Steven Harris’ program was really made for passing the bar exam. For the essays, the program breaks down the essays into memoizable, ready-to-use rules and clear structures for essay formatting so that you can churn out passing essays without the guess work. For the multiple choice, the program breaks down each subject into topics with tables that are easy to follow and help you understand the nuance in the rules. I think Steven does the best job in teaching for the performance test. It actually really explains what the test is looking for and how to review the library properly for all the information you need. In general, I think the course is great at cutting through all the nonsense and getting at the heart of what the bar is looking for in order to pass with the least amount of stress. Although I live on the East Coast, Steven had no problem using Zoom and accommodating the time zone difference. Finally, it was not easy adapting to the idea of jumping into bar study again after getting the bad news about the October exam. Steven was patient and understood how much of studying was about the test taker’s mental state and even tailored the course to help me ease back into studying when I wasn’t too keen on it initially. — Big Law, Esq., passed the February 2021 California Bar Examination

The only regret you will have about Steven’s program is that you did not hire him sooner!

As a repeat bar taker, you must explore what strategy will be most effective to pass the exam, as your prior strategies did not work.  At the same time, you must remain engaged, mentally strong and positive during the stress of studying again for the bar exam. Repeating the bar exam can feel overwhelming.  It is challenging to remain positive about an exam you have previously failed.  Steven Harris’ use of self with his humor, honesty, directness, and knowledge will help alleviate emotional stress about studying, while at the same time, providing you with a streamlined effective approach to passing the California bar.

I struggled with time management on my previous bar attempts.  I did not effectively complete PTs and Essays within the time allotted. Steven’s program focuses on writing concisely and using streamlined rule statements.  I completed so many essays in a simulated test environment that by the time the actual bar exam occurred, I felt like it was another day of practicing at home!  Complicated topics became simplified with Steven’s WINNIN’ TIME! book that breaks the material down into “digestible” material you can easily IRAC for the bar graders.

During my bar studies, I struggled with one particular Real Property Exam and I’ll never forget that Steven said to always remember that the subject matter will not get to you as long as you approach each essay in the same methodological way.  He compared it to wine as I told him I like wine.  Steven said that you may have a merlot you don’t like (i.e., Real Property question about Equitable Servitude) but hey it is still wine, you got this!  When I took the bar and passed this time, there were certain topics within a subject, I did not particularly care for or anticipate being on the exam.  However, I remembered the Real Property essay I wrote for Steven, breathed, and stuck to Steven’s format.  I did not let the subject matter throw me off.  Further, during Essay Review Week, you will see so many essays and review them which is great preparation for the bar exam.

Steven’s PT program is easily one of the best investments you can make in your studies. Steven will teach you how to cover the broad material and present it to the graders in the 90 minutes provided.  I did not let the overwhelming amount of online material get to me as I practiced over and over again using Steven’s approach and utilizing the permissible blank scratch paper.

Steven’s program helped me improve my MBE score by looking for the patterns and similar ways the Bar tests on issues.  Steven has a book for the MBE (MBE Primers and Flowcharts) that has flowcharts which are absolutely a game changer!

Steven’s program simply works.  If you want to pass the bar exam, stay focused, stay positive, stay determined, and stick to Steven’s program to generate points! — UC Irvine Law Repeater, Esq., passed the October 2020 Cal Bar Examination

I cannot thank Steven enough for helping me pass the California bar exam. It would have been difficult without him as I worked full time and was a foreign applicant. We started to work on the study plan in January and then – the lockdown began. We amended the schedule two more times, which means that Steven spent many more hours on preparing me for the exam than initially planned. He was very accommodating and adjusted the study plan to my changing personal situation, welcoming the first child in my family shortly before the exam. His teaching methods work – they require a lot of self-discipline, reading, doing the multiple-choice tests and writing essays every week, not to mention the memorization in the last two weeks before the exam. He knows what the exams test and provides this knowledge almost taking you by the hand. Thank you, Steven for all your time and effort! — Dorota, Esq., European Bar Taker, passed the October 2020 California Bar Examination

Tackling the Bar Exam seemed an impossible task. Where do you start? How do you approach studying for such a daunting exam? Luckily, I found Steven Harris.  With Steven’s tutoring program, the Bar Exam became just another exam that any law student could pass.

Steven’s carefully manicured course comes with a customized calendar that breaks down each day of the week with a task list and a time limit for each task.  It took away the burden of deciding when and how to study, and just allowed me to focus on studying.  His Evidence, Civil Procedure and Professional Responsibility boilerplates made me wish to see one of those essays on exam day.

In addition to providing substantial weekly feedback on essays, his streamlined structure for writing essays made exam day mechanical. No time was wasted on frivolous words, instead every essay was systematically written for optimal point generation.

