Essay Grading Forum

[rmhco]

Does anyone know what happens if you reach the "wrong" answer in your essay response? Like use a law that is at least somewhat applicable, or use the right law but come to a different conclusion? BarBri model answers seem to point out things like "graders said they would still give credit if you wrote x answer instead of y," but these seem infrequent. Do you just get knocked out for the wrong answer?

[Mr. Archer]

You would still get points based on rule statements and your analysis. The analysis is where the majority of points are in the essays anyway. For example, if you had a torts question and concluded there was no IIED, although the correct response was that there was IIED, you would miss the point directly related to the correct answer. But if your rule statements were correct and analysis still discussed the law and the pertinent facts, you'll get points for the parts that were on point. The only caveat is that you're likely to miss some points if incorrect rule statements and off-track analysis led to the incorrect conclusion. Hope that helps.

[SLS_AMG]

For re-takers, is there any consensus on who lenient/strict the graders are (especially NY graders)? BarBri's rubrics can be intimidating, because if you mess up any part of the rule you're basically gonna miss a ton of points since they don't account for all the possible conclusions you could end up with and the analysis used to get there. I've heard the essay graders are relatively lenient, but there doesn't seem to be a lot of info out there.

[amsong]

What if you completely invent a rule because you have no idea what you're doing, but the analysis under the rule is solid, but the conclusion is incorrect because you completely invented a rule?

[bmax]

What about incorrect spelling, referring to rules already mentioned without restating them again ("see above for elements in a battery action"), using abbreviations or short-form for words that the testers could easily understand (MPH instead of miles per hour; 50K instead of $50,000) , party names (P instead of plaintiff), and after spelling something out once and quoting it in parenthesis [intentional infliction of emotional distress ("IIED")].

Do the graders really care about how formal it is, even though you're adhering to IRAC and providing a good analysis? It would save me a lot of time on essays, as it did in law school, if I didn't have to worry about all that.

[rmhco]

What if you completely invent a rule because you have no idea what you're doing, but the analysis under the rule is solid, but the conclusion is incorrect because you completely invented a rule?

wondering this too -- I feel like I've heard the advice "just make a rule up and apply it"--hoping it's true haha.

[Mr. Archer]

You should just make up a rule and apply it. That being said, it should be a rule that is at least plausible. The question will hopefully give a you an idea of the basic framework needed for the analysis. You can also look at the facts to see if it gives you an idea of what the rule could be. That might sound strange but it's true. As a simple example, if it's a torts question about whether an assault happened and the facts are about someone being scared by a defendant who got angry and threw a punch that missed, you can kind of see the basic elements of assault.

As for spelling, you should try to be accurate. You've probably seen on some grading rubrics that the formality of the answer is worth a point or two. I'm not sure if there is a greater downside on the actual bar exam if the answer is pretty much garbled.

As for abbreviations, don't use those too much. Abbreviating Plaintiff or Defendant is probably fine, although I think the prep companies say not to. Check to see if your state mentions anything specifically about abbreviations. Unless something is common like MPH where people really don't every write it out, you should always spell it out first and then put the abbreviation like a poster mentioned above. I've graded practice essays a prep company, and it's really annoying when someone just throws out an abbreviation. Even if it might be the correct abbreviation, you can't expect the reader to recognize it. Remember not to just start shorting simple words. It just makes the essay harder to grade because you have to keep up with all the abbreviations.

As for referring back to a rule, this is probably ok if you're using it correctly. It should be rare that you have to completely restate a rule anyway. It might happen if multiple questions related to a prompt require a negligence analysis. You could just say: "As discussed in question 2, there are X elements for negligence." Then you would analyze each element. As an aside, it's a little frustrating when someone is referring back to an incorrect rule statement or a rule that shouldn't have been discussed in relation to an earlier question, because that means the full rule statement should just be where you're making the reference. That's probably more of my personal opinion though. I'm not sure how real bar graders handle that.

[rmhco]

As for abbreviations, don't use those too much. Abbreviating Plaintiff or Defendant is probably fine, although I think the prep companies say not too. Unless something is common like MPH where people really don't every write it out, you should always spell it out first and then put the abbreviation like a poster mentioned above. I've graded practice essays a prep company, and it's really annoying when someone just throws out an abbreviation.

