Bar Graders Have No Sense of Humor—And That's a Good Thing

Let’s be clear: the people grading your bar exam essays are not looking to be entertained.

They’re not flipping pages hoping for a zinger. They’re not scanning your MPT to find clever asides, charming metaphors, or cheeky sign-offs.

They’re looking for one thing: whether you know the law, can apply it, and can communicate that analysis clearly and professionally. That’s it.

And here’s the tough love truth: most attempts at humor on the bar exam don’t land. At best, they fall flat. At worst, they infuriate the person grading your response. You don’t want to be remembered for that.

Let’s look at a few ways examinees unintentionally tap into grader frustration—and how to avoid it.

Photo by Murtaza Hamid on Unsplash

1️⃣ The Wrong Recipient

In one recent MPT submission, a student identified themselves as "some random law clerk" in an objective memo to the supervising attorney.

Yes, seriously. The Task Memo clearly referred to the examinee as "Applicant." Whether the student overlooked the instruction or was attempting to be funny, clever, or cute is unclear. But either way, straying from the assigned role and tone was a mistake.

The grader (me) didn’t find it amusing. I saw it as a failure to follow directions. Remember: The MPT tests more than writing—it tests your ability to read carefully, follow instructions, and present yourself as a professional.

2️⃣ Misplaced Humor in Serious Situations

Here’s an actual opening line from a bar essay on a homicide question:

"Well, this is going to be a killer question."

Simply, no.

When you’re analyzing whether a defendant had the requisite malice aforethought, you shouldn’t be punning. It’s not witty. It’s wildly inappropriate.

Imagine telling a client their future rests on your ability to turn murder into a punchline. That's not zealous representation—it's self-sabotage.

3️⃣ The “Funny” Aside That Isn’t

Examinees sometimes include asides that they think make the response more “human” or “relatable.” Examples include:

✍🏼 “I’m pretty sure this rule came up in class, but I didn’t pay attention.”

✍🏼 “Insert rule here?”

✍🏼 “Honestly, I don’t know what the rule is, but here’s my best guess …”

These aren’t endearing. They’re red flags. On the bar exam, you're not writing to your friend or professor—you’re writing to a stranger who is paid (or, in some jurisdictions, not paid) to assess your readiness to practice law.

Every “funny” aside signals a lack of preparation or professionalism, and even if you think it’s a wink, it reads more like a wave goodbye to passing.

4️⃣ The Cute Conclusion

Some examinees try to wrap up their responses with flair, like:

✍🏼 “And that’s the tea on torts.”

✍🏼 “Another one bites the dust—next question please.”

✍🏼 “Case closed (I hope)!”

Again: No.

Even if you’ve written a decent response, closing with this kind of tone detracts from the credibility of everything that came before. Your conclusion should confirm your analysis—not distract from it with unnecessary fluff.

Why Graders Aren’t Laughing (and Shouldn’t Be)

Graders aren't laughing because they’re humorless robots. Rather, it's because they’re doing a professional, high-stakes evaluation of your readiness to practice law.

Your bar exam essays are legal writing samples. They are your opportunity to prove that you can follow instructions, think analytically, and write like a lawyer. That means clarity, precision, and yes—professionalism.

It doesn’t mean sterile writing. It doesn’t mean boring. But it does mean serious.

Even the Bar Examiners Warn Against It

And it's not just me. The Tennessee Board of Law Examiners literally included the following in its "Suggestions for Answering Essay Questions":

"12. Avoid asides - cute comments, excuses and similar matters that are not responsive to the question. Telling the examiner that you will research the subject or consult with an experienced lawyer will not help your grade."

In short, you don’t want to give the grader a reason to stop reading carefully.

Once you’ve broken the professional tone, it’s hard to earn back the grader’s full attention. Their job is to score fairly, but they are human—and when a student writes “IDK the rule lol,” it’s hard not to let that affect your impression.

Keep it clean. Keep it serious. Save the jokes for your celebration dinner after you pass.