Arkansas Bar Exam Format
The Arkansas bar exam takes two days and consists of the Multistate Performance Test (“MPT” ), Multistate Essay Exam (“MEE” ), and the Multistate Bar Exam (“MBE” ). Arkansas law is not tested on the Arkansas bar exam.
MPT (Performance Test)
Arkansas tests two (2) MPT performance tests.
MEE (Essays)
Arkansas tests six (6) MEE essays. Subjects may include:
- Business Entities (Agency and Partnerships; Corporations and LLCs)
- Civil Procedure (Federal)
- Conflict of Laws
- Constitutional Law
- Contracts (Common Law, Sales/UCC Art. 2)
- Criminal Law
- Criminal Procedure
- Evidence
- Family Law
- Negotiable Instruments/Commercial Paper (UCC Art. 3)
- Real Property
- Secured Transactions (UCC Art. 9)
- Torts
- Trusts and Estates (Decedents’ Estates; Trusts and Future Interests)
MBE (Multiple Choice)
Arkansas uses the standard MBE. Subjects include:
- Civil Procedure
- Constitutional Law
- Contracts (Common Law, Sales/UCC Art. 2)
- Criminal Law
- Criminal Procedure
- Evidence
- Real Property
- Torts
MBE Score Transfer
Arkansas accepts MBE scaled scores of 135 or greater. The score must be retained from the preceding Arkansas bar exam, be from a concurrent bar exam, or be transferred from another jurisdiction for use in an immediately succeeding exam.
Arkansas Bar Exam Testing Schedule
Day 1
2 MPTs (3 hours) and 6 Essays (3 hours)
Day 2
Morning – MBE Part I (100 questions; 3 hours)
Afternoon – MBE Part II (100 questions; 3 hours)
Arkansas Bar Exam Dates and Application
The bar exam is administered in Little Rock, Arkansas. Applications can be found on the Arkansas Board of Law Examiners’ Website.
| Exam Date | Application Deadline |
| February 21-22, 2017 | November 15 |
| July 25-26, 2017 | April 1 |
Grading
Arkansas Bar Exam Weight
| MPT | 16.65% |
| MEE | 33.35% |
| MBE | 50% |
Grading Procedure
MEE and MPT questions are graded on a scale from 65 points to 85 points. This is the raw score. MPT raw scores are multiplied by 1.5 and then added to the MEE raw scores to generate a total written raw score. The total written raw scores for all examinees are converted to a score distribution that has the same mean and standard deviation as that of the MBE scores. The converted score is the written scaled score. The written scaled score is added to the MBE scaled score to obtain the total score.
Written Scale Score + MBE Scale Score = Total Score
Passing Score
The minimum passing score is a total score of 270 or greater. A passing bar exam score is valid for one year and applicants must be admitted within that time.
Pass Rates
Not currently available.
Review and Appeal for Applicants Failing the Arkansas Bar Exam
Applicants are not allowed access to copies of their bar exam answers. However, the top bar exam papers for each subject are available for review. The applicable rules do not provide provisions for appeal.
Retaking the Arkansas Bar Exam
Re-applicants may use an MBE scaled score of 135 or greater for the next Arkansas bar exam. Applicants failing the February bar exam have until May 15th to reapply for the July bar exam.