The California bar exam is a challenge for nearly everyone who sits for it! Whether you’re a first-time or repeat California bar exam taker, you’ll find useful content below to help you conquer this beast.
If you’d like some additional assistance, please consider our California bar exam courses and tutoring offerings:
- California Bar Exam Tutoring: Targeted, one-on-one assistance for anyone struggling with the California bar exam.
- California Self-Study Program: Tools, resources, and assistance to help the dedicated self-study student pass at an affordable price.
- California Bar Exam Courses and Tools: We offer California-specific courses and tools, including the Writing of the Week (WOW) workshop and the California Brainy Bar Bank!
And read on for lots of useful free content on the California bar exam! If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We’re here to help!
California Logistics
- What is the California Bar Exam, Anyway? Not sure exactly what's covered on the California bar exam or how to approach the test? We've got you covered. Here are all the basics you need to know.
- Tips if You Just Found Out You Failed the California Bar Exam California bar results are being released, and the pass rates mean there will be thousands of disappointed bar takers out there. If you're one of those people wondering what to do next, here are some steps for dealing with a bar exam failure.
- Failed the Bar Exam? How to Be the Ultimate Sore Loser (to Pass the Bar Exam Next Time) Methodical and deliberate - these are the keywords for any person retaking the bar exam. In this post we welcome Brian Hahn, founder of Make This Your Last Time and a second-time passer of the California bar exam, who gives his advice on how to pass the bar exam the next time around.
- Should You Apply for Bar Exam Testing Accommodations? We are pleased to welcome back to the blog Dr. Jared Maloff, a clinical psychologist who specializes in helping students who need testing accommodations navigate the California bar exam. In this post he talks about when and why law students should consider applying for testing accommodations.
- Are You Kidding Me? The California Bar Exam Is Going to be Two Days in 2017 The California State Bar Board of Trustees recently voted to scale back the state’s three-day exam to just two days. In this post we discuss all the changes to the exam and what they mean for you!
- How to Pass the Bar by Doing What Makes You the Most Uncomfortable As you get closer to the California bar exam, it's crucial for you to ask yourself if what you're spending your time on is actually going to help you on exam day. If you feel it isn't really going to help, it's time to correct that, NOW!
- How to Apply for Bar Exam Accommodations When Finances are a Concern In this post we welcome back Dr. Jared Maloff, clinical psychologist, to continue his discussion on how to apply for accommodations for the California bar. Today he talks about how to apply for bar exam accommodations when financial concerns are an issue.
- Leveling the Playing Field: Testing Accommodations on the Bar Exam This post is a must-read for any student who has struggled with physical, mental, or learning challenges. We speak with Dr. Jared Maloff, a clinical psychologist, about accommodating learning disabilities when taking the California bar.
- Deciding Whether to Take the Uniform Bar Exam (UBE) or the California Bar Exam If you’re deciding whether to take the Uniform Bar Exam (UBE) or the California Bar Exam, then you’ve come to the right place. Read our advice on what you should be considering!
California Bar Exam Essay Tips
- Do You Need IRAC to Beat the California Bar Exam? Everyone taking the California bar exam has probably at least heard of IRAC — the notorious format of many a law school final exam. The question comes up pretty frequently with bar students, though, “Do I need IRAC for the bar?” The answer is an emphatic “Yes!” Find out why here.
- Deliberate Practice: An Approach to Minimum Competence - Part 1 Brian Hahn, founder of Make This Your Last Time and a second-time passer of the California bar exam, is back with a two-part post about creating a methodical way to practice for the California bar exam.
- Deliberate Practice: an Approach to Minimum Competence - Part 2 Brian Hahn, founder of Make This Your Last Time and a second-time passer of the California bar exam, is back with part 2 of his series about creating a methodical way to practice for the California bar exam.
- How Distinguishing Issues Will Help You Save the Future - Part 1 In this post, Brian Hahn, author of Make This Your Last Time, talks about how the practice of distinguishing issues will help you with the California bar exam.
- How Distinguishing Issues Will Help You Save the Future - Part 2 In this post, Brian Hahn, author of Make This Your Last Time, continues his discussion on how the practice of distinguishing issues will help you with the California bar exam. In the second part of his post, he parses out the types of issues and discusses them in more detail.
- Frequently Tested Topics on the California Bar Exam vs the UBE: Torts A cursory glance at Bar Exam Toolbox’s Brainy Bar Bank reveals some pretty wide schisms between two of the most popular (as in “lots-of-people-do-it,” not “lots-of-people-like-it”) tests in our profession. One subject the two tests have in common, however, is Torts.
