The State Bar of California reported today that 53.8 percent of applicants passed the July 2024 General Bar Examination (GBX). As a result, the 4,458 people who passed the July exam will be eligible for admission to the State Bar as soon as all admissions requirements are satisfied.

“The State Bar celebrates the dedication and perseverance of everyone who passed the California Bar Exam,” said Leah Wilson, State Bar Executive Director. “We are pleased to see you reach this important milestone, and we look forward to welcoming you soon into our community of dedicated legal professionals.”

California’s General Bar Exam pass rate of 53.8 percent is up from last year’s July pass rate of 51.5 percent, and 2022’s July pass rate of 52.4 percent. Preliminary statistical analyses show that of the 8,291 applicants who completed the GBX, 67.7 percent were first-time takers. The pass rate for these 5,614 first-time applicants was 68.2 percent. The pass rate for the 2,677 applicants repeating the exam was 23.5 percent.

Here are preliminary pass rate statistics* in greater detail:

Attorneys’ Examination results 

The statistics above do not include attorneys who took the one-day Attorneys’ Examination. The Attorneys’ Exam, which consists of the essay and performance test sections of the GBX, is open to lawyers who have been admitted to the practice of law in another U.S. jurisdiction and have been an active licensee in good standing for at least the four years immediately preceding the exam. Of the 319 lawyers who completed the Attorneys’ Exam, 156 (48.9 percent) passed.

Background information about the California Bar Exam

The two-day General Bar Examination is given twice a year, in February and July. The exam consists of three sections: five essay questions, and a performance test designed to assess an applicant’s ability to apply general legal knowledge to practical tasks, and a 200-item multiple-choice section, also known as the Multistate Bar Examination (MBE). California’s mean scaled MBE score was 1401, on par with the national average. The July 2024 exam was the last time that California will use the MBE for multiple choice questions.

Successful applicants who have satisfied other requirements for admission―those who have received a positive moral character determination, passed the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination, and are not on the California Department of Child Support Services’ list of those in arrears for family or child support―may take the Attorney’s Oath.

A pass list from the exam will be published on the State Bar website on November 10, 2024, at 6:00 p.m. More detailed statistics about exam results will be available in four to six weeks on the State Bar website.

*Please note that these are preliminary statistics. Law schools will be required to confirm the students allocated to their law school and, as a result, these statistics may change.

Hello everyone!

Good luck tonight!  I know you’ll be checking results from the July 2024 Cal Bar Exam very soon.  I hope you receive good news!

If the news isn’t what you hoped for tonight, don’t worry.  People fail the Cal Bar Exam.  In fact, about 1/2 of you will, if history is accurate.  Smart people fail the Cal Bar.  It happens, promise.

What to do next?

If you pass tonight, congratulations!  Go celebrate, sleep, and be grateful you don’t have to retake the exam.  No felonies, please!  Get sworn in, and use your license for the power of good and impact people’s lives in a positive way.

If you don’t pass, mourn your result for 15 minutes.  Then contact me.  Good tutors fill up quickly.  The worst thing that can happen is that you want to work with a tutor, wait too long, and then you don’t get to work with that tutor.  Programs can fill up within a few days, or even a few hours.

I’ve tutored for 25 years, taught several courses at UC Law SF for that period of time (Legal Writing I and II, Critical Studies I, II, III), and I’m one of a handful of 1-on-1 MBE tutors in the country.  I’ve tutored through the COVID exams, so I know how to handle paperless exams.  And that means I know how to help you Avoid Scrolling Hell!  What if you could learn how to master a paperless exam, even on the PT?  I have answers for all three parts of the exam.

Let’s generate some points!  I speak fluent repeater.  I speak fluent paperless exam.  And whatever your situation is, I can meet you where you are and help you get to wherever you need to go.

Let’s do something about it!  Good luck tonight.  If you need me, reach out.  Now.

Hello everyone,

The Cal Bar updated their FAQ’s on October 30.  Of relevance here is #20:

20. I have a disability that requires hard copy exam questions, but I will be using a laptop.
What should I do?

Applicants using a laptop will not have access to exam paper material regardless of
whether they test remotely or in-person. Applicants may request hard copy exam
material as an accommodation for a disability-related functional limitation by submitting
a testing accommodation request through the Applicant Portal. Please use the following
link to get more information about Testing Accommodations.

