Florida Bar Exam: A Basic Guide

Taking the bar exam in any state is a challenge. However, with proper preparation you should have no trouble passing the Florida Bar Exam. This article will go over a few of the fundamental elements of the Florida Bar Exam to help you identify the areas that you will need to concentrate on while preparing for your exam, including how to qualify for the exam, how to register for the exam, and what to study for the exam.

QUALIFICATIONS

To sit for the Florida Bar Exam you will need to be a graduate of an ABA approved law school when you apply for the exam. The Florida Board of Bar Examiners and the ABA website both have a list of approved law school. If you didn’t graduate from a ABA approved law school then you must have been in practice as an attorney or legal field in another U.S. state or D.C., and you must provide evidence of the quality of your work, which will be reviewed by the Board of Bar Examiners. If you meet the educational requirements you will also need to take and pass the Multistate Professional Responsibilities Exam with a score of at least 80 points. Finally you will need to pass a background check. You can speed up this process by registering with the Board of Bar Examiners as a first year law student. This will start your background investigation early and help speed up the approval process once you are ready to take the exam.

REGISTERING FOR THE EXAM

To register for the Florida Bar Exam you will need to fill out the Bar Application online, and then download and print out the Exam Application and supporting forms, and then complete, and submit them to the Bar Examiners. It is important that you make sure that your application package is complete. To help you with this process the Florida Board of Bar Examiners has a checklist that you can use.

Board of Bar Examiners
1891 Eider Court
Tallahassee, FL 32399
(850) 487-1292 Telephone Number
http://www.barexam.org/florida

If you have questions, or would like to request application materials via telephone, operators are available to assist you Monday through Friday between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.

THE EXAM’S FORMAT

The Florida Bar Exam is a two day event that is held in Tampa twice a year, once in February and once in July. On day one of the Florida Bar Exam you will take two different sections of the test that focuses on Florida law applications. You will be given three essay questions and 100 multiple choice questions. On the second day of the exam you will take the Multistate Bar Exam. This exam is made up of 200 multiple choice questions that deal with general legal questions that are applicable to U.S. legal practices that are used throughout the United States. To pass this exam you will need to earn a score of 136 points.

WHAT TO STUDY

As mentioned above the first day of the Florida Bar Exam will focus on laws and legal procedures that are applicable in the state of Florida. The topics that are generally covered on day one include:

1. Florida Constitutional Law
2. Real Property
3. Torts
4. Contracts
5. Family Law
6. Ethics

For a free study guide provided by the state of Florida please visit http://www.floridabarexam.org/public/main.nsf/StudyGuide.html.

On the second day of the Florida Bar Exam you will take the Multistate Bar Exam. This exam will be made up of 200 multiple choice questions that cover the following topics as they are generally applied throughout the United States of America:

1. Constitutional Law
2. Contracts and Sales
3. Criminal Law and Procedures
4. Evidence
5. Real Property
6. Torts

If you would like a study guide for this section you can request one from the Florida Board of Bar Examiners by writing to them and enclosing a SASE, or by visiting the NCBE website at http://www.ncbex.org/