- What Are Bar Exam Graders Really Looking For? In reviewing and critiquing hundreds of bar exam essay and performance test answers over the years, it's pretty clear what the graders are really looking for. If you’re wondering what the California bar exam graders in particular want to see in your essays and PTs, keep the attributes described in this post in mind!
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 20: How to Read the Facts on an Essay (w/Mihal Ansik) We’re talking with Mihal Ansik, one of our expert California bar exam tutors, walking step-by-step through a real California bar question and discussing how to effectively read the facts.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Episode 24: Tackling a California Bar Exam Essay: Professional Responsibility and Evidence We’re walking through a California bar exam question on professional responsibility and evidence. This is the first in our series of podcasts on how to approach California bar exam essay questions.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast 32: Tackling a California Bar Exam Essay: Wills and Community Property We are walking through a California bar exam question on wills and community property. This is one of our series of podcasts on how to approach California bar exam questions.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 35: Tackling a California Bar Exam Essay: Corporations Today we are walking through a California bar exam question on corporations. This is one of our series of podcasts on how to approach California bar exam questions.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 39: Tackling a California Bar Exam Essay: Real Property We are walking through a California bar exam question on property. This is one of our series of podcasts on how to approach California bar questions.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 44: Tackling a California Bar Exam Essay: Constitutional Law We are walking through a California bar exam question on constitutional law. This is part of our series of podcasts talking about how to approach questions on the California bar exam.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 49: Tackling a California Bar Exam Essay: Tort Law Today we are walking through a California bar exam question on tort law, taken from the February 2016 exam.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 64: Tackling a California Bar Exam Essay: Contract Law We are walking through the July 2016 California bar exam question on contract law. This is part of our series of podcasts talking about how to approach questions on the California bar exam.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 69: 5 Things We Have Learned From Writing Bar Exam Sample Answers We are sharing five lessons we learned from drafting sample answers for California and MEE essay questions as part of our Writing of the Week program.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 70: Tackling a California Bar Exam Essay: Criminal Law and Procedure We walked through the February 2017 California bar exam question on criminal law and criminal procedure. This is part of our series of podcasts talking about how to approach questions on the California bar exam.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 72: Tackling a California Bar Exam Essay: Civil Procedure We are walking through the July 2017 California bar exam question on civil procedure. This is part of our series of podcasts talking about how to approach questions on the California bar exam.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 75: Tackling a California Bar Exam Essay: Trusts We are walking through the February 2016 California bar exam question on wills, trusts, and property. This is part of our series of podcasts talking about how to approach questions on the California bar exam.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 86: Tackling a California Bar Exam Essay: Remedies We are walking through the July 2017 California bar exam question on Remedies. This is part of our series of podcasts talking about how to approach questions on the California bar exam.
California Performance Test Tips
- The Key to the Performance Test: Find Your Approach What's the key to success on the bar exam performance test? Having your approach dialed in beforehand, so you can work efficiently and effectively.
- Three Things to Do to Raise Your Performance Test Scores The performance test is the favorite part of the bar exam for many, given that you don’t need to have any law memorized. But some people still hate and fear the performance test. If you're one of these people, here are three things you can do to raise those scores!
- Don't Turn the Performance Test into a Bad Decision Brian Hahn, founder of Make This Your Last Time and a second-time passer of the California bar exam, is back with advice on how to avoid turning the performance test into a bad decision.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 58: The California Performance Test - Reviewing the Task Memo, File, and Library 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.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 59: The California Performance Test - Outlining and Drafting Your Answer In this second part of a two-part episode, we are going through drafting an answer for the 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.
- Can Paper Clips Help You Pass the Performance Test? If you're taking the bar exam in a jurisdiction that includes a performance test portion, this post is for you. Many students complain that the PT section has too many papers to keep track of. Could bringing a paper clip to the exam solve this problem and help your score?
California Bar Prep Materials
- Bar Exam Lessons Learned and Free California Outlines After studying for the February 2013 California Bar Exam, Adam Shajnfeld swore he would try to make life easier for others by posting the outlines he prepared. He’s here with us today to talk about his background, what he’s doing now, and his bar exam experience.
- Help! I'm an Attorney Taker and California Changed the Bar! If you sought out this article or read our prior post, you know that the California Bar is scaling back its format from a three-day-long test to a two-day-long test effective July 2017. Because you are one of the brave souls rising up to meet this challenge head-on after practicing law in another state, you are likely wondering how, if at all, this change will affect you.