All applicants will have access or permission to access virtual scratch paper and an 8.25″
x 11″ dry-erase whiteboard for use during the examination. The whiteboard will be
subject to inspection, and larger sizes will not be permitted.

So, looks like you can get a whiteboard to use on the Cal Bar.  8-1/4 x 11 is way better than 2×2!

That said, I assume you must get it yourself.  So that should mean you can get a whiteboard marker, an

eraser, and the whiteboard.  Get one now so you can practice on it.

Still not perfect, of course.  What if you need more than one page to complete your outline?  And how do

you transfer that info?  Is there a better way?  YES.  Want more information?  Contact me and let’s talk about

a tutoring program!

And how is a one-page whiteboard going to help you on a PT, when you normally need 2-3 pages to do your

inventory of the Library?  2-3 pages for the inventory of the File?  And 2-3 pages for the Outline?  How does

the one-page whiteboard fix that?  Want something better than a whiteboard?  I HAVE ANSWERS!  Contact me now.

Click here for the FAQ:  https://www.calbar.ca.gov/Portals/0/documents/admissions/Examinations/February-2025-Bar-Exam-FAQs.pdf

On October 22, the Supreme Court of California approved the State Bar’s requested modifications to the California Bar Exam, beginning with the February 2025 administration. Specifically, the Court approved:

• The General Bar Exam will be administered remotely and/or in-person at vendor-run or State Bar-run test centers beginning the last Tuesday in February and July of each calendar year.
• The first day of the General Bar Exam will constitute the written portion of the exam (five one-hour essays and one 90-minute Performance Test), and the second day will constitute the multiple-choice portion of the exam (200 multiple-choice questions administered over four 90-minute sessions).  Order appears below.

S287231 – Order Approving Modifications CBX

https://newsroom.courts.ca.gov/sites/default/files/newsroom/2024-10/S287231%20-%20Order%20Approving%20Modifications%20CBX.pdf

The Court was vague on the exact schedule for each day of the Bar Exam.  But the Court intimated that the COVID-era testing schedule may return.  When describing the MBE day, the Court indicated that there would be four 90-minute sessions under traditional time.  That implies a break of some type between 90 minute (50 question) sessions, such as 15-20 minutes.  So two sessions in the morning separated by 15-20 minute break, then lunch, and then two more sessions in the afternoon separated by a similar break.

Let’s see what the Cal Bar includes in the exam schedule when they publish it.  YES, paperless exams are back.  We’ll see if the paternalistic 60.000 minute essays are back or if you can spent more than 60 minutes on an essay if one wished to do so.  We shall see, sports fans.

Ah, yes, the paperless exams returning.  Welcome back to the digital scratch pad and the RETURN OF SCROLLING HELL!  Scroll up and down and up and down and I can’t outline on this rinky-dink scratch pad and WHAT DO I DO!?

If you’d like an alternative to SCROLLING HELL, contact me now.  I developed fantastic plans for the essays and, YES, for the PT too!, during the COVID era.  Want to be less stressed on exam day?  Email me or call me and let’s generate some points!

Hello everyone.

The Cal Supreme Court formally approved the Cal Bar Experiment and the attendant possible score enhancement for those selected to participate.

Students have to perform “well enough” on the 49 questions on November 8 or 9.  What does that mean?  Up to the psychometrician.  All the Cal Bar said at a Q and A was that a “passing score” wasn’t required.  So that means less than 60%.  What’s realistic, especially since many participating students are waiting for Cal Bar results that day or taking the MPRE?  I’m guessing (no inside information here) 45-55% should make the cut.  Don’t rely on what I said to your detriment.  I don’t know.  Just an educated guess.  They want to make sure you try hard.  But a passing score isn’t needed.  So, this number makes sense.

Also, students have started hearing back about being selected to participate in the Cal Bar Experiment today.

Hello everyone.

