Applying To Take The Maryland Out-of-State Lawyers Bar Exam

The last time I sat for a bar exam – in Virginia in 2010, after taking the Pennsylvania exam in 2006 – I swore to myself that I would never, ever do it again. Filling out the application for the character evaluation was bad enough. Learning umpteen new subjects in which I had no interest and then sitting for two days in my suit-and-tie in Norfolk was even worse.

That was then. This is now. With my wife and me considering a move to Baltimore next year after our last child leaves home for college, I am now filling out yet another application – this time to sit for the Maryland Out-of-State Lawyers Bar Exam in February.

As I understand it, the exam is actually not all that bad, at least as these things go. It is three-hours long, as opposed to two or three days, and it is open book. Some people have told me they passed the bar after just a couple hours of preparation, with most of the time spent indexing the source materials for easy reference. Someone else told me she hired a tutor. I myself plan to index the source materials and then spend a day or two going through the old exams and model answers that are posted on the Maryland State Board of Bar Examiners website.

If the time I have allotted for preparation does not turn out to be enough, you can be sure that you will not read about that here. In fact, should I ultimately fail the exam, one of the very first things I will do is to come back here and delete this entry. Because, after all, who needs the humiliation?

More like this:

Passing the Maryland Out-of-State Attorneys’ Bar Exam

Preparing for the Virginia Bar Examination

The Virginia Bar Exam:  How Much Studying is Enough?

Surviving the Virginia Bar Exam:  Reflections After Day One