Case Studies | Page 6 of 11 | Make This Your Last Time

February 16, 2024February 16, 2024 - No Comments

24-year-old Foreign LLM Student Passes CA Bar Exam on Second Try

Camille passed the California Bar Exam on her second try as a foreign-trained LLM student.

Like the other passers, she did it her way, despite being foreign-trained, having no idea how the U.S. legal system worked, and studying from scratch with a full-time job on the line.

There are many ways you can pass the exam. You are the dean of your own studies, and pass rates have no bearing on your own chance of success.

February 9, 2024February 9, 2024 - 2 Comments

Repeater Passes CA Bar Exam After She Ditched Barbri and Stopped “Trusting the Process”

“S” (who wanted her name private) passed the 2023 February California Bar Exam.

What else is new? No, I’m not tired of seeing my readers pass tough exams yet.

This featured passer:

Passed an exam with a 32.5% pass rate
(Makes for a good headline but do pass rates really matter? See point 5 below)
Not a fan of her big bar prep company
Studied while working
Was an MTYLT reader (of course)

(Like this other 2023 Feb passer)

I love her story because it has several parallels to my own experience as a second-time passer. Both of us made the same classic mistakes that first-timers make.

Do you recognize them in your own preparation?

February 2, 2024March 23, 2025 - 1 Comment

Turkish Attorney Passes California Bar Exam as a Retaker

Ceren passed the 2023 July California Bar Exam on her second try after giving up midway on her first try.

💬 “I’m a foreign, civil law qualified lawyer (Turkey, licensed in 2007) and I took the CA bar twice – February and July 2023. I found out I passed in November, which was an amazing feeling!“

It had been over 15 years since the last time she sat for a licensing exam!

Here’s how she approached bar prep as a foreign-trained lawyer on her first try and how she did it on her second successful try.

January 19, 2024January 23, 2024 - 1 Comment

Pass the Bar Exam Using the Right Tools and Approach for You

John passed the 2023 July California Bar Exam on his first try after deciding that his bar review course wasn’t working for him.

I know. Yet another success story about someone who ditched the traditional route. Might as well pack up and go home.

But leaving the bar course behind isn’t just for repeaters. And messages like this often take multiple repeats to click in your head. Kind of like memorizing the law.

Well, let’s see how John did it. I’ve parsed out 5 teaching points from studying his success story and the multiple updates he sent me before and after the exam.

January 12, 2024January 21, 2025 - 1 Comment

How a Busy Big Law Partner Passed the Bar Exam

A big law firm partner passed the 2023 July California Bar Exam while juggling a busy practice and a family life with children and a spouse.

“C” had no prior knowledge of California law, and it had been 20 years since C’s last bar exam.

💬 “I am an equity partner at ___ who took and passed the July 2023 Attorneys’ Exam in California … almost 20 years after I last took a bar exam. As a partner with a busy practice, kids, and spouse; with no real ability to take time off before the exam; and who did not go to law school in California and knew no CA law, studying for the bar was about the last thing I wanted to add to my schedule.”

Sure, you could say, “It’s because C literally works at the #1 law firm (according to Law360) and knows what they’re talking about!”

I get it because the mentor my law school issued to me was top 5 in his class and his overwhelming academic talent was wasted on me, the bottom 11%er.

But I still think you should listen to C’s advice. And not just because it parallels mine (you can question my grades, but you can’t argue with my readers’ results).