ProfessorTommy.Tips

Happy National Donut Day! Before anyone emails me: Yes, I realize that a "donut" and a "do not" are two completely different things. But if you've spent any amount of time reading ProfessorTommy.tips, you know there was no chance I was letting a perfectly good pun go to waste. Today, people across the country will celebrate with glazed donuts, chocolate donuts, powdered donuts, jelly-filled donuts, and perhaps even a dozen donuts. Since donuts are traditionally sold by the do

One of the most overlooked aspects of bar preparation is learning how to take the exam in the format in which it will actually be administered. Many students spend hundreds of hours learning substantive law and completing practice questions, but very little time becoming comfortable with the testing environment itself. Yet familiarity with the testing platform and testing procedures can reduce anxiety, prevent avoidable mistakes, and improve efficiency on exam day. The specif

The NBA Western Conference Finals have delivered plenty of drama. After San Antonio's convincing Game 6 victory over Oklahoma City last night, the series is headed to a winner-take-all Game 7 on Saturday. One of the biggest storylines continues to be Oklahoma City star and two-time reigning NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who has once again found himself at the center of the "free throw merchant" debate. If you've spent any time on NBA social media, you've probably heard the

I have always had an appreciation for spelling bees. Part of that comes from personal experience. Years ago, I competed in a spelling bee, and my run ended on the word pneumatography. I can still remember standing there on stage trying to work through the spelling and realizing that I had missed it as I was still saying the letters. And at that moment, my spelling bee journey ended. Picture of me during a middle school spelling bee competition in 1987 (The Dallas Morning News

From ABA Law Student Division's Student Lawyer, April 24, 2026: Every year on May 4, fans celebrate Star Wars Day with the familiar phrase, “May the Fourth be with You.” For me, this is more than just a clever pun. I have been a long-time Star Wars fan, and I have found ways to bring that enthusiasm into my teaching. Across the prequels, originals, sequels, and standalone films, Star Wars offers a series of lessons that translate surprisingly well to bar preparation. Each qu

If you’ve taken one of my classes, you might have seen this comment on your essays: You did a good job of following IRAC, but it's recommended that you don't label the components of each IRAC section. That advice tends to catch students off guard. After all, IRAC is what you’ve been taught from the beginning. So why stop labeling it now? Because at this stage, labeling IRAC does more harm than good. Years ago, I heard a bar exam grader describe a labeled IRAC response like th

This photo popped up in my Timehop memories recently. Nine years ago, a former student took a picture of me during class and added devil horns and a tail. With all the early buzz around The Devil Wears Prada 2, which is scheduled to be released in U.S. theaters on May 1, the timing feels about right to turn this photo into a blog post! Apparently, not only does the devil wear Prada, the devil teaches bar prep, too. At the time, I laughed. Looking back, I still laugh at the ph

At London Marathon yesterday, one of the world’s most prestigious long-distance races, Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe delivered a historic performance, becoming the first person to run an official marathon under two hours. He crossed the finish line in 1:59:30, breaking the previous world record by more than a minute. He wasn’t alone. Ethiopia’s Yomif Kejelcha also broke the two-hour barrier in 1:59:41, and Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo finished third in 2:00:28. All three podium finishers

If you’ve followed my blog, you know I like to use food as a way to make bar prep stick. On National Spaghetti Day , I wrote about avoiding the “spaghetti-on-the-wall” approach and untangling messy essays. Today, on National Pretzel Day , we’re dealing with a different problem—but one that’s just as common. Not messy. Not scattered. But twisted. Source: www.auntieannes.com Pretzels are known for their loops, knots, and turns. And if you’re not careful, your bar exam essay can

If you’ve spent any time studying Evidence, you’ve probably internalized one core principle: Everything starts with relevance. Relevance under the Federal Rules of Evidence is intentionally broad: Rule 401: Evidence is relevant if it has any tendency to make a fact more or less probable and that fact is of consequence. Rule 402: Relevant evidence is admissible unless a rule excludes it. Irrelevant evidence is not admissible. Rule 403: Even relevant evidence can be excluded if