Why Your Bar Exam Essays Matter So Much

Passing the bar exam is no small feat, and for many law school graduates, the essay portion is one of the biggest hurdles. The hardest part isn’t knowing the law — it’s articulating your knowledge clearly, concisely, and under the intense pressure of a timed exam. 

In states like California, the bar exam essays can be particularly brutal, and are often the deciding factor between passing and failing.

These circumstances led us to explore why so many applicants fall short on bar exam essays — and what they can do to improve. Whether you’re preparing for your first attempt or looking to retake the bar exam, understanding these pitfalls will help you develop better legal essay writing strategies moving forward.

Why People Fail the Bar Exam Essay Portion

Female law student sits at a desk in a classroom taking the bar exam on a laptop, writing bar exam essays

Effective legal writing requires a combination of skills, including the ability to analyze legal issues in depth with sufficient evidence and case references, as well as being able to organize your ideas in a clear and logical manner. 

But when you introduce the high-stress exam environment, other skills become critical, including time management and the ability to quickly spot legal issues.

Time management

One of the most common reasons applicants fail the essay portion of the bar exam is poor time management. It’s common to get sucked into the details of one essay and spend too much time on it, leaving less time (or worse, no time) for the others. 

In a high-pressure situation where every minute counts, managing your time inefficiently can completely derail even those applicants who know the law like the back of their hands. One of the reasons for this struggle is that people (perhaps understandably) spend the bulk of their time studying the exam topics and not enough time taking practice bar essay exams under real conditions.

Issue spotting

Another major pitfall is failing to spot the key legal issues in each fact pattern. Bar examiners deliberately craft complex scenarios that test your ability to quickly identify and prioritize the most relevant issues. Missing important issues — or focusing too much attention on minor points — can lead to essays that don’t fully answer the question. 

According to the National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE), issue spotting is one of the top reasons essays receive low scores, as many applicants struggle to recognize the important legal issues that the examiners are looking for.

Depth of analysis

It’s not enough to simply spot the issues, of course — you also need to provide sufficient analyses. Many applicants lose points because their bar exam essays lack depth and only offer surface-level explanations instead of fully developing their arguments. 

Bar exam graders are looking for well-reasoned analyses that show a comprehensive understanding of the law and its application to the facts. Essays that fail to dive into the “why” behind a legal conclusion often end up with lower scores, even if they identify the correct rule of law.

Organization and clarity

Say you’ve spotted all the right issues and crafted a solid analysis; disorganization or lack of clarity can still sabotage your score. Bar exam graders read hundreds of essays, and if they can’t easily follow your arguments, you’re likely to lose points. 

Applicants who fail to use structured frameworks like IRAC (Issue, Rule, Application, Conclusion) often end up with jumbled answers that are difficult to read and understand. Even though IRAC is drilled into your head during law school, it’s easy to forget this process during the pressure of the exam.

A study conducted by the California State Bar revealed that clarity and structure consistently ranked among the top factors that separated passing California bar exam essays from failing ones. Applicants who failed to clearly outline their arguments, or who rambled without a clear direction, tended to score lower than those who followed a logical format when essay writing for the California bar exam.

The Statistics: How Essays Affect Pass Rates

a female law professor sits at a table next to a male law student giving him feedback on bar exam essays

The essay portion plays a significant role in overall bar exam pass rates, particularly in states with more stringent essay requirements like California. According to the California State Bar, only 33.9% of applicants passed the exam in February 2024 (the pass rate in July 2023 was 51.5%), with the California bar exam essay portion being a key factor in failure for many applicants. California’s grading system emphasizes both substance and structure, and weak essays can easily lead to a failing score, even if applicants perform well on other portions of the exam.

Nationally, the average bar pass rate hovers around 59%, but bar exam essays are often where first-time takers and repeaters struggle the most. The good news is, however, that there are proven strategies for improving your bar exam essay writing — and when you increase your essay score, it will significantly increase your chances of passing the bar.

The Mental Challenge of Bar Exam Essays

On top of the technical challenges, bar exam essay writing takes a significant mental toll on applicants. The pressure to perform under strict time constraints, combined with the sheer volume of legal subjects tested, can cause even the most prepared candidates to falter. For many, this mental fatigue is as much of a barrier as the content itself.

Talk to any recent bar exam taker and you’ll find that most individuals experience increased levels of stress during the essay portion. This inevitably impacts their ability to focus and perform at their best. The pressure to juggle writing multiple essays back-to-back, each requiring sharp legal analysis, can lead candidates to feel burnt out before the exam is even halfway over.

The psychological strain is compounded by the fact that many applicants fear the essay portion the most, knowing how heavily it can weigh on their final score. As a result, applicants often get overwhelmed before they even start writing, which can lead to rushed, poorly crafted answers.

Understanding the Challenge Is the First Step

Bar exam essay writing is undeniably one of the toughest aspects of the test. From time management to issue spotting, depth of analysis, and clear organization, there are numerous ways for things to go wrong. But this is no cause for alarm — understanding the reasons why people fail can help you approach this challenge with a more strategic mindset.

At EditingWorm, we offer personalized, one-on-one bar exam essay coaching services from a JD turned full-time writer who passed the rigorous California exam on the first try and now dedicates her career to the craft of writing well. If you’d like more information about these services, contact us today for a free consultation.

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