Information about The First-Year Law Students' Exam

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

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.  

Online Exam—Live, Remote Proctoring

Prometric offers an innovative, secure testing remote assessment platform, ProProctor™.  This solution is built to ensure a consistent experience for all testing candidates.  Prometric has developed a proprietary, easy-to-use test taker interface that allows a test taker to schedule an appointment, confirm computer compatibility, and launch the exam.  Once you have scheduled your appointment with Prometric, you will need to download and install the ProProctor™ application on your computer.  You will then have the ability to complete a system readiness check to ensure that your computer is ready to run the application on test day.  On test day, an easy-to-follow check-in process will guide you through the final preparations to take your exam before you are greeted by a Prometric Readiness Agent.  During the two-way video conversation with the Readiness Agent, they will confirm your identity, ask you to perform a 360-degree scan of your testing environment including the desk area, under the desk area, the corners of your room and a search of items on your person and in your pockets.  After completing this process, you will be ready to take your online remotely proctored exam.  Your proctor will monitor you live throughout the testing process using your computer’s webcam and microphone.  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. 

To confirm that your computer and network will allow testing through ProProctor^TM, click here.

To review the ProProctor User Guide to see more detailed information regarding system and environmental requirements, click here.

Before starting any exam:

• Ensure you are connected to internet and your laptop is plugged into the power and your battery is fully charged in case of power failure.
• Ensure there is no one else in the room.
• Do not use any Bluetooth items.
• Remove all textbooks, notes, or other materials from your workspace.
• Turn off your cell phone, music, TV.
• Use the bathroom before your test, as you will not be able to leave the view of the webcam during the exam, except for during the scheduled break time.

To avoid a possible violation, be sure to follow these best practices:

• Ensure that you have privacy for the entire exam - do not interact with other people or receive any outside assistance.
• Remain focused on the exam, without looking at prohibited items such as phone, textbooks, or notes.
• Do not read exam questions out loud.
• Do not use your mobile phone or any electronic device at any time.
• Do not get up from your computer for any reason until your exam is complete, except for during the scheduled break time.

You will not be allowed any physical scratch paper during the exam. You can use the "scratchpad" in the Toolbar at the top right of the screen for note taking.

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

Schedule Your Exam

Once approved to sit for the exam, you will be allowed to schedule your exam to be taken through a remotely proctored internet enabled location of your choice where you must provide a computer with a camera, microphone, and an internet connection. 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. 

To Schedule a Remotely Proctored Exam

Confirm your computer’s compatibility to allow remote proctoring first. Remote exams are offered using Prometric’s ProProctor^TM application online.

Applicants with extenuating circumstances and testing accommodations for which the exam cannot be administered remotely will be sent the process for scheduling an in-person exam. Start time for the exam will be based on the scheduled appointment time.

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