Format, Content, & Grading of the Kentucky Bar Exam

All data provided below are subject to change by a decision at any time by the Kentucky Office of Bar Admissions.  When any changes are made, they will be posted on this site.

The Kentucky Bar Exam is a two-day exam -- Tuesday and Wednesday -- with the essay questions on Tuesday and the multiple-choice Multistate Bar Exam on Wednesday.

First Day (Tuesday):  
Six Kentucky Essay Questions
Six Multistate Essay Exam (MEE) questions
For details on the MEE, click here.

Second Day (Wednesday) morning session: 
Three hours 
Multistate Bar Examination (MBE)
100 Multiple-Choice questions.

Second Day (Wednesday) afternoon session: 
Three hours
Multistate Bar Examination (MBE) 
100 Multiple-Choice questions.

Kentucky will accept an MBE scaled score of 132 or higher received within the prior three years.

For further details on the MBE, click here.


Subjects Tested on the Kentucky Bar Exam:

MBE Subjects
Constitutional Law
Contracts/Sales
Criminal Law/Procedure
Evidence
Real Property
Torts

MEE/Kentucky Subjects
Administrative Law & Procedure
Agency
Conflict of Laws
Corporations
Domestic Relations
Federal Taxation
Kentucky & Federal Civil Procedure
Partnerships
Personal Property
UCC
Wills & Trusts, and Future Interests
Plus the six MBE subjects

Grading of the Kentucky Bar Exam:

To pass the Kentucky Bar Exam, you need a scaled score of 132 on the Multistate Bar Exam and 75% of the possible points on the Essay portion. 

Kentucky generally releases the results of the Summer exam in mid-October and the results of the Winter exam in mid-April.

Candidates

Passing

Failing

Pass Rate

July 2003

388

278

109

72%

July 2002

323

253

70

78%

July 2001

357

284

73

80%

July 2000

365

288

77

79%

February 2003

176

112

64

64%

February 2002

157

113

44

72%

February 2001

168

124

44

74%

February 2000

191

146

45

76%

Admission on Motion 
(i.e., without having to sit for the bar exam)

1. You must be a graduate of an ABA-accredited law school.

2. You must be admitted to the bar of another jurisdiction and must have practiced law for at least five of the prior seven years.

3. The other jurisdiction must have a similar policy by which Kentucky attorneys can be admitted without taking that jurisdiction's bar exam.

4. You must score at least a scaled 75 on the MPRE prior to your Kentucky admission.

For further information, contact:

Kentucky Office of Bar Admissions
1510 Newtown Pike
Lexington, KY 40511
Telephone: 859-246-2381

Exam Dates:

Winter 2007
Tuesday and Wednesday, 
February 27 and 28, 2007

Summer 2007
Tuesday and Wednesday, 
July 24 and 25, 2007


Filing Deadlines and Fees

Filing deadlines and fees are subject to change.  Contact the Kentucky Office of Bar Admissions to learn the rules in effect at the time of your application.