New York is Switching to the UBE (Uniform Bar Exam) for July 2016

New York is switching to the UBE for July 2016.  This is pretty big news for anyone planning to take the NY bar exam.

As stated on the NY Bole website, the New York Court of Appeals has adopted the recommendation of the Advisory Committee on the Uniform Bar Examination (UBE) that New York adopt the UBE effective July 2016. The Advisory Committee also recommended, and the Court of Appeals adopted, a requirement that applicants for admission in New York be required to complete an online course on New York law and take and pass an online examination on New York law, as a requirement for 

admission.

The New York bar exam has been considered one of the toughest exams in the nation.   In February, the pass rate for first time takers was 56%.  For all takers, the pass rate was 43%.   In addition, foreign educated lawyers with LLMs are qualified to take the NY bar exam and they take the exam in significant numbers.  Unfortunately,  the foreign educated lawyers have failed in large numbers.   For the February 2015, the foreign educated lawyers only passed at a 29% for first time takers and 26% for repeat takers.

But effective in one year, students taking the New York bar exam will take the MBE, 6 MEE essays and 2 MPT performance tests.

Will that affect the pass rate for all takers?  Will the foreign educated lawyers pass at larger numbers with the UBE?

Another question to be asked, is with the issue of reciprocity.  Will New York allow someone sitting in another UBE state to ask for reciprocity in New York.  As of now,   15 states take the UBE. 

And finally, with New York being the first big state to change their bar exam in favor of the UBE, will other states follow?  Will all states begin to adopt a uniform bar exam (whether it is the UBE or MEE)?  Presumably, that is the  NCBE’s goal – for a lawyer to take only one exam and be able to practice in all states. Or is the NCBE in it for the money they can make?

In addition to changing to the UBE, New York will add an additional state component:

The same 50 multiple choice state-specific NY questions would remain as a 1-hour test to be given concurrently with the UBE. The good news is that they are proposing to also offer just the 50 NY questions in December and Early Spring for those who pass the UBE but fail the NY section.

The MBE Testing Instituteknows that taking the bar exam as a repeat taker can be an isolating experience. The MBE Testing Institute  helps the student keep motivated and confident through interaction with the bar tutor.

An MBE Tutor is important to the repeat taker.  The MBE Testing Institute can help you overcome the difficulty of the MBE test and help you to a successful score.

If you need help passing the MBE, contact the MBE Testing Institute at pass@mbetestinginstitute.com for more information.