[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-seo-320125-105":3,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":81,"doc-detail-320125-en":131},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"ok",{"site_id":7,"language":8,"slug":9,"title":10,"keywords":11,"description":12,"schema_data":13,"social_meta":74,"head_meta":76,"extra_data":78,"updated_unix":80},105,"en","crossing-the-bar-the-column-of-the-legal-education-committee-the-bar-exam-and-law-schools","CROSSING THE BAR - THE COLUMN OF THE LEGAL EDUCATION COMMITTEE - THE BAR EXAM AND LAW SCHOOLS","","“Crossing the Bar” discusses how bar examinations affect legal education in Michigan, focusing on course selection and course content. It explains that, although student course choices sometimes track subjects tested on the bar exam, the American Bar Association limits schools from requiring or crediting bar-preparation courses. The article analyzes Michigan’s 1998 expansion of tested subjects, reports that many instructors treat bar-tested material as secondary, and concludes that the bar exam exerts only marginal influence on what is taught, at least in property law.",{"@graph":14,"@context":73},[15,34,56],{"@type":16,"itemListElement":17},"BreadcrumbList",[18,23,27,31],{"item":19,"name":20,"@type":21,"position":22},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",1,{"item":24,"name":25,"@type":21,"position":26},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":28,"name":29,"@type":21,"position":30},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/","Research & Report",3,{"item":32,"name":10,"@type":21,"position":33},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/crossing-the-bar-the-column-of-the-legal-education-committee-the-bar-exam-and-law-schools/320125/",4,{"url":32,"name":10,"@type":35,"image":36,"author":41,"headline":10,"publisher":44,"fileFormat":47,"inLanguage":8,"description":12,"dateModified":48,"datePublished":49,"encodingFormat":47,"isAccessibleForFree":50,"interactionStatistic":51},"DigitalDocument",{"url":37,"@type":38,"width":39,"height":40},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/crossing-the-bar-the-column-of-the-legal-education-committee-the-bar-exam-and-law-schools/320125.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":42,"@type":43},"Clementine","Person",{"url":19,"name":45,"@type":46},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-23","2026-09-21",true,{"@type":52,"interactionType":53,"userInteractionCount":55},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":54},"ViewAction",15,{"@type":57,"mainEntity":58},"FAQPage",[59,65,69],{"name":60,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":62},"Why does the American Bar Association restrict law schools from bar-prep courses?","Question",{"text":63,"@type":64},"Under Standard 302(f), the ABA prohibits accredited law schools from requiring bar preparation courses or offering them for credit. The intent is to separate professional training from licensing exam preparation.","Answer",{"name":66,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":67},"How did Michigan change its bar exam subjects in 1998?",{"text":68,"@type":64},"In 1998, the Michigan Supreme Court added domestic relations, conflict of laws, “no-fault,” and worker’s compensation to the bar exam. The article notes that before this change, relatively few students enrolled in related courses.",{"name":70,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":71},"To what extent does the bar exam influence course content in Michigan property law?",{"text":72,"@type":64},"The article reports that the influence appears marginal. Even when instructors cover bar-tested topics, bar exam material is often treated as secondary, with other courses such as real estate finance or secured transactions taking priority.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":32,"og:type":75,"og:title":10,"og:site_name":45,"og:description":12},"article",{"robots":77,"canonical":32},"index,follow",{"doc_id":79,"site_id":7},320125,1790160101,{"code":4,"msg":82,"data":83},"success",[84,88,92,96,101,106,111,115,120,123,127],{"id":22,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":85,"show_sort_weight":86,"slug":87},"Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":26,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":89,"show_sort_weight":90,"slug":91},"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":33,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":93,"show_sort_weight":94,"slug":95},"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":97,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":98,"show_sort_weight":99,"slug":100},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":102,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":103,"show_sort_weight":104,"slug":105},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":107,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":108,"show_sort_weight":109,"slug":110},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":112,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":29,"show_sort_weight":113,"slug":114},8,30,"research-report",{"id":116,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":117,"show_sort_weight":118,"slug":119},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":118,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":121,"show_sort_weight":118,"slug":122},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":124,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":125,"show_sort_weight":124,"slug":126},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":128,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":129,"show_sort_weight":97,"slug":130},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":82,"data":132},{"doc_id":79,"user_id":133,"nickname":42,"user_avatar":134,"doc_module":4,"category_id":112,"category_name":29,"doc_title":10,"doc_description":12,"doc_content":135,"file_id":136,"file_url":137,"file_type":138,"file_size":139,"view_count":55,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":22,"is_downloadable":22,"audit_status":22,"page_count":26,"language":140,"language_code":8,"site_id":7,"html_lang":8,"table_of_contents":141,"faqs":142,"seo_title":143,"seo_description":12,"update_tm":144,"read_time":97,"preview_page_count":4},1374391974564,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/avatar/14000253aa45c000a9e?x-image-process=image/resize,m_fixed,w_180,h_180&k=1779874745381141002","M I C H I G A N B A R J O U R N A L ♦ F E B R U A R Y 2 0 0 1 C R O S S I N G T H E B A R  \nCROSSING THE BAR  \nTHE COLUMN OF THE LEGAL EDUCATION COMMITTEE  \nTHE BAR EXAM  \nAND LAW SCHOOLS  \nThough students tend to pick courses that reflect bar exam subjects, the exam has only a marginal effect on course content.  \nBy Byron D. Cooper  \not long after bar examinations were adopted in most states to  \nNimproveadmittedttepquaractliye, oflawlaswycheorosl  \naccreditation standards were raised to eliminate bar cram schools. However successful bar cram schools were in preparing students for bar exams, they were thought to provide inadequate preparation for the practiceoflaw.  \nThe result strikes the uninformed as odd: a scheme of required professional training that is not expected to prepare the students for the required professional licensing examination. In fact, under Standard 302(f) for approval of law schools, the American Bar Association prohibits accredited law schools from requiring bar preparation courses or offering them for credit. For the most part, the only lingering remnants of the bar cram schools are the commercial bar review courses taken by most students preparing forabar exam.  \nMost states require both graduation from an accredited law school and success on a bar exam for admission to the bar. In those states, the bar exam alone is not expected to insure that lawyers are competent. Nevertheless, it is sometimes seen as a mechanism by which the bar can influence the content of legal education. Whether this has in fact happened in Michigan requires a consideration of several issues, including student course selection, course content, and the extent to which the rules and doctrines tested on specific bar exams are or can be taught in law school courses.  \nCourse Selection  \nMichigan provides almost a laboratory test for the extent to which student course  \nselection is affected by subjects tested on the bar exam. In 1998, the Michigan Supreme Court added four new subjects to the bar exam: domestic relations, conflict of laws,‘‘no-fault,’’ and worker’s compensation. Before this change, relatively few law students enrolled in courses in no-fault automobile insurance or worker’s compensation. In no school in Michigan were these courses required.  \nThe staff comment justifying the addition of these topics indicated that the changes‘‘would place Michigan in accordance with the majority of jurisdictions in the United States.’’ 1 In fact, only three other states test worker’s compensation, and only one other state tests no-fault automobile insurance.  \nIn the wake of the addition of ‘‘no-fault’’and worker’s compensation to the bar exam, some schools in Michigan have seen substantial increases in the numbers of students enrolling in no-fault automobile insurance and worker’s comp courses. Growing student demand has led some schools to offer these courses more frequently.  \nJustice Patricia Boyle, objecting to theaddition of these two subjects to the bar exam, commented that she ‘‘was not persuaded that adding these two subjects to a law school’s curriculum will elevate either the analytical abilities of law students or their practical skills.’’ It is regrettable that many students who could be taking advanced or specialized courses feel obliged to study narrow, heavily statutory subjects solely because of the bar exam.  \n72  \nAll columns are the opinion of the writer and do not represent the position of the Legal Education Committee.  \nNevertheless, it appears that bar exam topics influence a substantial number of students in their choice of course electives, at least among those who intend to take the Michigan bar exam.  \nCourse Content  \nTo what extent does the bar examination influence course content in the areas tested on the bar exam? I undertook an informal survey of instructorsin Michigan law schools who teach property law, the only bar subject in which I am familiar with the content of casebooks currently being publish","cbCaiajD5XOLaBcP","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaiajD5XOLaBcP","pdf",22327,"English","# Course Selection\n## Addition of tested subjects in 1998\n## Student enrollment and curricular effects\n# Course Content\n## Property questions and casebook coverage\n## Instructor practices and marginal influence\n# Specific Rules","[{\"question\":\"Why does the American Bar Association restrict law schools from bar-prep courses?\",\"answer\":\"Under Standard 302(f), the ABA prohibits accredited law schools from requiring bar preparation courses or offering them for credit. The intent is to separate professional training from licensing exam preparation.\"},{\"question\":\"How did Michigan change its bar exam subjects in 1998?\",\"answer\":\"In 1998, the Michigan Supreme Court added domestic relations, conflict of laws, “no-fault,” and worker’s compensation to the bar exam. The article notes that before this change, relatively few students enrolled in related courses.\"},{\"question\":\"To what extent does the bar exam influence course content in Michigan property law?\",\"answer\":\"The article reports that the influence appears marginal. Even when instructors cover bar-tested topics, bar exam material is often treated as secondary, with other courses such as real estate finance or secured transactions taking priority.\"}]","CROSSING THE BAR - THE COLUMN OF THE LEGAL EDUCATION COMMITTEE - THE BAR EXAM AND LAW SCHOOLS | PDF",1789949244]