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Sat for the CA bar and now taking the UBE and wanted to see if anyone had any tips for how to adjust to the writing format of the MEE. From my review of past MEEs, it seems that the analysis does not go as in depth as a CA essay. Is there a way to determine the amount of time that should be spent on a particular question within an MEE? Also, any insight as to how much time should be spent reading the fact pattern before writing the essay would be helpful. In CA they tell you to spend at least 10-15 minutes in the facts/ outline before answering.

legalese21 wrote:Sat for the CA bar and now taking the UBE and wanted to see if anyone had any tips for how to adjust to the writing format of the MEE. From my review of past MEEs, it seems that the analysis does not go as in depth as a CA essay. Is there a way to determine the amount of time that should be spent on a particular question within an MEE? Also, any insight as to how much time should be spent reading the fact pattern before writing the essay would be helpful. In CA they tell you to spend at least 10-15 minutes in the facts/ outline before answering.

Took the UBE not CBX, but I was stressing big time about timing on the MEE during bar prep. I am a slow typer and was having a lot of trouble finishing practice essays in under 30 minutes.

What worked for me was to read the question prompts first, type up headers for each question prompt, then start typing up your answer as you read the facts. The question prompt should clue you in on the elements you should be looking for before you even read the facts. Often you can start outlining the elements before starting to read the facts. Then you can just insert the facts as you read. This should take you 10-15 minutes; spend the last 15-20 minutes to polish into a cohesive essay (e.i. pull your outline into full sentences).

Lots of practicing this method under timed conditions. Again, Im not a strong typer, so it getting the process down (making the organization, etc. second nature) was super important for me.

On the real thing, I ended up finishing the easy essays in under 20 minutes and had plenty of time to struggle through the harder ones (fucking mechanic's liens!) MEE score ended up being around 160.

Thank you so much for your tips! This method definitely seems like a good way to stay on top of the clock. I’m assuming that your method of typing out elements while reading facts is easier with specific numbered type essay promots rather than generic “what claims can plaintiff raise” prompts?

legalese21 wrote:Thank you so much for your tips! This method definitely seems like a good way to stay on top of the clock. I’m assuming that your method of typing out elements while reading facts is easier with specific numbered type essay promots rather than generic “what claims can plaintiff raise” prompts?

Exactly. Though from what I remember, most essays had numbered prompts rather than generic "what claims?" prompts. If the prompt is truly generic, I would suggest reading a few lines up, it should give you an indication of what area of law you are dealing with (trusts, family law, torts, contracts, etc).

The key to saving time is being an "informed reader" when going over the fact pattern. Otherwise you are reading the facts, then the prompts, then having to go back over the facts a second time to apply them once you have identified the issues/elements. From my experience, having to go back over the facts used up way to much time.

The MEE essays are actually more like "short answer" questions than essays. In other words, they are disguised as essays but after the facts they ask very specific questions. For a test like the UBE that so many students across the Country now take, this is essential. The test has to be standardized (like the SAT/ACT/LSAT, etc.) and so the questions have to be specific and easy to grade.

So although you should write in IRAC form, just be sure to address the questions that they ask. They are very careful to create question sets in each essay that can be addressed in 30 minutes. Absolutely, a California essay would require a heavier analysis since they gave you 2x the amount of time to address the essay.

Sean (Silverman Bar Exam Tutoring)

SilvermanBarPrep wrote:The MEE essays are actually more like "short answer" questions than essays. In other words, they are disguised as essays but after the facts they ask very specific questions. For a test like the UBE that so many students across the Country now take, this is essential. The test has to be standardized (like the SAT/ACT/LSAT, etc.) and so the questions have to be specific and easy to grade.

So although you should write in IRAC form, just be sure to address the questions that they ask. They are very careful to create question sets in each essay that can be addressed in 30 minutes. Absolutely, a California essay would require a heavier analysis since they gave you 2x the amount of time to address the essay.

Sean (Silverman Bar Exam Tutoring)

Thank you so much for this insight. This actually makes so much sense. Through my prep, I've noticed after writing out past MEEs that it seems to be the case that the specific calls usually target a specific element or specific rule of law (like an exception) instead of asking examinees to analyze every element etc. Would you say that these questions within an essay could be answered in 4-5 sentences?

Sure thing!

FWIW I handwrote the NY UBE this past July and found I had just enough time...if I typed I would have probably felt like there was plenty of time available. The questions don’t take long to answer so long as you can pull from your memory most of the applicable rules.

Passed with I think a 156 on the MPT/MEE.