- Help! I'm a Repeat Test Taker and California Changed the Bar! If you sought out this article or read our prior post, you know that the California Bar is scaling back its format from three days to two days effective July 2017. Thus, students aspiring to join the California legal community will be confronting this altered beast for the first time this July. If you are one of the brave souls rising up to this challenge, you are likely wondering how, if at all, this change will affect you.
- Changes to the California Bar Exam as of July 2017 The are changes to the California bar exam scheduled to go into effect this summer. Let’s explore some of these amendments to the exam, what they mean, and how to prepare.
- Do the Changes to the California Rules on Professional Responsibility Really Mean "Change"? In May 2018, the Supreme Court finally approved a new set of professional responsibility rules, which will go into effect on November 1, 2018. So, after all this time, are the changes not only massive, but significant?
- Tools for Bar Exam Success: Themis Bar Review Still haven't decided on a bar review course? In this post we review Themis Bar Review, a commercial bar review course that you can take entirely online.
- Tools for Bar Exam Success: Lean Sheets Bar Exam Outlines Many bar studiers are overwhelmed with the amount of information they need to study for the bar exam. This is why Lean Sheets were developed — to help those of you studying for the bar exam pare down the information to what you need to know. Read our review of this helpful tool!
- Tools for Bar Exam Success: BarEssays.com In this post we share a great resource for those studying for the California bar exam, BarEssays.com, an online essay question and performance exam/answer database for the California bar.
- Tools for Bar Exam Success: BarIssues.com, A Resource for the California Bar Exam In this post we share another great resource for all of you studying for the California bar exam: BarIssues.com. BarIssues.com is a website and database that can help you identify commonly tested issues and then find which essays tested those issues in the past (so you can practice them).
- Self-Studying for the California Bar With "Be a Goat"! (Part I) Yes, you read that right: being a goat actually has something to do with self-studying for the California bar exam. We talk to Jessica Klein, attorney and author of "The Goat’s Guide: The Complete Step-by-Step Guide To Preparing for the California Bar Exam On Your Own," for some expert advice.
- Self-Studying for the California Bar Exam With "Be a Goat" (Part II) As a follow up to our first post on the Goat's guide to self-studying for the California bar exam, we continue our conversation with attorney and author, Jessica Klein. Read more of her expert advice!
California Bar Exam Failure Stories
- The Day I Failed the California Bar Exam We are pleased to welcome Jeff Curl, apprentice grader for the California bar exam and practicing attorney, to the Bar Exam Toolbox blog to talk about his experience when he learned he failed the California bar exam.
- The Question I've Never Been Asked About the Bar Exam In this post we welcome an attorney who shares her very personal story about failing the California bar exam and what she learned from the experience. She offers some great advice for those of you grappling with the same emotions!
- Why I Hired a Bar Exam Tutor In this post we welcome an attorney who shares his story about failing the California bar exam and his decision to hire a bar exam tutor for his second studying attempt. He offers some great advice about the benefits of working with a tutor and how it can help you pass the exam.
California Baby Bar
- 5 Tips for Preparing for the Baby Bar As we’ve mentioned before, the pass rates for the First Year Law Students’ Exam (or “Baby Bar” as it is affectionately, albeit perhaps patronizingly called), are pretty low. If you want to see just how low, you can check out statistics from recent California test-takers here. Read on for our top 5 tips about how to prepare.
- What Is the First-Year Law Students' Exam (or the "Baby Bar")? Ever heard of the baby bar? Not many people have. What is it? Is it hard? Do you have to take it? Find out the answers to these questions and more in this post!
- Four Reasons People Fail the California Baby Bar In California, some law students find themselves needing to study for and take the First Year Law Students’ Exam. Although this exam might not sound very challenging, the pass rates are painfully low. Why do students perform so poorly on the baby bar? Read the top five reasons we believe people fail.
MBE Strategies
- An Approach to Answering MBE Questions We describe one approach to answering MBE questions.
- 3 Simple Ways To Improve Your MBE Score If you’re enrolled in a bar review course or if you’re studying on your own, by this point you may have already completed a simulated or mock MBE exam. You may have already received the score for this exam and depending on what that score is, you’re probably freaking out and already plotting a career change. Well, if you’re currently experiencing this fear, we're here to tell you, STOP WORRYING!
- 5 Reasons To Be a Confident Out-Of-State Applicant For the Bar Exam If the jurisdiction you want to take the bar exam in has state-specific sections, many questions will nag at you – Can I learn the state-specific subjects? How much different is that state’s law? Can I compete with in-state applicants? We have some tips for out of state applicants for the bar!
- How to Analyze Real MBE Questions We're offering some advice on how to face real MBE questions.
