ATENEO DE MANILA UNNERSITY

SCHOOL OF LAW
Office of the Dean

August 28, 2018

To our dear bar candidates:

First of all, I wanted to apologize for not being able to individually check on how each of you
are doing in your bar preparations. I hope in any case that you are on track in your respective
timetables and strategies.

I hope as well that you realize that the years of preparation that you went through in the Ateneo
Law School (ALS) count for more than just something. That you successfully endured the
incessant, daily testing at the ALS should give you confidence that you have what it takes to
conquer this forthcoming challenge. Keep your dream in sight and let your determination to
make it come true summon your resolve and courage.

I also wanted to provide you with the attached guide which contains very helpful
recommendations on answering bar exam essay questions. The guide was the product of a
collaborative effort and prepared especially for you by our ALS professors who were
previously bar examiners. The guide, therefore, is born out of actual experience rather than
mere conjecture.

I would suggest that you find time to practice the recommendations. For instance, you may
pick out one previous bar exam question a day and take a stab at writing out the answer by
hand in the suggested format. If you do this often enough, perhaps you will develop a mental
muscle memory that will be triggered with ease when the actual exams are in front of you.

We are all rooting for you and you are constantly in our prayers.

One big fight!

3/F Ateneo Professional Schools Bldg, 20 Rockwell Or, Rockwell Center, 1200 Makati City, Philippines
Tel +63 2 8997691 to 96 ext 2302· +63 2 899 4373. Fax +6327296609· dean.law@ateneo.edu


GUIDE TO ANSWERING IN THE BAR EXAMS

WRITE LEGIBLY –

• Write bigger and wider! See Illustration 1 on page 5.

• Use black ink, not blue, which is sometimes difficult to read.
• Avoid answering with too small and too large letters. Small letters are difficult to
decipher. Too large letters, resulting in just few words per line, will irritate the
examiner, because his head will be moving left to right more often.

ANSWER CLEARLY and CONCISELY –
I. ENGLISH, PLEASE.
• Keep sentences short. Long sentences have greater potential to cause confusion.
o Avoid unnecessary words but not at the expense of clarity.
§ Generally, adjectives are not necessary.
o Limit each sentence to one idea or point.
o Break long sentences to short ones.

• Use the active voice rather than the passive voice.
o The active voice introduces the action earlier in the sentence and can
better emphasize the main point.
o Example:
• Active: “The petitioner insists that the Supreme Court must grant
the motion.”
• Passive: “It is insisted by the petitioner that the motion must be
granted by the Supreme Court.”

• Use simple, plain English.
o Avoid Latin phrases (such as “inter alia” and “prima facie”);
o Avoid legal language or jargon.
Reference: Elements of Style by Strunk and White

• Use logic or experience (i.e. common sense) especially when you cannot recall a
statute or case law to cite. After all, law is based on logic and experience.

II. ANSWER ONLY THE QUESTION ASKED.
• Directly
• Completely

• Example:
Question: “Is the RTC correct?”
Answer: “NO, the RTC is NOT correct.” [Using the echo approach is
preferred.]
“The RTC is wrong.”
“The RTC is incorrect.”
“No.”
Comment: All answers are correct but the reader (bar examiner) is least
confused with the first one.

• Using the C-R-A Method helps the examinee in providing short, direct and
complete answers. CRA stands for -
• Conclusion or the ultimate answer
• Rule or Law or Legal Principle involved [if none, use common sense based
on logic or experience]
1. As a rule, refrain from citing the names and captions of decided
cases, as well as specific article or section numbers of laws. Citing
these specifics could be risky.

2. Instead, you answer this way: “In a decided case, …” or “The law
provides …” A general reference such as this is safer.
• Application of the Rule to the facts
• Illustration 2 on page 6.

III. DO NOT ANSWER QUESTIONS NOT ASKED; DO NOT INCLUDE MATTERS NOT
RELEVANT TO THE ISSUE.
• Example: Question: Is there Copyright Infringement?
Answer: “There is Unfair Competition.”

IV. DO NOT ASSUME FACTS NOT GIVEN IN THE PROBLEM
• Worse, do not contradict the facts given!
• Example:
Problem states: “it was established that Bianca was a transgender all along – a
fact unknown to Carlo.”
Answer: “Impossible for Carlo not to have known that Bianca is a transgender.”
V. DO NOT OVER-ANALYZE
• This is the bar exams, no longer law school – trick questions are rarely asked.
• Be careful with seemingly BIG words.
• Examples:
• Fraud vs. Concealment/Misrepresentation

1. Concealment/Misrepresentations are forms of fraud! [cf. QXXI]

• Condominium in BGC vs. Office space in Binondo [cf. Q.XIII]
• Kluwer in Germany vs. Kruger in SA [cf. Q.VII]

• However, when the question is vague, ambiguous, or incomplete in details it is best
to make a distinction. The examinee should presume that the vagueness, ambiguity,
or incompleteness is deliberate, and the examiner expects a distinction to be made.

Example: X made a notarial will with three witnesses: A, B and C. A and B are
Filipino citizens, while C is a US citizen. X is a Filipino citizen, of sound mind and of
legal age. The execution of the will observed all the documentary requirements of
law. Should the will be admitted to probate?

The answer to this question calls for a distinction, namely, whether the witnesses
are domiciled in the Philippines or not. Citizenship in this case is immaterial. The law
requires that the witnesses be domiciled in the Philippines.

VI. USE KEYWORDS WHENEVER POSSIBLE
• Generally, using keywords provide direct-to-the-point answers, i.e.
shorter. For example, in defining grave abuse of discretion, the mention
of “whimsical, capricious, arbitrary” will provide an answer direct to the
point. There is no need for a long answer. Knowing the key words means
the examinee understands the basic concept.
• Illustration 3 on page 7.

BE CAREFUL WITH THE NUMBERING –

• Roman numerals can be confusing. Make sure you do not skip any number.
• Answer all questions, and avoid giving blank answers. A sensible, though
wrong answer, will sometimes be given partial credit. A blank answer will
certainly not be given any credit.
o But avoid writing personal notes to gain the sympathy of the
examiner.

BE MINDFUL OF THE TIME –

• Bar exams are time –bound. Make sure you don’t spend too much time in
answering earlier questions. You may not have enough time to finish
answering all the questions.

• If you do not know the answer, and you are having difficulty in composing an
answer to that question, move on to the next, and come back to the previous
question after you have finished with the rest.

BE DISCIPLINED –

• Plan! Follow your calendar; move on.

• Exercise, e.g. walk 30 minutes a day.
• “Fear is healthy. Panic is deadly.” Prepare early!
• PRAY!
• PRAY MORE!!
• PRAY INCESSANTLY!

[Note: References and illustrations were taken from the 2014 Bar Exam on Mercantile Law]

Bigger is more legible! Compare:

Illustration 1 - Both handwritings are good. The writing on the left actually looks better, but the writing on the right is much
easier to read. Write BIGGER and WIDER.

5

CRAC Method

Illustration 2 – Use CRA method in answering: Conclusion – Rule – Application – Conclusion.

Use of keywords

Illustration 3. Use of keywords, i.e. LOSS is the keyword in this answer.