Washington DC (UBE) & Virginia Bar Exam Tutoring & Self-Study

DC & VA Bar Exam Coaching

  • 3L Spring prep classes – Mistake or wise investment?

    3Ls are already starting to think about the bar exam. One of the first things I usually get asked about are spring bar exam prep classes. In fact, I was just having a twitter conversation with Stephanie (a 3L who writes the Apparent Authority blog) and another 3L about this same subject. My general advice on these additional classes is (more…)

  • Less than 2 weeks to the Nov 2012 MPRE

    One of the most interesting things about chatting with people who graduate law school is their fear of the bar exam and also their “mockery” of the MPRE. When I ask people how much they studied for the bar exam, I usually hear “every day, 8-10 hours a day”. Or, “I had no life all summer except studying”. Interestingly enough, when I ask how much those same people studied for the MPRE I usually hear “I studied the night before”. Or, “I studied 2 days before”. It’s rare to hear someone even admit to studying 1 week for the MPRE. Is the MPRE really that easy? I don’t think the answer is a simple yes or no. It depends on (more…)

  • When to expect DC Bar Exam Results

    The DC Bar does not give a definitive date as to when the bar exam results will be released. For the July exam they usually say “mid-November”, but we usually see the results in mid-October. This year I am guessing they will be released next week, around October 25th. They first post them on the door in the courthouse and then mail out the results. They also ask the IT staff to post the results online to both websites. The online posting can occur that same day or several days later, depending on how busy the IT staff is. Once the results are available online, I’ll post a link to them here on this blog. Calling the office usually does not help as they will not tell you when they are planning on posting the results. Best bet now is to be patient. If anyone happens by the courthouse and sees the results posted on the door, drop me a note or comment here.

  • July 2012 MBE Analysis & PA results posted

    It’s time for a quick breakdown of the July 2012 MBE. Many were talking about the mortgage heavy, real property questions. Yes, there were a bunch of them and they were pretty tough. Here’s how the national numbers came out:

    The national mean for the July 2012 MBE was 143.4, right around where we typically see it for July. The range of scores nationally went from a low of 58 to a high score of 188 (kudos to those select few who broke the 185 barrier). Overall, no surprises.

    For PA takers, the July 2012 bar exam results have been posted here:

    http://www.pabarexam.org/bar_exam_information/results/be_results.htm

  • July 2012 Virginia Bar Exam results posted

    The results for the July 2012 Virginia Bar Exam have been posted online. As I predicted, they were released 1 day before the scheduled date, so if your friends are still waiting for tomorrow, let them know the results are up and available now.

    As usual, there are 2 lists: Pass list A for those of you who passed and have no outstanding paperwork or issues with the VBBE; and Pass list B for those of you who passed and still have pending issues/paperwork to submit to the VBBE. Those on the first past list are now licensed in the Commonwealth of Virginia, so congratulations!

    For those who didn’t pass this time, try not to be too hard on yourselves. It is a difficult exam and you can always re-take in February 2013. Think about how you studied, how disciplined you were in following your study plan and what you would have done differently. For most people, (more…)

  • Bar Exam Result dates for DC VA MD NY CA

    It’s going to be a long wait, but here are the dates we’re looking at for CA, MD, VA, DC and NY:

    California results expected November 16th, 2012
    Maryland results expected November 2nd, 2012
    Virginia results expected October 12th, 2012
    Washington DC results estimated around Oct 25th, 2012
    New York results estimated around Nov 8th, 2012

  • 10 days until the Aug 2012 MPRE

    All but 4 jurisdictions require the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE) to gain admission to the bar. Most people I’ve talked to tend to study for the MPRE the weekend before the exam or 1-2 days before. Why so little studying? The general answer I hear is “It’s an easy exam”. However, I’ve known more than just a few people who have passed the bar exam yet failed the MPRE. This is why I always recommend at least 1-2 weeks of study for the MPRE. Better safe than sorry is my philosophy.

    It is not an “easy” exam. In my opinion, the questions are just as tricky as the MBE questions. Yes, it is easier than the MBE because you only have 1 subject, Professional Responsibility (PR). And PR is an easier subject than any of the 6 MBE subjects. So yes, it is easier than the MBE, but it is not “easy”. So, I always advise (more…)

  • July 2012 Bar Exam is over

    Congratulations to everyone who took the bar exam, it’s over! VA was nice enough to hold off on the painful UCC3/9 stuff but the MBE was maybe a bit tougher than usual. The good news is, it’s over. Hopefully the results will come in promptly this time around. I’ll post when I hear when they expect results to be posted for DC, VA, NY, MD and CA. Good luck to everyone and have a great rest of the summer.

  • Virginia bar exam topics – July 2012

    Day 1 of the Virginia bar exam is done and we saw Trusts, Federal Civil Procedure (it’s back), Domestic Relations, Sales (UCC2), Property, Wills, Criminal, Corporations and VA Civ Pro.

    No major surprises, now it’s time to switch over to multistate mode and tackle the MBE tomorrow. Hopefully they go easy on some of the strange property questions this time around.

  • Happy 4th of July

    Happy 4th of July to everyone! Maybe if you’re feeling a little patriotic you can study some con law and focus on 1st amendment rights :-) Great day to celebrate everything freedom brings with it including studying the area of constitutional law. Have a safe and happy holiday!