Law School Life
American Bar-ror Stories
Woes and Warnings from Bar Exams Past
By Meredith Rainey Permar
Emory School of Law, 3L
I
t’s that time of year again—the bees are buzzing, the
flowers are blooming, and graduation is looming for 3Ls
everywhere. As soon as the excitement of graduation is
over, most of those same 3Ls will begin the all-consuming
task of studying for the bar exam. Many of them are already
worrying about the legendary test. So, for fun—and stress
relief—The Atlanta Lawyer’s student liaisons asked our
friends, colleagues, and mentors: “What horror stories
do you have from sitting for the bar examination?” The
tales below might make you laugh and might make you cry,
but they will definitely demonstrate why you should try to
prepare for the unexpected!
WARNING: This is a stressful
experience. Take care of
yourself.
Law school carries with it
plenty of stress, so most 3Ls
have figured out some good
stress-relief techniques by the
time they reach graduation.
That’s a good thing. Practice
those techniques. The one
thing that all bar exam takers
agree on is that the experience
is VERY stressful, as the quote
below establishes.
WARNING: Pay careful attention to rules and requirements.
This goes without saying, but follow ALL rules and
requirements really, really closely. Taking the bar exam
is stressful, and it’s easier than you’d think to make silly
April 2015
• “Someone walked into the exam on the first day with a cell
phone on, and it went off during the exam. That person was
disqualified from taking the exam.”
• “There were people who couldn’t take the Georgia bar
because, even though they passed character and f