- Approaching Criminal Law Questions on the MBE The Multistate Bar Exam can be a nightmare for bar exam takers, especially with the myriad topics covered on the MBE. Fortunately, you can quickly improve your MBE score by following a solid approach to answering Criminal Law questions on the MBE.
- How Do I Survive the Bar Exam With MBE Scores at a Historic Low? With MBE scores at all time lows, we're talking about how to not end up on the wrong side of the MBE scoring.
- Tips for Taking the MBE from Someone Who Struggles with Multiple Choice We're offering some advice for studying for and taking the MBE - especially if you've struggled in the past with multiple choice exams!
- How to Approach Criminal Procedure Questions on the MBE Even though Criminal Procedure is a broad topic, you can still adopt an overarching approach to answer these questions. This article provides tips on how to develop that overarching approach and how to tackle those tricky search and seizure questions.
- How to Approach Constitutional Law MBE Questions Constitutional Law questions can be tricky for bar exam takers because of the deep analysis involved in reaching the correct answer. We're looking at the best way to study for these questions on the MBE.
- Tips for MBE Practice Questions While it can sometimes feel like there is no way to prepare for the curveballs on the MBE, there actually is a lot in your control to increase your chances of success.
- How to Learn from Your MBE Mistakes There are tactics you can employ to tackle the feared MBE questions regardless of where you are in your bar studies. We discuss those tactics in detail here.
- Tackling Real Property MBE Questions Real Property questions on the MBE make up 25 of the 175 scored questions you’ll encounter on exam day. We're looking at your overarching approach for Real Property MBE questions, as well as some advice on how to stay collected through the more dreaded Real Property topics (ahem, the Rule Against Perpetuities).
- Fighting Through MBE Prep Struggles: 5 Questions to Ask When Nothing is Working When it comes to the MBE, most anyone will tell you that practice is the key. But what do you do when your scores plateau or even start getting worse during your bar prep? It is fair for the alarm bells to ring when your MBE practice begins going poorly all of the sudden. Here are five questions to ask when you feel like nothing is working.
- Tackling Torts MBE Questions In this post, we’ll talk about how you can approach Torts MBE questions to boost your score.
- Tackling MBE Hearsay Questions Hearsay questions make up a large portion of the Evidence MBE questions you’ll be confronted with on exam day. Learn how to tackle these questions, and you could see a critical boost in your MBE score. Below are tips on how to approach hearsay questions.
- There is JUST TOO MUCH MBE Law to Learn! Are you feeling crunched for time to study all the MBE subjects? What if there was a way to tailor your study approach to the most heavily tested areas of the law? Well, there is!
- A Slightly Counterintuitive Way to Study for the MBE As you get closer to the bar exam, studying efficiently becomes ever more important. Here’s a tip for improving your MBE scores — force yourself to focus primarily on the material you don’t know.
- Bar Study Tips: Preparing for the MBE We’re excited to have MBE expert Sean Silverman answer some questions about preparing for the bar exam. Sean is an attorney, a lecturer for a New York based bar review company, and a bar exam tutor.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 7: A Conversation with Sean Silverman - MBE Expert Today Lee talks with guest Sean Silverman, an MBE expert, who tutors for the MBE, the Florida bar exam, and the UBE.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 18: Strategies for Mastering the MBE We’re discussing our top tips for mastering the MBE portion of the bar exam. If you’re taking the exam in nearly any jurisdiction you’ll have to take the MBE so don’t miss this episode!
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 21: How to Analyze Real MBE Questions (w/Sean Silverman) - Part 1 Today, Lee walks through some past MBE questions with guest Sean Silverman, an MBE expert.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 22: How to Analyze Real MBE Questions (w/Sean Silverman) - Part 2 Today is the second episode in our two-part series analyzing real MBE questions. Lee and guest Sean Silverman, an MBE expert, walk through several MBE questions and give their take on how best to approach them.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Episode 45: Why Are MBE Scores Dropping? And What to Do About It As a Bar Taker We’re focusing on strategies and tactics to help you beat the trend of declining MBE scores, seen in recent data released by the National Conference of Bar Examiners.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 50: What We Discovered About the MBE From Explaining Lots of Questions We talked about what we learned about the MBE while creating the Practice of the Week (POW) MBE Workshop, and spending lots of time with the questions.
- Yikes! I Need to Improve My MBE Scores If you got disappointing bar results over the past few weeks, you're likely going through the important process of determining what went wrong. For some of you, that might be the MBE. If so, we have some resources that will help you develop a study plan to improve your MBE scores.
