I need a little help from the lawyers on the board. I plan to take the Florida bar exam in July and I’m not quite sure how to study for it.
So far I’ve looked at sample questions on the Florida Bar website, downloaded study guides from Lexis and looked over one of the review books for first-year courses. I feel like I should be doing much more, but I’m not sure exactly where to start.
Do I need to take a review course, like Barbri? Is there a particular book I should buy? Is six months enough time to study or should I have started a long time ago?
Yes, you need to take a review course of some sort, but not necessarily Barbri. I used Micromash last summer and passed the Texas bar with flying colors. It’s a self-study course, and the multistate part is computer based. I did just fine keeping up with the material, and had a hell of a lot more time to goof off last summer than my friends who got stuck in boring Barbri lectures every morning.
Taking the bar was the most nerve-wracking, unpleasant experience of my life. I definitely would not want to have to take it without a proper bar review course under my belt.
TAKE A REVIEW COURSE! They tell you the stuff that you really need to know. And take those stupid pratice tests for the multi-state. A lot of answering those multiple-choice questions is knowing what they’re looking for. DO NOT get discouraged if you don’t do well on your first few pratice runs- I didn lousy on mine and passed the Bar with flying colors, first time through. Good luck! Oh, and there was a Rule against perpetueties issue in one of my essay questions. Not fair!
But, I recall reading a few years back about an analysis that someone did of bar exams over several years. One conclusion was that in a disproportionate percentage of questions, the longest answer was the correct choice (in the multiple choice section?). So when in doubt, pick the wordiest answer. YMMV. Good luck!
I blew off the BarBri lectures, and just read their books, etc. I did fine. I really didn’t see the point of falling asleep in a lecture when I could’ve been using that time to, er, prepare for the Bar.
I’ll second Sua’s response. The BarBri lectures are good if you are the type of person who needs someone to provide structure in your studying. If you can self-regulate and keep a good solid schedule yourself, then blow off the lectures. Even if you don’t sit in on the lectures, the other BarBri materials are invaluable - especially the mounds of sample MultiState questions they will supply you with.
I assume that Florida has an essay portion? If so, my strategy for practicing those was to completely write out an answer for a few questions in each topic to sort of get a feel for how they were going. Once I felt comfortable, I’d just make an outline or bullet list of each point that needed to be answered in each question. This is pretty easy because the essays generally cover the same topics year in and year out.
As for length of time to study - you’re kidding when you say six months right? If the bar is at the end of July, do nothing between now and June. If you start now, you’ll peak too early and burn out in July when it really counts. In June, look at the materials. In July, kick it into high gear and STUDY. You’ll do fine.
The best way to pass the multistate is to do as many practice questions as you can. At first, read the explanations for all the questions you answered, gradually taper down so you’re reading the answers just to those you get wrong. The Bar-Bri practice books had two levels–one gave very long explanations for the questions (why each choice was wrong), and the second book gave shorter answers. I found this very useful, and it taught me the style of the questions, the patterns behind them, which helped me eliminate choices on questions I got stuck on. It also helps you do the test faster, the time element screws up a lot of people. I did probably 1000 or more multiple choice questions preparing for the Alaska exam (which I passed), and another 500 prepping for the Oregon Bar (which I passed). I really think the practice questions are more important than lectures or getting notes/outlines in order–how much time you put into that depends on how you study best. I enjoyed the BarBri lectures, most of their speakers were entertaining and clear (I love learning more about contracts in a three hour lecture than in a semester class!).
The same holds true for the essay portion–the Washington Bar is all essay, no multistate, so I have plenty of practice. This is where a good review class can really help you out. Exam essays need to be short and precise. A good review class will teach you how to make every sentence count. And it will give you practice writing essays. And more essays. And then some more essays.
Pace yourself. Give yourself a day off every once in a while. Concentrate on the big picture, and not the minutiae–you don’t need to know everything about every type of law, common sense and a general undestanding will help on the exam. Good luck!
I studied for an out of state exam using the Bar Bri books, but did not attend lectures. Rewriting the outlines of the areas that you do not know works well.
As for the MBE, there are plenty of books of lots of sample exams. You can usually get one at a law school book store. Repetition on sample exams is the best way to prepare.
Also, check to make sure that you have fullfilled any ethics exams requirements (that is usually a separate test).
Wow! Thanks everyone. I’m feeling a little better already.
Part of the reason why I was worried about time is that I have to finish up four credits over the summer semester to get my degree. I wanted to make sure that I would have enough time to study for the Bar while going to class. I’ll probably take the BarBri class if I can. I already have the BarBri review book for the first-year courses.
According to the most recent statistics I can find, the average for the state is about 84 percent, and my school averages slightly higher at about 92 percent. The passing rate for the multistate PR exam is anywhere from 93 to 98 percent.
Definitely not fair. I guess I should make sure I know that. (My estates and trusts professor went through it so fast that almost none of us understood it.)
A whole semester in three hours? OK, now I’m definitely taking the BarBri course.
Thanks again to everyone who offered advice. I’ll keep you posted on how I do.
I took Barbri, attended most if not all of the lectures, and did little or no reading except for on subjects that I had never taken a class in. Passed. Never cared to check whether it was by a little or a lot. Had put next to no effort into law school, racking up Cs like nobody’s business.
Hell, for all law school has to do with being a lawyer, they should just teach you a little vocabulary in the first year of law school, then skip the second and third years, give you Barbri, and let you get started right away with the on-the-job training.
I always wondered. If it is important that a law school be accredited, then why should someone who obtains passing grades from such a school have to pass a test before practicing? Or conversely, if passing the test is what matters, why should you have to attend 3 years of law school first?
You should have gone to school in Wisconsin, where if you graduate from an in-state law school, you don’t have to take a bar exam.
I believe California still allows applicants to take the old apprenticeship route. No law school required, but you do have to have a certain level of experience in lieu of the schooling.
