"Barbenheimer" and Subject Combinations on the MEE
Summer movie season is in full swing, with the seventh installment of Tom Cruise's “Mission: Impossible” franchise being released this week. And let's not forget what's already out in theaters, like "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny," "Elemental," and "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse." It's okay if you've forgotten the "The Flash"!
The release of potential summer blockbusters are continuing next week, too, with the anticipated same-day releases of "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer." (As a side note, does anyone else read "Barbie" as "BARBRI"? Even my autocorrect is a bit confused.)
Both "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer" will be released on July 21, creating a back-to-back combination of two polar-opposite films. "Barbie" is the first live-action movie based on the fashion dolls by Mattel. It stars Margot Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken. "Oppenheimer" is about Robert Oppenheimer, who was integral to the development of the atomic bomb.
The combination of the two movies being released on the same day has created the term "Barbenheimer," which Tom Cruise helped make viral.
"I love a double feature, and it doesn’t get more explosive (or more pink) than one with Oppenheimer and Barbie,” Cruise tweeted in late June.
Speaking of combos, the MEE portion of the bar exam may test a combination of multiple subjects in a single question. It’s rare—but it happens—and you should make sure you don’t go into an essay question with such narrow vision where you fail to identify issues that might be beyond the main subject at play. (Other jurisdictions, however, like Georgia, do combine multiple subjects into a single essay question.)
There are some natural and predictable combinations of subjects on the MEE, like Agency and Partnership, or Criminal Procedure and Conflict of Laws, or Constitutional Law and Criminal Procedure, or Wills and Trusts.
Since 2008, these MEE essays below have tested multiple subjects in a single question. If you're familiar with how subjects might be combined, you won't be caught off guard on exam day. After all, you never want to be surprised on exam.
Agency
July 2008 (Agency and Partnership)
July 2009(Agency and Partnership)
July 2010 (Agency and Partnership)
July 2011 (Agency and Partnership)
February 2012 (Agency and Partnership)
July 2013 (combined with Torts)
February 2014 (Agency and Partnership)
February 2015 (combined with Torts)
February 2016 (Agency and Partnership)
February 2018 (Agency and Partnership)
February 2019 (Agency and Partnership)
July 2018 (Agency and Partnership)
February 2019 (Agency and Partnership)
Early September 2020 (combined with Corporations)
Late September 2020 and October 2020 Remote (Agency and Partnership)
February 2021 (Agency and Partnership)
July 2022 (combined with Corporations)
Civil Procedure
February 2009 (combined Conflict of Laws)
February 2012 (combined Conflict of Laws)
July 2017 (combined Conflict of Laws)
July 2019 (combined Constitutional Law)
Conflict of Laws (currently only tested alongside another subject)
July 2008 (combined with Family Law)
February 2009 (combined with Civil Procedure)
July 2011 (combined with Family Law)
February 2012 (combined with Civil Procedure)
July 2012 (combined with Wills)
February 2017 (combined with Family Law)
July 2017 (combined with Civil Procedure)
July 2019 (combined with Wills)
Constitutional Law
July 2019 (combined with Civil Procedure)
July 2020 (combined with Corporations)
Contracts and Sales
July 2010 (combined with Negotiable Instruments) (Negotiable Instruments is no longer tested on the MEE)
Corporations
July 2020 (combined with Constitutional Law)
Early September 2020 (combined with Agency)
July 2022 (combined with Agency)
Criminal Law
July 2009 (Combined with Criminal Procedure)
February 2014 (Combined with Criminal Procedure)
Criminal Procedure
July 2009 (Combined with Criminal Law)
February 2014 (Combined with Criminal Law)
July 2016 (Combined with Evidence)
July 2017 (Combined with Evidence)
Evidence
July 2016 (Combined with Criminal Procedure)
July 2017 (Combined with Criminal Procedure)
Family Law
July 2008 (combined with Conflict of Laws)
July 2011 (combined with Conflict of Laws)
February 2017 (combined with Conflict of Laws)
Partnership
July 2008 (Agency and Partnership)
July 2009(Agency and Partnership)
July 2010 (Agency and Partnership)
July 2011 (Agency and Partnership)
February 2012 (Agency and Partnership)
February 2014 (Agency and Partnership)
February 2016 (Agency and Partnership)
February 2018 (Agency and Partnership)
July 2018 (Agency and Partnership)
February 2019 (Agency and Partnership)
Late September 2020 and October 2020 Remote (Agency and Partnership)
Torts
July 2013 (combined with Agency)
February 2015 (combined with Agency)
July 2017 (combined with Agency)
Trusts
February 2013 (combined with Wills)
February 2015 (combined with Wills)
July 2020 (combined with Wills
Wills
July 2012 (combined with Conflict of Laws)
February 2013 (combined with Trusts)
February 2015 (combined with Trusts)
July 2019 (combined with Conflict of Laws)
July 2020 (combined with Trusts)
