During the Cal Bar Q&A on Jan. 21, the Bar clarified:
If you’re not a handwriter, you MUST do the mock exam.
If you’re in-person, you don’t need to schedule an appointment since you won’t have a video proctor. But you still MUST do the mock exam.
And if you’re remote, you MUST do the mock exam, but you must set an appointment so a video proctor is there since that’s what’ll happen on exam day.
Hello everyone.
As per FAQ #20 on the January 17 update to the FAQ:
20. Am I allowed to change my exam modality? How do I do that?
Applicants needing to change the format in which they will take the bar exam must do so no later than January 20, 2025, which corresponds with the last day to schedule a proctored mock exam. This will ensure that applicants are able to meet the mock exam requirement before the deadline. After January 20, applicants will not be able to switch out of their exam testing mode (whether handwriter, testing on a laptop in-person, or testing remotely). Modality changes are done through the Applicant Portal.
How to change your modality (from remote to in-person, or vice versa), you ask?
As the Cal Bar notes, please follow the instructions listed below:
1. Log in to your Admissions Applicant Portal.
2. Click on Applications from the menu options.
3. Click on My Applications.
4. Locate your examination application case record, and click on the Change Request button
under the Application Action Link column to launch a Test Center/Method Change Request
and begin to process.
5. Once all sections are completed, go to the Verification screen and click the Submit button.
You will be prompted to submit payment, if applicable, and sign a declaration form.
You will receive a confirmation email once you have successfully submitted the request.
Hello everyone!
A lot of updates to the February 2025 FAQ document. You can find the document here:
February-2025-Bar-Exam-FAQs 11725
Highlights:
LA – Ontario Convention Center. Two things: 1) DUDE, Ontario is in ORANGE COUNTY. Not LA. 2) That sounds like a site where the Bar used to be given?!
Sacramento – @ The Grounds
SF – South SF Conference Center
San Diego – Chula Vista Elite Athlete Training Center.
OK folks, does this sound like a rope-a-dope to you? The Cal Bar said they’d be going insolvent in 2026 and can’t hold bar exams in hotels. The Cal Bar used to hold bar exams in hotels in LA, Sac, Bay Area, and San Diego. Now… the Cal Bar is holding exams in large convention hall-sounding facilities in person. What am I missing?
Anyway, when you go online on January 30, you will input your zip code, and only the sites closest to your location will be listed. And if you live anywhere near any of the four major sites, “only that site will be available for you to choose from.” So it still sounds like a first-come, first-serve thing. Sign up early on January 30.
Oh yeah: FAQ 22: the exam scheduling window runs from Jan. 30 – Feb. 14. But NOTE: last day to change from remote to in-person or vice versa is January 20. Last day to change between in-person locations is February 3.
3. Hardcopy update: only applicants with accommodations, whose disabilities require hardcopies for accommodation, can use hardcopies. And if you’re getting hardcopies, that means you MUST test in person. And that means you can’t use your desktop/laptop. You must use the Meazure Learning computers and from what I saw on a video, it looks like a desktop with a generic keyboard.
4. If you’re testing remotely, you can use laptop or desktop. Only one mouse or keyboard can be used.
5. Break time: same situation whether you’re testing remotely or in-person. And you are not allowed to continue taking the exam after the break has expired. 5-minute breaks, people. Plan for 3-4 minutes, go pee, and get back to your seat PRONTO.
6. Want to change your modality (in person, handwriter, remote)? The deadline has changed: it’s now JANUARY 20. Reason: so if you need to do remote or in person you can complete the mock exam on time. Remote MUST do the mock exam. In-person: mock exam is OPTIONAL, per FAQ 35. You can do it if you want but it’s only available until January 24. No need to schedule an appointment for in-person mock exam since it’s unproctored.
7. EXAM DAY LOGISTICS: plan to arrive (in person or remote) at least 30 minutes prior to your start time. Log in no later than 15 minutes before your appointment time on exam day. They reserve the right to deny you access to your exam if you’re late.
8. PT’s on exam day: you will view and annotate the materials in a pdf. You have single-color highlighter functionality, text annotation and comment features, tagging system to help organize notes, and text can be copies/pasted into the response field.
9. If you’re absent for any portion of your exam, the Cal Bar treats you as not having taken the exam, and exams aren’t graded.
