Listen to your professor
Exam Preparation
Writing Exam Answers
General Advice

Disclaimer
These are general guidelines for exam taking. Resolve any conflict between advice I might give and your professors' advice in favor of your professors' instructions.

Listen to your professor
Law school exams differ in format from most exams you have taken. In law school you are typically given a complex fact pattern with the question at the end. Instead of writing everything you know about the course, which may be substantial, and which may have resulted in an excellent grade in college, your job on a law school exam is to:

1. identify the issues raised in the fact pattern;
2. decide which rules are relevant and set forth a statement of the rule or rules with exceptions as applicable;
3. discuss how the rule(s) should be applied to the facts in your exam question;
4. present arguments and counter arguments;
5. predict how the issue is likely to be resolved and show the reasoning you relied upon to support your conclusion.

There is no single correct way to answer a law essay question. If you demonstrate knowledge of the law and sound reasoning ability, you are on your way to a good grade.

The secret of doing well on law exams lies not only in what you know, but how you apply what you know. You get little credit for stating a legal conclusion--even a correct one. You must show how the facts give rise to the issue and why your conclusion results from the facts, law and policy.

Exam Preparation
For a fuller discussion on outlining course material, see Workshop #2 handout.

1. Outline the course. It is important that you prepare your own outline, rather than relying on one commercially prepared. Your outline will be tailored to your professor's view of the course. Furthermore, you are reviewing the material as you do the outline. The real value of an outline is in its creation.
2. Begin with the major topic headings (either from the casebook's Table of Contents or from the professor's syllabus). The major topic headings constitute a short, or "bare-bones" outline.
3. As you read the course material, develop the outline. Use your casebook, case briefs, class notes, and hornbook, if recommended by your professor, to fill in the outline.
   1. Each major heading will be a Roman numeral in your outline.
   2. Directly following the heading should be a general paragraph or two about the topic. The information will be synthesized from your casebook reading, hornbook and class notes.

      For each general topic, ask yourself:

      What is the section about?

      What set of problems are presented by the cases in this section?

      How were the problems resolved in the cases? How did the dissent differ from the majority opinion?

      What issues arise from these problems?

      What rules (and principles) can be applied to solve the problems?

      What policy purposes are served by the rules and/or principles? What were the societal conditions that required the rule be developed?

   3. Look for connections within each section and between sections.
   4. Continue each section of the outline:

      Majority rule with all its elements

      Statement of the Common Law

      Exceptions Policy (e.g., minority rule, Restatement, U.C.C.)

      Particular view of your professor

   A properly prepared outline is a valuable source of information to read and re-read in preparation for the exam.

   For each section of your outline read the case notes from the end of the chapter in your casebook. These questions are often focused, relate to cases, and present good hypothetical fact situations, not unlike exam questions.

   Your goal is to complete your outline with enough time to use the outline to answer practice exam questions.

   Review old exams given by your professor. You can access old exams on this site.

Writing Exam Answers
Good exam skills require that you:

• read the question meticulously
• organize a complex fact pattern
• properly allocate your time
• communicate the information in a clear, concise manner

Read the instructions carefully. If you are instructed to skip a line, or write on every other page, do so!

1. Scan the entire exam. See how many questions are on the exam, and note the suggested time allocation for each question. Time allocation signifies the grading weight of a question, unless otherwise indicated. Do not devote disproportionate time to the first answer.
2. Allocate the time for the first question, and write down the time you should be completing your first answer. Spend approximately one-quarter to one-third of the time allotted reading the question and organizing your answer.

Do not begin writing.

3. Read the first question, getting a sense of what is happening in the fact pattern. Pay particular attention to the call of a question, usually the last line or two. Typical questions are:
   • Describe the causes of actions that the parties have against each other and all relevant defenses.
   • What crimes have A, B and C committed, and what are their defenses?
   • You are a law clerk for the judge trying the case. Write a memo advising whether to grant defendant's motion.
   • Plaintiff has filed suit to challenge the constitutionality of the law. What constitutional issues does the case raise, and how would they be analyzed and decided by the court? Discuss fully.

   Do not write yet.

4. Read the question a second time. Force yourself to read somewhat slower than usual. Since you now know the call of the question, you know that all other parties and events are important only insofar as they bear on A, B and C. Focus on A, B and C and begin to make sense of the fact pattern. Understand who did what to whom.
5. Organize the complex fact hypothetical into separate transactions. If the hypothetical presents several events, each event is a separate transaction that presents a problem which must be resolved. These are your issues. As you isolate a transaction, check or underline or number the transaction. You will write about each transaction separately.
6. Question the question! Examination fact patterns are usually dense; every sentence, every word, may have significance. Why is that fact included? What is its significance?

