Being a good parent under normal circumstances is not easy. Having just completed the bar exam, as a father of two girls (one 12, the other 1), I can say that being a parent during bar prep is a challenge unlike any other. To say that I nailed it as a dad would be a lie. On the other side of my journey, I offer these thoughts to help those who follow after me. [Read more…] about Being a Parent During Bar Prep: The Ultimate Test in Multitasking
Bar Exam Toolbox Blog
How Yoga Prepared Me For The Bar Exam
Preparing for the bar exam requires more than an understanding of legal principles like murder vs. manslaughter or UCC vs. common law. Preparing for and taking the bar exam is an exercise in focus, endurance, and mental toughness. To some extent, those characteristics are developed via a rigorous law school curriculum. After all, completing law school requires the same kind of qualities as taking the bar exam. But, it was yoga that helped me prepare for the mental challenge of taking the bar exam more than any other study aid. Here’s how: [Read more…] about How Yoga Prepared Me For The Bar Exam
Podcast Episode 59: The California Performance Test – Outlining and Drafting Your Answer
Welcome back to the Bar Exam Toolbox podcast! In this second part of a two-part episode, we are going through drafting an answer for the July 2018 California Performance Test. We recommend listening to last week’s episode first, where we focused on reviewing the task memo, file, and library.
In this episode we discuss:
- The timing aspect of the performance test
- A quick review of the IRAC, CRAC, and CREAC methods for legal analysis
- Tips for drafting a structured outline
- Highlighting the specific rules you’ll use and which case the rule comes from
- Writing your analysis in a way that argues a position
- Drawing a strong conclusion which tells the reader why an issue should be resolved in a certain manner
Thanks for listening!
[Read more…] about Podcast Episode 59: The California Performance Test – Outlining and Drafting Your Answer
How to Ace the Performance Test with Bar Exam Toolbox
The multistate performance test (“MPT”) on the bar exam often flummoxes bar applicants. With the amount of knowledge and critical analysis that needs to be acquired in the time before the test, the performance test often gets pushed to the back-burner and is not prioritized. The MPT can be very challenging for people as it doesn’t test any substantive knowledge, but assesses your ability to examine facts, understand which ones are relevant, and develop a document that answers a pointed question. Some of the greatest difficulties that students have with the MPT is time and being able to organize their answer. Since students only have 90 minutes to read through the file of documents provided, outline an answer, and write a concise and comprehensive response, the limited time often seems daunting. But implementing strategies for common performance test issues can help you gain points and increase your chances of doing well on the bar. [Read more…] about How to Ace the Performance Test with Bar Exam Toolbox
Post Bar Exam Depression – Join the Club
There are probably a million ways I could start this post. But if you are reading this, the only appropriate opening is a congratulations! You finished the bar exam.
While a congratulations is a nice thing to hear, the words may fall flat in the weeks after completing the bar exam. But why? The world is full of congratulations, and I can’t remember the last time it wasn’t music to my ears after completing something I had spent countless hours working towards – a sporting event, a musical performance, even just at graduation after completing my law school career. So why does it feel like one of the biggest feats in your (or my) life not worthy of such recognition? [Read more…] about Post Bar Exam Depression – Join the Club
Podcast Episode 58: The California Performance Test – Reviewing the Task Memo, File, and Library
Welcome back to the Bar Exam Toolbox podcast! Today, we’re walking through a Performance Test from the California Bar Exam. In this first part of a two-part episode, we are focusing on reviewing the task memo, file, and library for the Brief on the July 2018 California Performance Test. In the next episode, we’ll talk about outlining and drafting your answer.
In this episode we discuss:
- The timing aspect of the performance test
- Dissecting the task memo
- How to use the file on the performance test
- What to look for in the library
- How making notes on the key facts you read will make your analysis more efficient
- The black letter law on moral turpitude and what constitutes an excuse
Thanks for listening!
[Read more…] about Podcast Episode 58: The California Performance Test – Reviewing the Task Memo, File, and Library