in mine. Only the Mixed Sets 1-7, and then the practice questions by subject sets