- MBE Trouble? Tips for Studying Again If you recently found out that you didn’t pass the bar exam, we're sorry to hear that. But as you get ready to study again, we want you to make the best preparation plans possible. To help, MBE expert Sean Silverman shares some tips on how to study to raise your MBE scores.
- How NOT to be an MBE Victim - Advice from Dr. Mary Campbell Gallagher For Part II of our three part interview with Dr. Mary Campbell Gallagher, the founder and president of BarWrite® and BarWrite Press, we discuss how not to be brought down by the MBE and much more.
- Can Taking a Break Save Your MBE Score? As we get closer to the bar exam, many bar takers are setting aside time to take three hour MBE practice exams. Taking these practice tests is a crucial part of bar exam prep for many reasons, including a not so obvious one: they will help you discover if fatigue is an issue for you.
- Top 5 Study Tips for Conquering the MBE Did you get disappointing MBE scores on the bar exam? Don’t worry – you’re not alone. In this post we welcome Sean Silverman, an MBE expert, who shares his top 5 study tips for conquering the MBE!
- To Defeat an Enemy, You Must Become Him Have you ever wondered why bar exam experts do what they do? In this post we talk to expert Alfred M. Zappala about preparing for the bar exam and more. You may recognize his name from his book, The Multistate Digest!
- Are You Ready for Civil Procedure on the MBE? If you're sitting for the bar exam after February 2015, you want to make sure that you're ready for the new Civil Procedure questions. In this post we go over everything you need to study for this new material!
MBE Prep Tools
- Learning from MBE Practice Questions Since MBE-style multiple-choice questions are so unique, working through a lot of practice questions is a great way to familiarize yourself with the style of question and to see how they typically test certain legal concepts. We explain how to best work on this.
- Using AdaptiBar to Prepare for the MBE on the Bar Exam AdaptiBar is an online application that can help you prepare for the multiple-choice Multistate Bar Examination (or “MBE”) portion of the bar exam. In addition, rather than static sets of practice, MBE questions from a workbook, AdaptiBar uses a proprietary, adaptive algorithm to tailor sets of online practice questions to each user’s particular strengths and weaknesses.
- Tools for Bar Exam Success: The Multistate Digest In this post we talk about a very valuable study guide for the MBE portion of the bar exam: The Multistate Digest. It may just help you ace this difficult section!
- Tools for Bar Exam Success: AdaptiBar Struggling with the MBE? AdaptiBar might help. Check out our review of this useful tool (including a special discount code for our loyal readers).
- Tools for Bar Exam Success: Lean Sheets Bar Exam Outlines Many bar studiers are overwhelmed with the amount of information they need to study for the bar exam. This is why Lean Sheets were developed — to help those of you studying for the bar exam pare down the information to what you need to know. Read our review of this helpful tool!
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 43: Talking About AdaptiBar With Guest Maggy Mahalick We’re chatting with special guest Maggy Mahalick, Corporate Counsel and Content Manager for AdaptiBar, about how this tool can help you prepare for the MBE.
- Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 73: How to Learn the Law Needed for the MBE We’re strategizing about how to resolve problems you’re having while studying for the MBE, specifically when you’re struggling with the law.
- Tools for Bar Exam Success: AdaptiBar MBE Substantive Lectures We've reviewed AdaptiBar before and feel it's an excellent tool for those wanting some additional MBE help. In this post we review their substantive law lectures on the MBE subjects by Jonathan Grossman, MBE expert, bar exam tutor, and professor from Florida.
- Tools for Bar Exam Success: Critical Pass Flashcards Students either love or hate the MBE. Thankfully, there are several review tools dedicated to this section of the test. In this post we review "Critical Pass: Unlock the MBE" flashcards.
- Tools for Bar Exam Success: Our Review of the Critical Pass App If the MBE has become your least favorite part of the bar exam, don't worry. There are many review tools for this part of the test, including the iPhone/Android app called Critical Pass. It’s a great way to supplement your preparation for the MBE!
- Tools for Bar Exam Success: Sketchy Law Looking for a fun new tool to help your bar studying? Sketchy Law is an online bar study tool that uses drawings, word association, and pictures, as well as audio lectures, to teach you substantive law.
- Tools for Bar Exam Success: Can Listening to Songs Help You Study for the MBE? Can you imagine all you need to know for the MBE set to music? That's exactly what the new tool Study Songs has done, and all in a cool app! Read our review of this cool approach to studying.
Want to feel ready for the California bar exam? Check out our bar exam courses and tutoring options, to ensure you’ve got the best possible shot at passing!
And please contact us with any questions. We look forward to hearing from you.