Indeed the Supreme Court spoke.  Things are changing in Cal Bar Land.

On October 10, the Supreme Court issued an order about the Blue Ribbon Commission’s proposal to change the California Bar Examination.  Briefly:

• The MBE subjects are staying (i.e., Torts, Contracts, Crim, Crim Pro, Con Law, Evidence, Property, Contracts, and Civ Pro)
• PR and Wills/Trusts are staying
• Administrative Law, Employment Law, and Family Law are being added
• Bus Org and Remedies will be removed.
• Seven new skills will be tested in some way:
  • Drafting and Writing
    • Research and Investigation
    • Issue-spotting and Fact-gathering
    • Counsel/Advice
    • Litigation
    • Communication and Client Relationship
    • Negotiation and Dispute Resolution

When will this take effect, you ask?  According to Bus. & Prof. Code section 6046.6(a), the Cal Bar can’t alter the bar examination that “requires the substantial modification of the training or preparation required for passage of the examination, except after giving two years’ notice of that change.”

So, this means that the February 2027 Cal Bar Exam (at the earliest) will incorporate these new changes.  If you don’t want to take the new test, take the 2025 or 2026 exams.

Dispelling rumors:  1. Bus Org and Remedies are eligible to be tested in 2025 and 2026.  They aren’t leaving the exam right now.

2. Does this mean Bus Org and Remedies will be tested more over the next two years since it’s leaving?  NO.  Unless both subjects are tested the next three consecutive exams, and then you can call me very surprised.

The Cal Bar will need to publish more specific information about the new exam, and I’ll address those updates as they become available.

Hello everyone,

Several updates for you.

The first update is that the Cal Bar approved applicants to take the Cal Bar from anywhere in the world – really!  The only catch is that you must take the exam at the same time as everyone else for security purposes.  So if you’re in England, if you’re willing to start your Cal Bar Exam at 5 pm local time… and finish your PT around 2 am the next day, you can do it!

The Cal Bar approved the remote proposal by an 8-3 vote on October 11.

Note this means remote testing, which means paperless exams… do you want to play around with that digital scratch pad?  Or scrolling up and down endlessly?  Welcome to SCROLLING HELL!  Do you want that on the biggest testing days of your life?  And how’s that PT going to go, juggling 16-18 pages of Library and File and moving notes from a digital scratch pad and… CHAOS!

Or do you want something better?  A plan to AVOID SCROLLING HELL?  Contact me now!  I have solutions developed during the COVID era and you will feel so much less stressful on exam day.  Get in touch and let’s talk about a 1-on-1 tutoring plan that works for you.  Welcome to paperless exams, everyone.  Now it’s time to CRUSH the remote California Bar!

Hello everyone,

Recently the Cal Bar posted the Cal Bar Experiment.  Final year law students (3rd or 4th depending on your school) and anyone potentially repeating the Cal Bar in February or July 2025 may apply to participate.

Deadline to submit application to participate is October 13.  Full information from the Cal Bar about the Experiment below.

NOTE:  you must be registered with the Cal Bar as a law student (if you’re a repeater, you’re fine here).  If you aren’t registered with the State Bar, register ASAP.

NOTE:  acceptance isn’t guaranteed.  You can apply, and they might accept everyone, or not.

I recommend all applicants apply to participate here.  The Cal Bar wants students to prepare well and do their best so that the Cal Bar gets the best possible data for its exam.  The horribly-timed November 8 date (hello, MPRE day and Bar Exam results day, anyone?!) means they won’t get the best data.  Anyhow, the Cal Bar reserves the right to not grant extra points to people who don’t score “well enough”.  Observations:  if you pass the February 2025 exam on the first read, all of this is moot – you’re not getting extra points.  And you don’t care, since you don’t need them.

But if you fail on the first read, and you score “well enough” (I read into this you didn’t tank it to just get the extra points), the Cal Bar will award up to 40 scaled points (enough to take a second read applicant to a passing score!).  This is a game-changer, potentially, to those in the second read.  If you score 1200 on the first read, this potential score boost (the Supreme Court must approve the Cal Bar’s petition, so it’s not a done deal yet) won’t help.

