Do I have grounds for challenging Feb 2018 CBX score? Forum

[scard]

just received my failed essays back from the February 2018 Ca bar Exam.

looking at the essays, some have a crease at the end (see photo below), some have a crease in the middle of the cover (see photo below) and some do not have a visible crease at all.

turns out the one with the obvious crease all the way to the left received a passing score, the other float between 50-60.

its pretty impossible to read the essay and legitimately grade it with the cover half open where the crease is. I'm wondering if this may be grounds to challenge the score iv received.

https://s33.postimg.cc/i3ryvdzm7/IMG_1143.jpg

https://s33.postimg.cc/3kktu0grz/IMG_1142.jpg

[nixy]

There's absolutely no evidence that the crease in the middle means your grader didn't actually open the book and look at the essay.

[scard]

There's absolutely no evidence that the crease in the middle means your grader didn't actually open the book and look at the essay.

Please explain how you came to that conclusion? Are you suggesting that the bar grader opened the book fully without making a crease and that center line crease is made from some other explanation? What would be the other explanation for a the crease in the middle of the cover and no crease at the end? what is the explanation for the other exam cover having a crease exactly where it should be for a person to be able to read it?

[nixy]

I'm suggesting you don't know anything about the circumstances under which the essays are printed/read/graded. The MPT is the one that has the left hand crease and the others are essays; they may be handled differently. Some graders might crease the cover all the way back, some might not. You don't even know when the cover was made and put on the essays.

I'm sorry that you didn't pass and there's no reason not to try the crease argument. It just looks a little conspiracy-theory-minded, that's all.

[encore1101]

You can challenge it. 95% chance it won't go anywhere, but its not like you'll lose anything by challenging it.

[objctnyrhnr]

I hate to be that guy, but you failed the bar and I promise that your theory about creases won’t pull weight with the committee. Maybe spend more time with practice questions and less time assuming that the world is out to get you. The sooner you realize that this is the correct play, the sooner you conquer your sorrow and become a barred attorney. Again I’m sorry if that is harsh.

[FinallyPassedTheBar]

In my opinion, it will be very difficult (if not impossible) to successfully challenge an essay grade on the basis of crease location.

As an experiment, I pulled out one of my failing essay books from 2015. I was able to fully read the essay without creating any crease, as shown in this picture:
https://i.imgur.com/vzgZU6k.jpg

So, I think it is rationally conceivable that your essay grader physically held your essay book in the same manner that I show in the picture. The crease in the middle of the cover of your essay book could have occurred during the administrative sorting of the essay book stacks.

Now, I am not saying that your suspicion is without merit. It is entirely possible that what you suspect happened actually occurred. I'm just saying that there is an alternative explanation that is very difficult to dismiss.

[estefanchanning]

Each of your essays is read by two different people. And if their scores are more than a certain amount of points apart, it's read again by a third person.

So are you implying that TWO people were in cahoots with each other, specifically out to fail you?

It sucks to fail man, but from experience, letting this go and spending your energy in a different manner is much more worthwhile.

[b290]

Each of your essays is read by two different people. And if their scores are more than a certain amount of points apart, it's read again by a third person.

So are you implying that TWO people were in cahoots with each other, specifically out to fail you?

It sucks to fail man, but from experience, letting this go and spending your energy in a different manner is much more worthwhile.

That's a good point. This is why challenging essays is effectively a pointless exercise. Unless you're in a state where you you're limited as to how many bar exams you take (wile being at that limit), and you have a very convincing case (i.e. we're basically talking about plain error here), it's not worth it. There's also only 6 1/2 weeks between now and the bar exam. Spending several those on a project (your appeal) that has at best, a low chance of success is foolish. Pass on the next exam.

My $.02