Goldilocks and the Bar Exam

As the dulcet birdsong of spring gives way to the blistering Hades of summer in South Carolina, I spend a lot of time working with students as they prepare for the essay portion of the bar exam. 

Students struggling with this portion of the bar exam seem to fall into one of two groups.  For one group, the problem is that they are writing too little.  So, for example, if there is a question involving the UCC and a sailboat, they won't write down what the UCC is, what it covers, or why a sailboat might fall under the UCC rules.    

For the other group, the problem is that they are writing too much.  In that case, if the question involves what happens when a guy calls up his attorney and tells her to toss his will in a fire, this group will start with "A will requires two signatures ..." and eventually write down absolutely everything they know about wills.

Either way, even if the student actually knows the applicable law and how to apply it, the exam grader can't tell.  If the exam grader can't tell, the exam grader is not going to award points.  I've seen students fail bar exam essays for both of the above reasons.    

Consequently, when evaluating essays, I remind the student to write essays as if he or she is speaking with a client.  A client is not an expert in the situation, and the student needs to explain to him or her what rules apply and why those particular rules apply.  On the other hand, if the student hits the client with a firehose of information, he or she will have no clue as to what things are important, what the rule actually is, or why that rule applies, even if the actual information is buried in there somewhere. 

(Alex Ruskell)