Massachusetts Board of Bar Examiners
Edward W. Brooke Courthouse
24 New Chardon Street, 1st floor
Boston, MA 02114
https://www.mass.gov/courts/court-info/sjc/attorneys-bar-applicants/bbe/
The Massachusetts Bar Exam takes place over 2-days and covers 18 topics
Massachusetts Bar Exam Segment Breakdown
The Massachusetts Bar Exam is made up of the following exam segments:
- 10 essays
- 200 multiple choice questions, taking place the Wednesday of the exam. Click here for a complete study guide.
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When is the Exam Administered?
- February 24 – 25, 2016
- July 27 – 28, 2016
Topics Covered by the Massachusetts Bar Exam
The Massachusetts Bar Exam currently covers 18 topics. These topics are tested on the Essays and multiple choice portions of the exam.
- Agency
- Business Organizations
- Constitutional Law
- Contracts
- Criminal Law
- Descent & Distribution of Estates Trusts
- Domestic Relations
- Evidence (including Federal Rules)
- Federal Rules of Civil Procedure
- Federal Jurisdiction
- Massachusetts Rules of Civil Procedure
- Professional Responsibility
- Real Property (including Mortgages)
- Torts
- Trusts
- Unfair or Deceptive Practices (G.L.c. 93A)
- Uniform Commercial Code (articles 1-9)
- Wills
Source: https://www.mass.gov/courts/court-info/sjc/attorneys-bar-applicants/bbe/bar-exam-info/
Recent Bar Pass Rates and Content Trends
On average over 2,637 people take the Massachusetts bar exam each year. The majority of people take the Bar exam in July, having just graduated from law school. Those that do not pass the July bar, will often retake in February.
The following charts show pass rates by year, and the number of students taking in both February and July.
February Bar Exam Breakdown:
On average, the February bar has a lower number of students taking (as it is made up of primarily of people who graduated during December), or people who are retaking the bar.
July Bar Exam Breakdown
How have Schools performed on the Massachusetts bar?
If you are looking for a breakdown of how schools have performed on the bar exam, see below. You can mouse over individual results to see how they performed in relation to the rest of the schools that year.
Site Resources If you are studying for the Bar:
- Bar Exam Stats Bookstore
- A free tool to track your study progress
- Tips for Essay Writing on the Illinois Bar
- Past Essays on the Illinois Bar