   Dates: Why this date? If an examination question begins, "On January 28, 1999... " think about the significance of the date. Is there a Statute of Limitations problem?

   Relationships: Does the fact pattern include a husband and wife? Look for a marital relationship issue. Is one party's age mentioned? Look for an issue concerning infancy, or perhaps age discrimination. Every fact may mean something.

   Descriptive words: Every adverb and adjective has potential significance. Do the events take place at a particular time of day, and is that of some significance? Are weather conditions mentioned? If so, why? Some people find it useful to circle the descriptive words, dates, and relationships, but take care not to clutter your exam paper in a way that may be confusing to you.

   Be careful not to misread the facts, and do not argue with the facts. If you are told D is dead, accept that. Do not begin your answer with, if D is deceased then...but, if D is not really dead, then...

7. List each transaction to be discussed.
8. Begin with the first transaction. You need to think about the ways that exist to deal with this transaction. If you have prepared an outline for the course, and know it well, review the major topic headings of the outline in your mind. Mark down the legal theories that can be applied to resolve the issue presented by the first transaction.
9. Now begin to write.

   Answer the question asked.

   1. State the issue presented by the first transaction. Explain why it is an issue--how have the facts given rise to this issue?
   2. Set forth the legal rule (or rules) with all elements!! If there are conflicting interpretations of a rule, discuss both interpretations.
   3. Discuss the facts as they relate to each element.

      Apply the facts. Are the facts sufficient to establish each element of the rule? Which element(s) will be disputed? The disputed elements should be the main focus of your answer.

      Analysis. Interweave the elements of the rule(s) with key facts, applying appropriate legal principle and policy. Show which facts support or prevent application of the rule.

      Remember, it is crucial to apply the relevant law to the facts. Step by step, element by element. If there are two rules that might apply to your fact situation, include a policy analysis and offer reasons for why a court might choose one rule or approach over another.

   4. Come to a conclusion, but do not simply conclude. Explain why, based on the law and policy, and the application of your facts to the law, you have reached that conclusion. Show your reasoning.

   For each issue, discuss other views, if applicable. Restatement, U.C.C., Common Law, minority view, Model Penal Code, etc.

General Advice

• Use simple declarative sentences.

  Keep your sentences short, 15-20 words. You can confuse yourself, and your reader, with long, convoluted sentences.

  On your first reading of a hypothetical, certain issues will jump out at you. CAUTION: avoid the urge to begin writing as soon as you see the first issue on the first reading. You may spend too much time on it without going back to the rest of the problem to discuss all the issues. Approach each hypothetical in a systematic, methodical manner.

• Discuss every legal controversy you identify.

  Do not ignore issues because you think they are too obvious. In Torts, do not omit a discussion of defendant's duty to plaintiff because it seems so clear to you that you can't believe the professor wants you to belabor the obvious. The professor does want you to discuss all non-frivolous issues. You may dispose of the matter in a line or two, but let the reader know you recognize the issue.

• Be responsive.

  Show why your answer is responsive to the question. It is not enough to state your legal conclusion–"A" committed battery. You have to show why. What conduct amounted to battery, and why?

• Read the instructions carefully.

  Do not disregard them! If you are instructed to write on every other page, do so!

• Know your professors.

  Write for your professors. If they stress policy in class, you talk policy. If your professor uses certain terminology or phrases, you use them.

  If your professor spent weeks on a topic and you do not see it on the exam, look for it. It is likely to be there.

  Know the kind of exams your professor usually gives. Make copies of exams on file; one to work from as you study, one to write in a simulated exam setting near the end of your study time for that course. Trying to write the answer to an exam question too early in the process can be a very anxiety-provoking experience. You are not ready to tackle the entire question. Only work through those parts of the problem, which refer to the portion of the course material you have already studied.

• State your assumptions.

  Make your assumptions explicit, then write based on your assumption. If, in an action for defamation, there is nothing to indicate damages, state "it is assumed that plaintiff can show that defendant's communication caused P economic damage". You are telling your professor that you know that pecuniary loss is an essential element to a successful cause of action for defamation.

• Follow through on the answers.

  Decide each issue in a manner, which allows for consideration of the next issue. Even if you decide there was no offer, do not end your discussion. Professors want you to deal with all contingencies.

• Do not recite facts.

  Use facts to argue in favor of or against your conclusions. A verbatim recitation of the facts is a waste of time. What you need to do is apply the pertinent facts to the rules of law.

• Take a position when asked to. Assume the role assigned in the question.

  Leave time to edit. Try to reread your answer. Occasionally, a student will transpose parties, saying P when he/she meant D, and attribute actions, duty, and liability to the wrong party. On a reread you can catch it and make necessary changes. If you have written on every other line, unless you have been instructed otherwise, you can add anything you left out.

Good luck!