Progress

I decided to take the 2 weeks before the bar exam off from work to study full-time as I did for Colorado. I was feeling anxious about taking only one week off because I did that last February and failed, but I took 2 weeks last July and passed. Better safe than sorry, right? I am so lucky that my boss is so supportive and understanding, and encouraged me to do whatever I needed to do. So my last day of work before the bar exam is next Friday, February 8. That will be a huge stress relief to be able to focus solely on the bar.

So tired…

I went home for a few days last weekend to visit my family. It was great to see them, but I barely got any studying done if at all. That’s ok though, as long as I crack down from here on out. I flew back on Monday night, go to work on Tuesday morning and I’ve been sleepy all week. I’d been tired lately from working full-time and studying full-time, and now it appears the trip really tired me out.

I think I’m going to take a sick day on Monday so I can stay home and study, and also rest! I’ve been considering taking the 2 weeks before the bar off from work instead of the 1 week I had planned. Now I think I may take Monday off and then take the week and half before the bar off from work. I’m not sure if my boss will go for that, so I’ll just take Monday off and then ask him.

I’m working through the Strategies & Tactics book through the practice question sections, but I’m saving the full-length simulated MBE for later. I’m also practicing on MBE software and still writing out explanations although I’m finding that I don’t need to write such lengthy explanations anymore.

I want to make flashcards for the important things I have a hard time remembering, such as hearsay exceptions requiring unavailability, and those exceptions that don’t require it. I’m hoping to work on that this weekend.

MBE question breakdown

Courtesy of the NCBE outlines and my beloved S&T book, here’s the approximate breakdown of MBE questions:

Constitutional Law

• 33 questions total
• 50% (16-17 questions) on Individual Rights (Due Process, Equal Protection, 1st Amendment, etc.)
• 50% (16-17 questions) on Judicial Review, Separation of Powers, and Federal/State Powers

Contracts

• 34 questions total
• 25% (6-7 questions) of ALL questions will be based on UCC/Sales of Goods
• 60% (20-21 questions) on Formation of Contracts, Conditions, and Remedies
• 40% (13-14 questions) on Consideration, 3rd Party Beneficiaries, Assignment & Delegation, Statutes of Fraud, Parol Evidence Rule, Impossibility of Performance, Frustration of Purpose, and Discharge

Criminal Law and Procedure

• 33 questions total
• 40% (13-14 questions) on Criminal Procedure (Search and Seizure, Arrest, Privilege against Self-Incrimination, Confessions, Lineups, Right to Counsel, etc.)
• 60% (19-20 questions) on Criminal Law (Homicide, Other Crimes, Inchoate Crimes and Parties, State of Mind, Justification and Excuse, etc.)

Evidence

• 33 questions total
• 33% (11 questions) on Presentation of Evidence (Lay and Expert Testimony, Witness Competency, Impeachment, etc.)
• 33% (11 questions) on Hearsay
• 33% (11 questions) on Relevancy, Privileges, Writings/Recordings/Photographs

Real Property

• 33 questions total
• 75% (24-25 questions) on Ownership (Future Interests, Landlord-Tenant, etc), Rights in Lands (Covenants, Easements, Profits, Licenses, Fixtures, etc.), and Titles (Adverse Possession, Converyances, Recording Acts, etc.)
• 25% (9 questions) on Real Property Contracts and Mortgages

Torts

• 34 questions total
• 50% (17 questions) on Negligence
• 50% (17 questions) on Intentional Torts, Strict Liability, Products Liability, Other Torts (i.e. Nuisance, Defamation, Invasion of Privacy, etc.)

Time Management

I keep reading and hearing about how you’re supposed to take at least 10 weeks off from EVERYTHING and treat your bar prep like a full-time job; that it’s impossible to pass the bar while working full-time or part-time, et cetera. I think that’s a load of crap. It also smacks of scare tactics employed by bar prep providers to keep the bucks rolling in. I really hate coming across “advice” and stuff like that where they’re so convinced that you have to study nonstop for the bar from dawn to dusk, and give up everything else, including jobs and family. That’s crazy and completely unrealistic.

Granted, you should probably scale back extracurricular activities. I wanted to join an adult soccer league here but I’m waiting until after the bar. In the meanwhile, I’m sticking with swimming at least 3 times a week. I’m going home in a couple of weeks to visit my family for a few days, but that’s it. I plan to take my S&T book with me so I can work on the practice questions. I figure the S&T book alone should be sufficient for my trip with its 550-plus practice MBE questions.

I will be taking the week before the bar exam off from work, but I doubt I’ll take the 2 weeks off that I did last summer because I had quit my old job early to take those 2 weeks, and I also am not sure I’ll have enough leave from my current job to do that anyway. But I’m not worried about it. I managed to study for and pass the CO bar while working full-time so I know it can be done. I also know of at least one repeater who worked full-time right up to the bar exam, and he passed. Many other people have worked full-time and weren’t able to study full-time, but they passed.

That’s not to say that you should take as little time off before the bar as possible, though. Some people, myself included don’t really have much choice. I’m just saying that it can be done if absolutely and unavoidably necessary. Otherwise, the more time you can take off before the bar exam, the more likely it is to benefit you.