Steven’s course really is the secret to passing the bar exam. I highly recommend you take it! – Christi Forsline, Esq., passed the October 2020 Cal Bar Exam

As I was pondering whether or not to take the bar exam again for the 6th time (last exam being two years ago), I knew I had to do something drastically different this time around.  As a result, I decided to hire a tutor for the first time and started looking for bar prep tutors online.  Out of sheer luck, I ended up on Steven’s website and requested a call back.  From my first conversation with Steven, it was evident that he genuinely cared about whether I passed this exam or not.

Steven then created a very personalized schedule for me to begin almost immediately and even was courteous enough to modify the schedule when the bar exam was moved from September to October (with only 90 minutes’ notice before our next meeting!).  Moreover, every time I talked to him in our meetings, he made sure I was doing okay and not burning myself out.  Just his tone of voice and the way he speaks to you has a calming effect that is really essential during the dark days of bar prep.

Thanks to his personalized schedule, essay/PT grading process, along with his detailed comments, I was able to drastically improve my essay/PT writing skills. Additionally, Steven’s WINNIN’ TIME! book along with the other materials he sends you helped me really simplify and understand the law.

Steven helped me generate as much points as possible and he really does an amazing job in helping you realize that passing is possible and guides you step by step.

I could not be happier with Steven’s services and I would highly recommend his services to anyone getting ready for their first bar exam or to a lost repeater like me. – Southwestern Law Grad, Esq., passed the October 2020 Cal Bar Examination

Steve was instrumental in my success on the California Bar Examination! His method proved to be an excellent strategy for making the material digestible and for giving the bar examiners exactly what they want to see. Through his two books and various handouts, he boils down the information needed to a manageable amount and teaches you how to spot issues and earn points. Steve’s method is a powerful tool that I’m glad I learned! – Alan Khalfin, Esq., passed the July 2008 California Bar Examination

I received copies of Steven Harris’ WINNIN’ TIME! and The Trigger List as part of my enrollment in his California Bar tutoring program. I highly recommend both books to Bar exam applicants, as well as law students.

WINNIN’ TIME! contains substantive outlines that condense an admittedly daunting amount of law into clear, concise rule statements that are easy to apply on exam day. Furthermore, WINNIN’ TIME! contains guidance on how to write a clear, lawyerly response to every type of legal fact pattern a professor or the Bar Examiners can conceivably throw your way. Steven’s “requires” and “because” style of answering exam fact patterns provides a clear writing structure that allows you to focus your energy on what you’re saying rather than how you’re saying it. WINNIN’ TIME! also contains other writing tips that, in my opinion, can be the difference between a passing and failing exam answer. This book not only helped me with writing for the California Bar exam, but also provided me with writing techniques that I currently use as a post-Bar law clerk and will continue to use as I begin practicing as an attorney.

The Trigger List, like WINNIN’ TIME!, was immensely helpful to me while preparing for the Bar exam. It helped familiarize me with key words used by the Bar Examiners that typically always implicate particular issues. Learning these triggers was the foundation for an issue spotting structure that was reliable and easy to use during the Bar exam. I found myself spotting issues during the California Bar that I know I would’ve otherwise completely overlooked, and I attribute that ability to The Trigger List.

Both books are easy to use and, as mentioned above, applicable to both the Bar exam and law school exams. I wish I had known about these books during my time as a student at UC Hastings, and if I had to do the Bar exam again, I wouldn’t want to be without WINNIN’ TIME! and The Trigger List. — Adam McConney, Esq., passed the July 2013 California Bar Examination

Steve,

I am happy to tell you that I have FINALLY passed the February 2014 Bar Exam on my 12th attempt! It has been a very long six year journey for me and I am so glad that I found out about your PT Review Course! In this class, not only did I learn what I was doing wrong but I learned valuable tips to help me generate crucial points that I know allowed me to pass this exam. The format of your class allowed me to focus on the test even though I was working full time and had a family! Had I known about this class, I would have taken it directly after law school! You gave me the motivation that I needed despite my many failed attempts at this exam! I also credit my success with my bar essays to your WINNIN’ TIME! and The Trigger List books. I can’t believe how I had wasted time in the past taking this exam without the aid of these two books. I am going to tell everyone I know taking the Bar about you and your course because I could not have passed this exam without it! Now I can move forward with my life. Thank you!! –Tanya Brown, Esq., passed February 2014 California Bar Examination

I’m an attorney applicant who passed the NY bar exam 20 years ago.  I had a non-legal career for the majority of the time since. I tried to study for the CA Attorneys’ Exam on my own but wasn’t able to pass in February 2020.  Without Steven’s tutoring, I’m certain I would’ve failed October’s exam as well.  His teaching method is unique and doesn’t focus on memorization, which was the most intimidating part of the whole process for me since I was so far out from law school.  I felt like there was just an insurmountable amount of information to relearn and that I might not ever pass.  However, I found Steven’s innovative approach, which focuses on issue spotting and writing technique, easily digestible.  In fact, there is zero memorization involved until the last two weeks of the study schedule.