I recommend you try it.  It’s 49 MBEs.  They will give you 2 hours.  You’ll get an early sense of whether the MBE will be any different from the NCBE questions of the past.  My guess is that repeaters will think it’s not much different.  Note Phase 2 is on the July 2025 exam (if approved) and that will be an essay or two and some MBEs on the day after your last day of your bar exam.

California Bar Exam Experiment

Hello everyone,

The Cal Supreme Court spoke recently and denied, without prejudice, the State Bar’s petition for modifications to the February 2025 bar exam.

This was NOT a decision on the merits of the future of the Cal Bar.  The Supreme Court merely said that the Cal Bar’s Committee of Bar Examiners must first approve the proposed modifications before making a formal petition to the Cal Supreme Court to request approval.

Remember, this is all about money, so the Cal Bar is quite motivated to act.  In fact, the Committee of Bar Examiners has already put this approval on its agenda for its next meeting, nary a week away, on September 30.

Watch this space.  Do remember that nothing exists until it does.  Evidently the Cal Supreme Court knows about what the Cal Bar is up to, and hasn’t said no in a meaningful way to anything yet.

As of now, the betting money is still on the Bar Exam Experiment occurring on November 8, Kaplan’s MBE questions appearing on the February 2025 exam, and with administration of the exam remotely and at small test centers (i.e., Pearson View and Prometric type sites).

Also watch out for the October 1 announcement of the February 2025 exam.  More information should be revealed then, as well as when the Cal Supreme Court responds to the Cal Bar’s next petition.

One more thing to gum up the works (potentially):  where is the NCBE’s copyright infringement suit?  Are they just waiting until the Cal Bar’s announcement of the February 2025 exam?  Or the Supreme Court’s approval of the Cal Bar’s petition to modify the February 2025 exam?  We shall see what we shall see.

The Cal Bar’s “Notice to those intending to take the February 2025 exam” appears below:

September 19, 2024, update

The agenda for the September 30 Committee of Bar Examiners meeting is now posted. Please see the agenda for public comment procedures and for the Zoom link to observe the meeting.

September 18, 2024, update

The California Supreme Court today denied, without prejudice, the State Bar’s petition proposing modifications to the February 2025 bar exam, which included:

• Intent to replace the multiple-choice questions provided by the NCBE with questions developed by a new vendor, and
• Intent to change modalities to administer the exam remotely and in person at small test centers.

As we read today’s order, before the State Bar brings the proposed modifications back to the Supreme Court, it must first seek the formal approval of the Committee of Bar Examiners on the proposed modifications to the California Bar Exam.

The State Bar plans to move forward as quickly as possible to secure the needed approval. The Committee of Bar Examiners is scheduled to meet on September 30; an agenda will be posted on our Public Meetings portal no later than September 20. The State Bar will file a petition as quickly as possible after the CBE meeting and adjust plans as needed in accordance with the Court’s direction.

At this point, the State Bar still intends to launch the February 2025 bar exam application on October 1, 2024.

• Applicants will have the option to state their preference for a remote or in person exam.
• With the understanding that the testing venue may change pending approval by the Supreme Court, the State Bar will notify applicants as the details are finalized.
• Those who applied to participate in the November 8, 2024, Bar Exam Experiment will also receive notification of any changes. The Court’s order did not impact the petition regarding the scoring incentive related to the November experiment, which is still pending with the Court.

Background

In August 2024, the State Bar finalized an agreement with Kaplan to independently develop questions for the California Bar Exam. The questions will replace the Multistate Bar Examination, developed by the National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE).

The Committee of Bar Examiners discussed these changes at its March and April 2024 meetings and recommended that the State Bar retain a new vendor to develop the multiple-choice questions for the California Bar Exam, so that the State Bar can pursue alternative, cost-effective bar exam administration approaches that applicants prefer. This contract will allow the State Bar to make the bar exam available both remotely and in person at test centers starting with the February 2025 exam, assuming the plan is approved by the Supreme Court.

The multiple-choice questions developed by Kaplan will not substantially modify the training or preparation required to pass the exam. The bar exam will cover the same subject areas and continue to have 200 multiple-choice questions, five one-hour essay questions, and one 90-minute Performance Test. Applicants should prepare for the exam as they always have.