10. AFTER JANUARY 20, YOU CAN’T CHANGE YOUR TESTING MODALITY. In other words, you can’t change from in-person to remote. Between January 21-Feb. 3, you can petition to change which in-person site you go to (i.e., Sacramento to SF). Not guaranteed but you do have the chance to do it.
11. Admittance Tickets – no more need to print them. You must bring a printed confirmation notice from Meazure Learning upon arrival for in-person candidates.
Again, this FAQ update has a lot of new/updated content. Check it out so you’re informed!
Hello everyone,
I grew up in the San Fernando Valley and I still have relatives who live there. The images of the LA wildfires are horrifying. My thoughts and prayers go out to everyone in the region. For Cal Bar applicants, this is a very challenging time as we reach the 45-day mark before the exam.
In its latest FAQ (dated 1/9), the Cal Bar indicated the following:
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES
Any February bar exam takers who have been displaced or personally affected by the wildfires around
Los Angeles County and want to discuss any changes in their circumstances regarding the upcoming
exam administration can email Wildfire.Emergencies@calbar.ca.gov.
If you’re able to read this and you’ve been affected by the wildfires, please email the Cal Bar at the email address above. Tell them about how you were affected, but make sure to tell them that the new dates for the mock exam might be hard to deal with right now. I hope they are humane enough to provide extensions to register for and take the mock exam to those affected. That said, I believe you need a compatible laptop to do the mock exam. Note that for the in-person modality, the Meazure Learning site provides computers and a place to take the exam. That may be a factor for some who are displaced by the fires.
Best of luck to everyone out there, but especially to those who have been displaced by the fires.
February-2025-Bar-Exam-FAQs 1925 wildfire update
Hello!
Some important updates for you about the exam. I’m attaching the current (as of 1/8/25) FAQ document. This is very important.
MOCK EXAM UPDATE
VERY, VERY IMPORTANT!
In past exams, the mock exam period ran from the month before the exam to the Friday before the exam (i.e., January 28 – February 21).
According to FAQ 31, this time frame has CHANGED.
There is a two-step process for completing the required mock exam:
• Step One: On January 13, 2025, applicants will receive an email from Meazure Learning to schedule their mock exam. Applicants will need to schedule their mock exams between January 13 and 16, 2025.
• Step Two: The mock exam session will be held between January 17 and January 22, 2025.
Again, note these deadlines. You should receive an email on January 13. You need to schedule the mock exam and you have between January 13-16 to schedule it.
The actual mock exam period will take place between January 17-22.
According to FAQ 41, “Applicants who do not take the mock exam will not be allowed to sit for the exam.”
So, schedule the mock exam on January 13. Whenever you plan on taking it (and I think January 17 is a FINE time to do so), make sure you get it done.
REMINDER: the mock exam is NOT something you study for. There’s no new exam questions. You’re not doing an essay. You’re not submitting anything. And nothing is graded. It’s like playing in a digital sandbox. It’s there so you waive all liability in case your computer craps out during the exam. They have all the leverage. You don’t do the mock exam before the deadline, you don’t get to take the exam.
Again, you MUST do the mock exam if you want to take the bar exam.
Scheduling your exam
FAQ 21 says you’ll receive an email invite from Meazure Learning with instructions on how to schedule your exam ON JANUARY 30. You can then select your preferred test site (remote or in-person), first-come, first served. Make sure to check spam/junk folders for emails from testingsupport@meazurelearning.com or support@meazurelearning.zendesk.com. In fact, just whitelist those emails now.
Resources for exam day
Check out FAQ 23 for support information about the Meazure Exam platform, process overview video, test center process video, and ProctorU Test Taker Library.
Highlighting and copy/paste
You can use these features on exam day (FAQ 26).
February-2025-Bar-Exam-FAQs 1825
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:
| School Type | First-Timers | Repeaters |
| ABA Accredited – California | 81.0% | 34.2% |
| ABA Accredited – Out-of-State | 74.5% | 28.3% |
| CBE Accredited | 36.5% | 15.8% |
| Unaccredited – Correspondence | 30.0% | 13.3% |
| Unaccredited – Distance Learning | 20.0% | 11.1% |
| Unaccredited – Fixed-Facility | 25.0% | 4.8% |
| Others | 31.2% | 20.9% |
| All Applicants | 68.2% | 23.5% |
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:
S287231 – Order Approving Modifications CBX
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.