Steven’s WINNIN’ TIME! and Trigger List books were unlike any other study aids I found online.  His essay writing approach, boilerplate templates and PT approach were easy to apply and anxiety-reducing, in part, because of their simplicity.  His one-to-one tutoring sessions were engaging and informative.  As a person, he was extremely direct and did not sugarcoat anything but was also encouraging and understanding.  He was accommodating and adjusted my schedule multiple times, as I was dealing with some unexpected medical problems.  Also, he is hilarious.

Since I can’t speak to his MBE tutoring, my advice to any attorney applicant is, if you are more than three years out of law school, take a full 10-12 weeks off from work and hire Steve.  If you can’t hire him, I think that his books alone can help you pass.  I know I would not have passed without them.  – Attorney Applicant, Esq., passed the October 2020 Cal Bar Examination

Steven was recommended to me after I failed the California Bar Exam as an attorney applicant on my first attempt.  As an attorney barred in another jurisdiction that had been practicing for 7 years, clerked for two judges at my home state’s supreme court, and had served in the USAF JAG Corps, I figured I wouldn’t have any problems passing the California Bar exam.  I largely used the system I had used the first time I took the bar exam 7 years ago, and felt I had prepared well for the test.  My score told a different story—I failed with a score in the 1360s.

Enter Steven.
At the outset, Steven did a fantastic job of creating a schedule and system around my needs and life.  I was working full time for a firm as a law clerk mostly doing law and motion work.  As a result, there were times where work would get in the way.  Steven prepared for life’s interruptions and built enough flexibility into the schedule to allow for life to get in the way.  When unforeseen issues would knock me off schedule, Steven was quick with a plan and a response to make sure I was still on track.

I also cannot say enough about Steven’s system for not only learning the substantive material necessary to succeed on the bar exam, but also his methodology on how to approach the exam.  His system cuts to the chase and is laser focused on one thing: teaching you how to collect the points necessary to pass the exam.  The information provided in his books, I must admit, was overwhelming at first.  But his system has you work through all the skills necessary to successfully handle the California Bar Exam.  He has meticulously analyzed the different types of questions that may present themselves on the exam, and he will teach you how to approach each issue as the graders expect and in a way that will maximize your points.

To that point, Steven’s system of how to address issues and elements makes the exam manageable and accessible.  He teaches you how to identify and address each of the elements necessary to achieve a passing score on each essay question.  Steven’s system will ensure that come exam day, maximizing your points is second nature, even if the question makes no sense to you at first blush.  He, in essence, provides you a formula to follow that makes it nearly impossible to get tripped up by a question.  By the time you complete his course, the myriad of question forms that you encounter will be easily accessible and simply make sense—you won’t even have to think about it, you just know what you need to do with any type of question.

Case in point: during the exam I encountered a question that completely caught me off guard, and I wasn’t sure where to begin.  However, I had a system in place, and I knew conceptually how I needed to answer the question.  So, I started putting headings, issues, and elements down on my outline that I knew needed to be addressed based on the type and topic of the question (including an issue that the call of the question doesn’t expressly implicate, but the graders expect to appear). Once I had those, I moved onto plugging in facts for each element.  Next, I just started writing out each issue and element as I had been taught.  By the time I was done, I had a complete answer when at the beginning, I felt like I didn’t know where I was going.  By simply following what I had learned regarding how to approach the question, the question essentially answered itself.

I also cannot speak highly enough of Steven’s guidance regarding the Performance Test.  The first time I took the exam, I figured that the performance test would be a breeze—after all, it is supposed to be essentially what I had been doing as a practicing attorney for years.  Again, I was wrong.  Steven teaches a fool-proof system for learning how to answer each type of performance test question, how to identify the required issues, and how to find the information from the library that must be included for a passing score.  He teaches what you need to pay attention to and what you can ignore and will help you maximize your time so that you have more than enough time to write a passing answer.

Finally, I strongly recommend Steven’s books WINNIN’ TIME! and The Trigger List.  WINNIN’ TIME! is the Bible to answer any questions that the California Bar Exam throws at you.  It does an especially good job of breaking down the not-so-obvious issues that may be hidden in each question.  It will teach to find all the elements necessary in the questions that seem overly simple so that you are never left feeling like “that can’t be enough.”  The outline in WINNIN’ TIME! is created with the rule statements already formulated so you don’t have to make that additional mental step.  It masterfully walks the line of including everything that you need to know while somehow also including only what you need to know.  Of all the outlines I have seen, it is the best attack outline for preparing for the exam.  The Trigger List is also essential if you have ever wondered “how did they get that issue out of that question.”  It teaches you to read questions with your real goal in mind: issue spotting.  In conjunction, WINNIN’ TIME! and The Trigger List will make sure that you don’t miss any of the “hidden” issues that will serve as a bar to a passing score.

Working with Steven was a pleasure, and I know that he was critical to my success on the exam.  I am certain that Steven can lead anyone to a passing score on the California Bar Exam so long as he or she has faith in the system and is willing to put in the necessary work and time.  I cannot express how strongly I recommend Steven’s services. – Joel Knaack, Esq., passed the October 2020 Cal Bar Examination