Passing the CA Bar Exam: Random Tips Forum

[calaw2016]

I've been on these forums since before I started law school. I passed the CA bar exam on my second try, and I want to offer a few quick tips that I learned along the way. I graduated from a T15 law school and assumed that it would not be difficult for me to pass. I was very wrong. The point is that the bar exam does not discriminate--many people like myself who went to higher tiered law schools initially failed, and many of my friends from lower ranked schools passed their first time. It is all about your approach.

I initially took Themis and failed. It wasn't Themis' fault. It was really me not knowing how to use the program and not knowing how to study for the bar. By the time I figured it out, it was way too late. The second time around, I used Barbri. I had a set system in place that I used. I left the exam feeling extremely confident, essentially knowing I passed unless there was some major error I made. On my first attempt I scored nearly a 100 points below passing.

Do your best to pass this test the first time. It was a treacherous experience for me, and had I known someone to help me along better, I would have avoided many of the mistakes I made. Take the following points as some of what I learned along the way. If you are a repeater, then take a fresh approach and do not give up. The time will go by quickly.

1) Determine your learning style. I see too many people following others' approach to mastering the material. The issue is that your weaknesses might be completely different from another persons. In general, however, your studying should be broken apart into 1) studying the outlines, 2) completing practice problems, 3) reviewing essays, 4) reviewing bar review lectures.

Regardless of your course, your studying should all revolve around daily practice of MBEs and PEs. Other than the first 1-2 weeks of bar prep, your day should NOT revolve around watching lectures and reading the outline. These should always supplement your primary objective of completing actual questions. Walk into the law library come early June, and you see most people mindlessly going thru lecture videos filling in blanks. Do not do this.

2) MBEs

There seems to be a lot of disagreement around what to use for MBEs. I've used all main sources (Themis, Barbri, Adaptibar, Emanuels). IMO, each of these is just fine. People claim that Barbri questions aren't similar enough to the real questions. However, for me they did they job, and I felt extremely confident during the MBE session.

I think the others are just as good. I found the explanations in Barbri to be the best, with Adaptibar explanations the worst. Merely doing MBE questions is insufficient. You must spend ample time reading and studying the explanations. Doing well on the MBE is a combination of timing, patterns, and knowing the relevant law.

I would advise one to complete around 1500-2000 total MBE questions prior to the exam.

3) PEs

This is an area that is really student-specific. If you freeze up and "don't know what to write," then you must start writing out PEs very quickly in your bar exam studying. This was a major flaw I made my first attempt.

Like MBE questions, you must review the model answers. My process for studying PEs generally included 1) writing out or outlining an answer from memory in 15-20 minutes, 2) spending the next 15-20 minutes filling things in open-book, 3) spending 30 minutes or so reviewing the model answer.

I repeated this for about 50-75 PEs. I also read and studied about 70 more. You learn the law by seeing how it is applied in different fact patterns.

I went through the entire Barbri book, and I recommend this for one to be confident enough to handle any issue that arises. Many people in the Feb 2016 exam struggled with Q4 on contracts remedies. It was rather specific, and if you hadn't reviewed a number of the remedies PEs and the MODEL ANSWERS, you likely would have missed many of the key issues.

Some people say that the model answers are no good because they are not possible to actually write. I don't think this is a problem. They are very comprehensive, and they are well-written. This gives you the ability to learn the law while actually practicing PEs, and most importantly you learn the application of the law.

I really did not like how the Barbri model answers (Themis too) differed so much in formatting and structure, but you will have to find a good IRAC style that fits you and stick with it.

4) PTs

This is an area where one should have a set system almost down to the minute. No going in there and "winging" it. I spent considerable time learning how to approach these. Most people I knew just kinda ignored these or never really had an approach for them. I did okay on them the first attempt, but on the second attempt, I left feeling extremely confident. This is important since they equal two PEs.

If anyone has questions about my approach to the PTs, let me know here or shoot me a message.

5) Random Questions

Should I get a prep program? YES. IMO, Barbri was much better than Themis. Did Babri have its flaws? Absolutely. The PT part is seriously lacking. Some of the lectures are sub-par. The MBE questions can sometimes be very confusing (not in a good way). The PE model answers often differ in structure, etc. But OVERALL, I found Barbri to be sufficient. I would not advise one to risk it unless they had someone to guide them thru things to make the program work.

Other supplements? I would say to mainly focus on your prep program. If you have time, get Baressays and look at the models and student answers. I did not find flashcards to be a help. The Critical Pass cards are just the outline notes. Just read the outlines.

Listen to lectures? Yes and no. Your top focus should be 1) learning the material quickly even at a superficial level, 2) practicing problems and PEs. I do think the Barbri lectures were beneficial for the most part. The Themis lectures not so much--they for the most part just regurgitated the outlines. The Barbri lectures actually placed emphasis on how parts of the material related to the bar exam.

I'll add to this more later when I have more time. If anyone has any questions shoot me a message. Best of luck to the current students prepping for the July bar.

6) Scheduling--Based on a 10 week plan

Regardless of the program used, I would advise one to first cover the MBE subjects within the first 1-2 weeks of bar prep. By cover, I mean read through the outlines. The Barbri CMR was great. Just begin getting acquainted with the material. You should start doing MBE questions within a week or two of studying for the bar exam. These will drill in the details. For 8 weeks, you should do at least 200 questions per week, divided up into daily amounts.

In addition, you must start practicing PEs within the first week or two of studying. You must start doing these closed book IMMEDIATELY. Again, I did 15-20 minutes closed book and gradually worked my way up. Do not delay this. For 8 weeks, you should do at least 15-20 PEs per week, a few of which you could go through quicker/read in depth.

I would aim to do at least 6+ full-length PTs. That means writing them out in 3 hours and then spending an hour or two REVIEWING the model and adjusting yours.

Total time amounts:

Studying law (outlines, lectures, etc): ~120 Hours
MBEs (1500 Qs, 5 minutes each ,total complete + review): ~125 Hours
PEs (100 PEs, 1.5 average total complete + review): ~150 Hours
PTs (6+ PTs, 4.5-5 hours total complete + review): 30 Hours
Total Minimum: 425 Hours

This gives you ample time to add more hours for memorization, video lectures (if you watch them), etc. The bar exam really doesn't require any more than 45-50 hours/week for 10 full weeks IF you know what to do. The problem I had the first time is that I was so scattered that I wasted a significant amount of time initially. DO NOT fall in the trap of waiting for your prep course plan to start assigning you essays and problems. You need to start these ASAP, and I would recommend you do a full length PT the first week or two.