Tips for Writing Law School Exams

Are you a first year law student and overwhelmed by the thought of writing your first three hour (or more) law school exam? Are you a second or third year law student who would like to improve his or her exam skills? I have listed below some online and print resources that may help you. If you are short on time, I also have suggested the most useful pages within those resources.

1. A Really Short Read: American Bar Association, How to Survive the First Year of Law School, pages 14-16. Click Here.

2. Another Really Short Read: Carolyn Nygren, Confronting Your Final Exam - Torts. Click Here.

3. Best Instruction and Practice, and well worth your time: William R. Andersen, Writing the Better Law School Exams: The Importance of Structure. Skip to page 21 and look at pages 21-60 - 4 Essentials, pages 61-92 - expanding the 4 Essentials and Examples, and pages 93-98- 3 Practice Problems. You can write your answers to the practice problems online and compare them to the sample answer. Click Here.

This is a CALI Lesson. If you have forgotten how to log in to CALI, or have lost your card, please see us at the circulation/reference desk of the McKusick Law Library for assistance.

4. These books are found on the "New Books" shelf to the right of the main floor entrance to the McKusick Law Library. See our Blog Post for Friday, October 26th.

My choice for the best examples and exercises: Ruta K. Stropus & Charlotte D. Taylor, Bridging the Gap Between College and Law School: Strategies for Success, pages 101-140.

Tracey E. George & Suzanna Sherry, What Every Law Student Really Needs to Know: An Introduction to the Study of Law, pages 143, 145-147.

Shana Connell Noyes & Henry S. Noyes, Acing Your First Year of Law School: The Ten Steps to Success You Won't Learn in Class, pages 115-137.

Michael Hunter Schwartz, Expert Learning for Law Students, pages 243-250.

Good luck on your exams!

(This entry was originally written and posted by Marsha Stacey)