Don’t Leave Easy Points on the Table

Some points on the bar exam are hard-earned. Others are just … forgotten. Left behind. Never even given a chance.

And the worst part? They're sometimes the easy ones.

Too often, bar takers dive into complex rules and analysis while skipping over the basic, straightforward points that graders also expect to see. These are points that take only a sentence or two to earn—if you remember to include them and apply them thoughtfully. But when they’re missing? No credit.

Photo by Mitchell Luo on Unsplash

Let’s look at a few common ways students leave points on the table:

Hearsay

Don’t just jump to exclusions or exceptions. Start with the basic definition of hearsay:

“Hearsay is an out-of-court statement offered to prove the truth of the matter asserted.”

Then apply it to the facts. For example:

“The statement was made out of court because it occurred at the accident scene, and it is being used to prove the truth of the matter asserted because the prosecution is relying on the content of the statement that the defendant ran the red light.”

Only after establishing that the statement meets the definition of hearsay should you then examine whether there are any applicable exclusions or exceptions.

Intentional Torts

When analyzing battery, assault, false imprisonment, or another intentional tort, make sure to address the element of intent. It’s not implied.

State it:

“Battery requires the intent to cause harmful or offensive contact to plaintiff's person. Intent means the defendant either had the purpose to cause such contact or knew with substantial certainty that their actions would result in it."

Then, apply it:

“Throwing the object with knowledge it would likely hit the plaintiff satisfies intent because the defendant knew with substantial certainty that the contact would occur."

This step often gets skipped—and so do the points.

Contracts

Always start by identifying the applicable law.

“This contract involves the sale of goods, so U.C.C. Article 2 applies.”

Conversely:

“This contract involves services, so the common law of contracts applies.”

Then go one step further: explain how that affects your analysis. Article 2 of the UCC may allow a firm offer to stay open without consideration. Or, the common law might require a mirror image acceptance. These distinctions matter—and they’re easy points when stated clearly.

Don’t Miss Out On Easy Points

These are just three simple examples, but you can imagine how these kinds of examples are prevalent throughout every subject. For example:

Torts: Before examining comparative fault or contributory negligence, make sure you've established there's a valid negligence claim in the first place.

Criminal Procedure: Don’t discuss the voluntariness of a confession without first asking whether Miranda warnings were required and, if so, whether they were properly given and waived.

Secured Transactions: Don’t analyze whether a security interest was perfected before first establishing that it validly attached.

The takeaway?

If it’s not in your response, it doesn’t count. Don’t let something go unspoken just because it feels “obvious” or because you assume the reader—whether an examiner or a grader—already knows it. They probably do. But that’s not the point.

The bar exam essay isn't testing the grader’s knowledge; it’s testing your ability to walk through a legal analysis in a clear, structured, and methodical way that demonstrates both your understanding and your reasoning process.