Format, Content, & Grading of the Texas Bar Exam

All data provided below are subject to change by a decision at any time by the Texas Board of Law Examiners.  When any changes are made, they will be posted on this site.

The Texas Bar Exam is a three-day exam -- Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday -- with the essays and performance questions on Tuesday and Thursday and the multiple-choice Multistate Bar Exam on Wednesday.

Note: In Texas, a law student may take the Texas bar exam before graduation, but only if he or she is within four semester hours or five quarter hours of completing all of his or her law school  requirements.

First Day (Tuesday):  
A 90-minute Procedure/Evidence exam
One Multistate Performance Test (MPT)

For details on the MPT, click here.

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

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

Texas requires that you sit for the MBE as part of the Texas bar exam. Texas does NOT accept your score from an MBE taken in another jurisdiction.

For further details on the MBE, click here.

Third Day (Thursday):  
12 Texas Essay Questions

Subjects Tested on Day One 
(Short Answer/Objective Subjects):

Criminal Procedure
Evidence
Civil Procedure (including federal and state court jurisdiction, pleading and practice)

Subjects Tested on Day Three:
Bankruptcy*
Business Associations (Agency, Corporations, Partnerships, Limited Liability Companies, Professional Associations) 
Consumer Rights
Family Law
Real Property (including Oil & Gas), 
Taxation (Income, Estate, Gift)*
Trusts & Guardianships
UCC
Wills & Estate Administration

*cross-over topics

Grading of the Texas Bar Exam:

Your score on the MBE counts for 40% of your total score.  
Your performance on the essay portion also counts for 40%.
The Day One Procedure/Evidence exam counts 10%.
And the MPT counts 10%.

To pass, you must score at least 675 scaled points out of a possible 1,000 points. 

For a full explanation of the grading of the TBE, click here.

Texas generally releases the results of the Summer exam in early November and the results of the Winter exam in early May.

Texas 
Law School

Baylor 

100

94

94.00

95.12

91.35

St. Mary's 

178

110

61.80

69.57

58.58

South Texas 

239

174

72.80

84.07

81.61

SMU -- Dedman 

205

185

90.24

86.98

83.67

TSU -- Marshall

112

52

46.43

46.07

51.90

Texas Tech

134

113

84.33

89.10

86.57

Texas Wesleyan

94

77

81.91

85.71

65.85

Univ. of Houston

216

193

89.35

92.70

90.43

Univ. of Texas

317

293

92.43

94.83

93.87

Overall

1,595

1,291

80.94

85.45

81.74

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. You must have a valid, active license from the other jurisdiction and have been a member in good standing in that jurisdiction at all times since your admission.

For details, click here.

For further information, contact:

Texas Board of Law Examiners
P.O. Box 13486
Austin, TX 78711-3486
Telephone: 512- 463-1621
Fax: 512-463-5300

Exam Dates:

Winter 2007
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday
February 27, 28, March 1, 2007

Summer 2007
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, 
July 24, 25 & 26, 2007


Future Dates: 
February 26, 27 & 28, 2008
July 29, 30 & 31, 2008

Filing Deadlines and Fees

Law students attending law school in Texas must file a Declaration of Intent to Study Law.

Application fees are payable to the Texas Board of Law Examiners.

Filing deadlines and fees are subject to change.  Contact the Texas Board of Law Examiners to learn the rules in effect at the time of your application.