Information about The First-Year Law Students' Exam (Test Center)

The First-Year Law Students' Exam will be administered on October 22, 2024. The exam will consist of 100 multiple-choice questions and will no longer contain any essay questions. There will be two exam sessions throughout the day; applicants may choose to schedule and take the exam in either the morning or afternoon session. There is one set break in each session. Applicants taking the examination online must use laptop computers and should go to the Prometric landing page at their scheduled exam time. For both the morning and afternoon session, the exam will be administered with the following schedule:

• Multiple-Choice Questions 1-50 – ninety (90) minutes
• 20-minute break
• Multiple-Choice Questions 51-100 – ninety (90) minutes

Applicants granted extended time may have different schedules, which are communicated to them individually in advance of the examination.

Exam Day Instructions

The First-Year Law Students’ Examination consists of 100 multiple-choice questions, split into two separate 50-question sessions.    

Each of the questions or incomplete statements is followed by four suggested answers or completions.  You are to choose the best one of the four stated alternatives.  The facts of some of the questions on this examination may appear to you to be similar or identical to the facts of other questions on the examination.  Do not make any assumption about any apparent factual similarities between separate questions.  Read all the facts of EACH question carefully as if you had never seen them before.

The following instructions apply to the respective subject areas:

1. Answer all questions according to legal theories and principles of general application, unless the instructions that follow or the instructions on a specific question ask for a different rule.

2. For contract questions, assume that the following provisions of the Uniform Commercial Code are in effect.

        a. All of Article 1

        b. All of Article 2

3. For criminal law questions, unless the question specifically asks for a different rule, answer according to principles of general application in the United States.

4. For tort questions, unless the question specifically states otherwise, assume the jurisdiction has not adopted comparative negligence, no-fault, or any guest statute.

Your score will be based on the number of questions you answer correctly. It is therefore to your advantage to try to answer as many questions as you can.  Use your time effectively.  Do not hurry but work steadily and as quickly as you can without sacrificing your accuracy. If a question seems too difficult, go on to the next one, and then come back to it if time allows.  

Prometric Test Center Delivery

For those candidates approved by the State Bar of California to test at a Prometric Test Center, Prometric offers network of standardized computer-based test centers.  Testing at these locations is administered on Prometric provided computers using Prometric’s easy-to-use test taker interface.

Candidates must schedule an appointment for a specific location using the links on the left side of this page.  Availability is first come-first served.  Start time for the exam will be based on the scheduled appointment time.

On test day upon arrival at the test center, you will be greeted by a Prometric Test Center Administrator (TCA). During the check-in process candidates will be required to present valid, government issued identification, and store all personal items in provided lockers.  Applicants testing in person will also go through a security check prior to every entry into the test room. If you are wearing eyeglasses, you will be required to remove them for visual inspection to ensure they don’t contain a recording device. You might also be asked to remove any contents in your pockets. In addition, large jewelry items must be stored in your locker due to concerns over concealed recording devices. You must sign out each time you leave the test room. Onsite Prometric personnel will inform you what is permitted during scheduled or unscheduled breaks. Only Prometric provided note-taking materials will be permitted into the testing room, and these will be collected at the conclusion of testing.   

Our trained staff provide real-time test taker support and protect the integrity of the testing event with the support of automated tools built into the software. 

For more information on what to expect on test day, click here.

For more information on test center regulations, click here.

Exam Deadline Dates:  https://www.calbar.ca.gov/Admissions/Examinations/First-Year-Law-Students-Examination/Oct-2024-First-Year-Exam