Texas Professional Legal Recruiters

Anatomy of the Bar

Before an individual is allowed to practice law, he/she must pass the bar exam. The bar exam is administered by each individual state and determines which individuals become officers of the court. Some states have a unified bar association where lawyers have membership in a public corporation which is controlled by the judiciary. Other states split the membership and admissions agencies into two different bodies under the legislature. This is the case in Texas, where the Texas Supreme Court appoints a Board of Law Examiners which is separate from the State Bar of Texas.

In addition to the bar, most jurisdictions utilize the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE), which is an ethics exam. The National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE) manages the test, which is offered tri-annually.

The bar exam is generally two days long. The first portion contains essay questions. The subjects of the essays center on legal principles as well as knowledge of items specific to the state law such as trusts, wills, and community property. States may opt to use the Multistate Essay Examination (MEE), which is drafted by the NCBE. Others prefer to write their own tests. There are many jurisdictions have a combination of MEE questions and their own material in their state’s exam.

In addition to the essay portion, there is a Multistate Bar Examination. This standardized, multiple-choice test is created by the NCBE. It is comprised of 200 questions centered on 6 subjects. The exam focuses on common law and Article 2 of the Uniform Commercial Code.

Many jurisdictions include a performance test which is considered the most realistic measure of lawyering skill. The test taker will be given documents representing a fictional case and will be required to write a memorandum, opinion document, or motion. The majority of states choose to use the Multistate Performance Test for this, although they can also create their own.

If you are in the process of taking the bar examination and will be looking for placement as a lawyer, contact the Texas legal recruiters at Sapire Search by calling 1-866-413-2868 today.