Texas Saloon- Feb. 2016 Texas Bar Forum

[KTnKT]

Shoot. Am I screwed?

I booked the best western on i35. 2200 S Interstate 35, Austin, TX 78704.

It's not far from the test site, and I think I can avoid actually driving on i35, but should I still expect a crazy commute?

Also, do y'all have any recommendations on the best route from there to Palmer? I was thinking south congress to first?

[left shark]

Shoot. Am I screwed?

I booked the best western on i35. 2200 S Interstate 35, Austin, TX 78704.

It's not far from the test site, and I think I can avoid actually driving on i35, but should I still expect a crazy commute?

Also, do y'all have any recommendations on the best route from there to Palmer? I was thinking south congress to first?

Nah, you should be ok. You can take S. Congress to 1st, you could also take Oltorf to Lamar, which also borders Palmer . I don't know if the Oltorf construction is finished or not (haven't been home in a while), but you could even go a little further south of Oltorf to Woodward, which will get you to S. Congress (you could also go through that light at S. Congress to get to 1st). Maaaany options for avoiding the hideousness of 35.

[BVest]

FWIW, you'll probably be aiming to get there between 7:45 and 8:00, which will mean you'll be ahead of MoPac and surface street traffic (probably I-35 too, but I don't really have occasion to take I-35). In July, admittedly school was out, but it only took me about 15 minutes from my home near 2222 and Burnet to the bar exam coming down MoPac. And I frequently get to work downtown taking surface streets in about 12-13 minutes when I leave by 7:30.

If you're getting a hotel anyway, then yeah, something walkable is probably not the worst idea in case everything goes to shit in the morning. Or be ready to uber in a pinch. FYI, parking at Palmer was $8 in July, so if you're staying nearby it might be about the same to uber both ways... plus no wait to get out of the garage at the end of the day.

[ihatethetexasbar]

Shoot. Am I screwed?

I booked the best western on i35. 2200 S Interstate 35, Austin, TX 78704.

It's not far from the test site, and I think I can avoid actually driving on i35, but should I still expect a crazy commute?

Also, do y'all have any recommendations on the best route from there to Palmer? I was thinking south congress to first?

You'll be fine. I got a cheaper hotel too because I know Austin and am comfortable avoiding 35, and I'm not about to spend $$$ on a room downtown. I'm an early bird anyway and I like to be on the road before heavy traffic. The real annoyance is getting out of that goddamn garage in the afternoon.

[BVest]

One other note RE parking:
I'm pretty sure parking takes credit cards, but for your sake and the sake of other examinees, bring cash, preferably exact change; everyone will be driving in at about the same time, and you don't want to make it any harder for yourself or others.


Also, EXPECT SOME DELAYS! While there are fewer examinees in February (1300 vs 3000 in July), Palmer will actually be more crowded in February than in July because all examinees in the state will be there. I estimated July's crowd at Palmer as about 560-600. If I was right, then there will be more than twice as many in February. And this is the first year that they're doing only one site for February, so there may be a bit of a learning curve for the staff in administering a single-site exam this large (I don't think even the Arlington exam site in the summer was this large).

[KTnKT]

Thanks all for your testing center insight. It's helping me as a non-Austin dweller to feel a lot more comfortable about an already stressful situation.

[DueProcessDoWheelies]

I hate ExamSoft so much.

[yosi]

Hi There,

Does anyone have easy to understand notes for the Texas Essay Subjects ? I have been trying to read the BarBri Lecture Notes but I just seem to be getting stuck.

Thanks

[Armywife]

Hi There,

Does anyone have easy to understand notes for the Texas Essay Subjects ? I have been trying to read the BarBri Lecture Notes but I just seem to be getting stuck.

Thanks

I am having the same issue Yosi. I did a "lean sheet" for Texas Wills, but I need help with the other subjects. I went to law school in Ohio, so some of the legal distinctions between the jurisdictions are unfamiliar to me. If someone, anyone, has some resources that really break down the Texas specific topics, I'd really appreciate it. My email address is armyofficerwife85@gmail.com. Thanks.

[murdock83]

Hi There,

Does anyone have easy to understand notes for the Texas Essay Subjects ? I have been trying to read the BarBri Lecture Notes but I just seem to be getting stuck.

Thanks

I am having the same issue Yosi. I did a "lean sheet" for Texas Wills, but I need help with the other subjects. I went to law school in Ohio, so some of the legal distinctions between the jurisdictions are unfamiliar to me. If someone, anyone, has some resources that really break down the Texas specific topics, I'd really appreciate it. My email address is armyofficerwife85@gmail.com. Thanks.

Going through the model answers on the Texas BLE website helps a lot. I made a spreadsheet of the main issues that were tested with each exam cycle. The issues do tend to repeat or cycle. They usually provide 2-3 model answers per question. I'm in the same boat. Oklahoma grad. Passed the bar there, but moved to Texas and it's been a rough go. We didn't have Community Property, O&G, Guardianship, or Trusts really on our exam. I think we skipped over Consumer law too.

[BVest]

I would gladly share my attack outlines but they were handwritten and I recycled them on my way into the last afternoon of the exam.

I did find these useful for the DTPA question, and I didn't need to know a whole heck of a lot beyond this: http://www.cram.com/flashcards/consumer ... pa-1360572
I mentioned them previously, probably ITT, so you may have already seen them.

For UCC-9, I basically did a chart of how to perfect vs what type of property could be perfected in that manner, along with 2 or 3 elements lists (Attachment elements, Financing Statement requirements, Priority list, etc.). Also a few terms that might be important to use on the exam (Tracing, lowest intermediate balance, etc.)

Stuff like that.

[jamescastle]

Anyone submit an informal review after failing the July 2015 bar and hear back? Still waiting on mine.