I legitimately freaked out that I didn't know what MPH stood for and was flipping through my notes to see how I couldn't know an abbreviation that is so common.

Then I felt profoundly stupid haha . I am apparently approaching bar saturation!

On another note, thank you so much Archer for this helpful information -- it's very appreciated!

[whitecollar23]

You should just make up a rule and apply it. That being said, it should be a rule that is at least plausible. The question will hopefully give a you an idea of the basic framework needed for the analysis. You can also look at the facts to see if it gives you an idea of what the rule could be. That might sound strange but it's true. As a simple example, if it's a torts question about whether an assault happened and the facts are about someone being scared by a defendant who got angry and threw a punch that missed, you can kind of see the basic elements of assault.

As for spelling, you should try to be accurate. You've probably seen on some grading rubrics that the formality of the answer is worth a point or two. I'm not sure if there is a greater downside on the actual bar exam if the answer is pretty much garbled.

As for abbreviations, don't use those too much. Abbreviating Plaintiff or Defendant is probably fine, although I think the prep companies say not to. Unless something is common like MPH where people really don't every write it out, you should always spell it out first and then put the abbreviation like a poster mentioned above. I've graded practice essays a prep company, and it's really annoying when someone just throws out an abbreviation. Even if it might be the correct abbreviation, you can't expect the reader to recognize it. Remember not to just start shorting simple words. It just makes the essay harder to grade because you have to keep up with all the abbreviations.

As for referring back to a rule, this is probably ok if you're using it correctly. It should be rare that you have to completely restate a rule anyway. It might happen if multiple questions related to a prompt require a negligence analysis. You could just say: "As discussed in question 2, there are X elements for negligence." Then you would analyze each element. As an aside, it's a little frustrating when someone is referring back to an incorrect rule statement or a rule that shouldn't have been discussed in relation to an earlier question, because that means the full rule statement should just be where you're making the reference. That's probably more of my personal opinion though. I'm not sure how real bar graders handle that.

What about abbreviations like Jx, SMJ, SJ, PJ, etc? The ones that are very clear within the context. The types of abbreviations that have become law lingo.

And what about abbreviations like "b/c" or "w/o" or "w/in" and other common English language abbreviations?

[Mr. Archer]

You should still write out the full term and then define it: personal jurisdiction (PJ). Things like "b/c" are really shorthand, not abbreviations, and should be avoided, just like you wouldn't use them in a real memorandum. It's not difficult to write "because".

Also, I went back and looked at the instructions for my state. It says not to abbreviate plaintiff or defendant. But other states might be ok with it. It's probably better just to use the names you're given anyway. Be sure to check to see if you're given any specific rules on abbreviation.

[whitecollar23]

You should still write out the full term and then define it: personal jurisdiction (PJ). Things like "b/c" are really shorthand, not abbreviations, and should be avoided, just like you wouldn't use them in a real memorandum. It's not difficult to write "because".

Also, I went back and looked at the instructions for my state. It says not to abbreviate plaintiff or defendant. But other states might be ok with it. It's probably better just to use the names you're given anyway. Be sure to check to see if you're given any specific rules on abbreviation.

Jurisdiction (Jx). Can I then use Jx on the rest of the essays without defining it on each one?

What about when there's state A and state B. Can I call them A or B instead of writing our state A and state B each time? Argh. This stuff isn't fun.

[Mr. Archer]

I wouldn't abbreviate jurisdiction. "Jx" is more shorthand for note taking, and I don't think "Jx" flows well. The only thing I can say about the "State A" situation is that you shouldn't abbreviate things just because it's possible. You want the essay to look like something an associate would write to a partner. It sounds a little silly given the time crunch but that's what you're asked to do.

I'm not sure what you mean by abbreviating and then using that for the rest of the essays. If you mean using the same abbreviation throughout the questions to a single essay prompt, then yes. If you mean making an abbreviation on the first essay prompt and using it for additional prompts, then no.

If you're really concerned out abbreviations, check to see if your state has specific instructions. But don't spend too much time worrying about abbreviations.

[ballouttacontrol]

Do you lose points if your argument is wrong/bad?

I assumed no, like in LS, and that you'd just be wasting time but not loading points as well. This right?