Cal Bar’s press release appears below.  Main takeaways:

1. The press release says the first exam that Kaplan will help draft is the next one, February 2025.  We’ll see if NCBE sues for copyright infringement about Kaplan’s questions and if that results in a delay in the use of Kaplan’s questions to a future exam.
2. The press release vaguely indicates a transition time for remote and test-center based exam administration (think Prometric sites a la the MPRE).  When does that begin?  The press release is unclear.
3. If the Cal Bar will go remote and/or test-center based exam administration, what impact does that have for hard-copy materials and scratch paper for exams?  Will students be able to print fact patterns for essays and Library/File for the PT (which they could NOT do during the COVID exams on remote testing)?  At a minimum, will students be able to use scratch paper for essays (which they could NOT do during the COVID exams) or for PTs (which they COULD do during the COVID exams)?  We shall see.

We shall see what we shall see.  Look for more updates this fall!

State Bar, Kaplan, Sign Five-Year California Bar Exam Development Contract

The State Bar of California and Kaplan Exam Services, LLC (Kaplan), a subsidiary of Kaplan North America, LLC, signed an $8.25 million, five-year exam development agreement on August 9, authorizing Kaplan to create multiple-choice, essays, and performance test questions for the California Bar Exam. As part of the agreement, Kaplan will also provide faculty and student study guides, which the State Bar will distribute at no cost. Kaplan will also exit the retail bar prep business specific to California, while continuing to serve other bar exam jurisdictions.

The multiple-choice questions will replace the National Conference of Bar Examiners’ (NCBE) Multistate Bar Examination (MBE) in time for the February and July 2025 exams (SPH emphasis added). 

The agreement will help the State Bar transition to remote and test center-based exam administration, both of which test takers prefer. These test administration changes will also help the State Bar close a significant gap in its Admissions Fund, which is projected to reach insolvency in 2026, absent further efforts to reduce costs. The State Bar projects that the new arrangement will result in annual cost savings of up to $3.8 million in exam-related expenses—enough to significantly reduce if not fill the gap.

At its July 18, 2024, meeting, the State Bar Board of Trustees voted to authorize the Board Chair and Executive Director to negotiate the terms of and, if appropriate, execute, an agreement with Kaplan.

“This historic agreement allows us to provide applicants with exam options that they prefer and also helps us close a significant deficit in the State Bar Admissions Fund,” said Board Chair Brandon Stallings. “I want to thank the Board of Trustees for its leadership and State Bar staff and our partners at Kaplan for their significant efforts in ushering in this agreement, which represents a generational change for applicants and the State Bar.”

“Kaplan is honored to be selected by the State Bar of California to help further its mission of producing qualified and practice-ready lawyers,” said Steven Marietti, Chief Commercial Officer, Kaplan North America. “We look forward to supporting the State Bar of California in the creation of this new exam.”

The State Bar initially sought approval from the Board in the spring but deferred until July due to contractual concerns including safeguards against intellectual property and copyright infringement. The parties have worked diligently to build a legally sound deal structure and method for independent question development, including Kaplan creating a new unit in the company to develop material and oversee the effort.

In a bold act of collaboration, the contract includes a cost-sharing provision whereby the State Bar and Kaplan will share potential copyright infringement litigation costs. The State Bar’s cost is capped at $6.75 million over the life of the contract, which amounts to the lower end of net projected cost savings over the five-year term. The parties also agreed to a mutual indemnification provision with a $1.65 million cap.

Even in the unlikely event that the State Bar would have to share in the cost of litigation, the caps ensure that the new arrangement would still be cheaper, or cost neutral, compared to the projected status quo exam administration costs that were leading Admissions to insolvency.

The questions developed pursuant to this agreement will not substantially modify the training or preparation required for passage of the exam. For years, the State Bar has utilized the NCBE’s multiple-choice question set, the MBE. However, the NCBE does not allow remote or test center-based exam administration, and NCBE will be phasing out the MBE as a stand-alone product in 2028.