[left shark]

Anyone submit an informal review after failing the July 2015 bar and hear back? Still waiting on mine.

Same here. The letter said 35-40 days, but I am guessing they meant business days, not including holidays. I'm thinking it might be some time next week. After all this time it better not be some nonsense like "you need to memorize the rules and not suck so much."

[jamescastle]

Anyone submit an informal review after failing the July 2015 bar and hear back? Still waiting on mine.

Same here. The letter said 35-40 days, but I am guessing they meant business days, not including holidays. I'm thinking it might be some time next week. After all this time it better not be some nonsense like "you need to memorize the rules and not suck so much."

I've been told three to four weeks, 35-40 days, and "sometime this week" (that was last Monday). All of which have passed. Just curious if anyone else had any insight on when (and what) I should expect.
Also I think 40 business days from November 24 (when I got my letter) is January 28 so it might not be next week.

What did you send on yours? I sent specific questions about stuff I missed and that so we'll see if they address them or if it's a form letter. I hope more than anything it's useful.

[left shark]

I've been told three to four weeks, 35-40 days, and "sometime this week" (that was last Monday). All of which have passed. Just curious if anyone else had any insight on when (and what) I should expect.
Also I think 40 business days from November 24 (when I got my letter) is January 28 so it might not be next week.

What did you send on yours? I sent specific questions about stuff I missed and that so we'll see if they address them or if it's a form letter. I hope more than anything it's useful.[/quote]

Argh, your math is correct. Probably not next week.

When I sent my request it was just a couple of sentences- this is my official request for an informal review blah blah, examinee number xyz.

It better not be crap. I have it feeling it might be, though.

[BVest]

Argh, your math is correct. Probably not next week.

When I sent my request it was just a couple of sentences- this is my official request for an informal review blah blah, examinee number xyz.

It better not be crap. I have it feeling it might be, though.

FWIW, Texas state government holidays since then are:

Thanksgiving Day
Friday after Thanksgiving
Christmas Eve
Christmas Day
New Year's Day
Tomorrow (MLK Day)
Day after Tomorrow (Confederate Heroes' Day)
Presidents' Day (2/15 ... Hopefully you hear back before then)
Texas Independence Day (3/2 ... again hopefully that's not an issue)

Some agencies also gave an extra day or half-day at Thanksgiving, 2 extra days around Christmas/New Years, and many people took off extra time at Christmas. Also many people will work this Tuesday and earn comp time for it.

Of course I assume their estimate of when you should expect to hear back was fairly rough.

[longhornlaw]

Out of stater checking in to commiserate. Left Texas to go to school in CA, passed in July 2014, and then was lucky enough to transfer back to the promised land.

Is it me, or does this exam feel like it's really comprehensive? There's not much of an overlap between the essay and MBE subjects.

[jamescastle]

Out of stater checking in to commiserate. Left Texas to go to school in CA, passed in July 2014, and then was lucky enough to transfer back to the promised land.

Is it me, or does this exam feel like it's really comprehensive? There's not much of an overlap between the essay and MBE subjects.

It's not just you.
Pretty much the only overlap you have is with property, some contracts stuff for the UCC question, and maybe some tort/contract stuff randomly sprinkled throughout a few of the topics.

[BVest]

Out of stater checking in to commiserate. Left Texas to go to school in CA, passed in July 2014, and then was lucky enough to transfer back to the promised land.

Is it me, or does this exam feel like it's really comprehensive? There's not much of an overlap between the essay and MBE subjects.

It's not just you.
Pretty much the only overlap you have is with property, some contracts stuff for the UCC question, and maybe some tort/contract stuff randomly sprinkled throughout a few of the topics.

And really for these, it's generally only overlap with one of the property questions, since one question is almost invariably O&G. Also, my list of UCC question breakdown (previously ITT) shows how little K comes up as a UCC question.

[left shark]

And really for these, it's generally only overlap with one of the property questions, since one question is almost invariably O&G. Also, my list of UCC question breakdown (previously ITT) shows how little K comes up as a UCC question.

And hopefully, the bar won't repeat itself from last February when K was a UCC question. Though I wouldn't mind a guardianship essay over trusts...

[DueProcessDoWheelies]

And really for these, it's generally only overlap with one of the property questions, since one question is almost invariably O&G. Also, my list of UCC question breakdown (previously ITT) shows how little K comes up as a UCC question.

And hopefully, the bar won't repeat itself from last February when K was a UCC question. Though I wouldn't mind a guardianship essay over trusts...

I'm hoping for a Ks question on the UCC essays. I despise commercial paper and can't believe this obsolete subject is still tested.

[DueProcessDoWheelies]

Does Barbri intentionally hard-grade you on the graded essays? My essay from last week got "slightly below passing" but I looked at a selected answer on the BLE website and that answer was less complete than the one I wrote.

[BVest]

Does Barbri intentionally hard-grade you on the graded essays? My essay from last week got "slightly below passing" but I looked at a selected answer on the BLE website and that answer was less complete than the one I wrote.

I can't speak to intent, but the consensus seems to be that they hard-grade you.

[DueProcessDoWheelies]

Does Barbri intentionally hard-grade you on the graded essays? My essay from last week got "slightly below passing" but I looked at a selected answer on the BLE website and that answer was less complete than the one I wrote.

I can't speak to intent, but the consensus seems to be that they hard-grade you.

Spoken like a true lawyer.

[jamescastle]

To those re-taking BARBRI and that are mainly using your July 2015 notes to study:

I was just looking at Family Law and obviously there's some changes there with respect to the same-sex marriage decision that happened last summer. It was too early to test it for those July 2015 essays but I guess it's fair game now.
Anyway, my question is: Have y'all found any other topics in looking at the July 2015 lecture handouts/notes/outlines/flashcards that are different for February 2016?