MBE Bar Exam Secrets

The MBE Bar Exam

Solid Advice on Passing the MBE Bar Exam.

The Multistate Bar Exam (MBE) is a multiple-choice exam that tests you on Constitutional Law, Contracts, Criminal Law and Procedure, Evidence, Property, and Torts.

To truly understand the MBE you should step back and examine what you are being tested upon and the structure of the exam. The MBE is nothing but multiple guess, ooopps we mean multiple choice questions. Each question has a fact pattern, an interrogatory and four possible answers.

If you step outside the process and think for a few seconds you will immediately figure out that each MBE question will test you on a rule of law you are supposed to know. That means if you paid attention and memorized the fundamental rules of law in the six areas you are well on your way to a cakewalk. So your goal in answering each MBE question is to determine what you are being tested upon and before you answer the MBE question you must mentally state the rule of law for that test question. Once you do it gets easy to answer MBE questions.

Answering an MBE Question.

With that first goal in mind, you answer an MBE question almost the same way you answer an essay question. You read the call of the question first. Then if you can state the applicable rule of law for the question, and read the facts of the rumahasyam question. While you are reading the MBE question mark up the question by underlining the elements of law related to the question’s rule of law. Then read the call of the question again. Read each of the answers and eliminate any answers that violate the rule of law the question is testing you on. If any answers to the question remain pick the one you think is the answer. If you follow this methodology to answering MBE questions you will find that 60% of the questions have only one answer as that is the only answer that does not violate the rule of law you are being tested upon. The questions that don’t have one answer are almost always double negative answers.

The key is to identify what you are being tested on in the MBE question. Once you state the rule of law to yourself the answers to the MBE question are almost always obvious.

The MBE tests the same Stupid Mistakes Law Students Make in Law School.

Many of the questions that are tested on the MBE test the same stupid mistakes that law students make all the time. Things like using justifiable reliance when there is consideration in the fact pattern of the question.

To get good at answering these questions get all the multiple guess practice exams you can lay your hands on. You should practice with a bank of questions that are at least 3,000 or more. There are many MBE books that have such questions that can be purchased used, and there are many MBE courses that can be purchased used. Get as many of them as you can.

Common areas that are tested over and over again on MBE questions include:

Constitutional Law: Due Process, Equal Protection, First Amendment, and State Action.

Contracts Law: Consideration, offer, acceptance, the sales of goods.

Criminal Law: Homicides and the degrees of homicides, larceny, arson, rape, burglary

Criminal Procedure: Search and Seizure, Counsel, Miranda,

Evidence: Hearsay, Habit and Character evidence, Impeachment and Relevancy.

Real Property: The bundle of ownership rights in land, easements vs. profits vs. licenses, adverse possession,

Torts: Intentional, Negligence, Product Liability, Strict Liability, and Defamation.