SIXTEEN RULES TO OBSERVE IN ANSWERING BAR PROBLEMS

(or how to please the examiner and get him on your side) *

1. Read each problem carefully.

Do not rush, much less jump to conclusions. You have enough time to make sense
of the problem and to determine the answer the examiner may want.
2. In analyzing a problem, determine if the examiner is asking for the
statement of the rule or the exception.
This will help you frame your answer to the problem.
3. State your answer at the beginning, not in the middle or at the end, of your
discussion.
Remember that the examiner has thousands of exam booklets to correct. It
would annoy the examiner, who is trying to correct as many booklets as he could in the
limited time that he has, if he could not immediately find or see your answer.
4. Be directly responsive; connect your answer to the question.
This helps the examiner focus on your answer and speed up the correction of
your booklet. It reminds him what the question is without need of referring to the
question sheet.
5. Answer the problem on the basis of the given facts.
Resist the tendency to make improper and unnecessary assumptions. Do not,
without good reason, assume facts that are not given if the problem could otherwise be
answered without making any assumption (see further discussion in the next
paragraph). You should directly respond to the examiner’s question. Do not beat around
the bush. Do not waffle. Being directly responsive would indicate confidence on your
part. Write “yes” or “no” first, if the question is answerable by “yes” or “no”, before
stating your reasons or qualifications. Answering “yes” or “no” would help you and the
examiner focus on your answer.
6. Give the obvious answer first
If Pedro insured his own life and made Maria his beneficiary, and Maria died
ahead of Pedro, would the heirs of Maria be entitled to the proceeds of the insurance on
Pedro’s life?
7. Get all the points by answering the implied question
If the problem in No. 6 were worth 4 or 5 points, what do you add to your answer
to insure that you get the maximum points available?
8. Lead off with your best argument.
Always present your best argument first. It may be all that the examiner is
looking for to give you full credit.

*
Prepared by Prof. Tristan A. Catindig August 20, 2014. All rights reserved.

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9. Use short sentences.
You minimize the problem of connectives, that is, how to grammatically connect
one clause to another, when you write short sentences. Thinking about connectives
makes you spend more time writing the sentence. And if you are not adept at it, the
result may be unintelligible.
10. Use key words and phrases.
To the extent that you could remember them, use key words and phrases in your
answer. For example, if your answer to a piercing problem in Corporation Law is in the
affirmative, then you may use the classic language of United States vs. Milwaukee
Refrigerator Transit Co., that is, “when the [corporation] is used to defeat public
convenience, justify wrong, protect fraud, or defend crime, the law will regard the
corporation as an association of persons.”
11. Cite the applicable case, if possible.
If the problem is based on a decided case and you remember its title, cite it. The
examiner would be encouraged to give you full credit.
12. Be concise but complete in your answer.
This is not as easy to do as it may seem. You naturally want to pour into your
answer everything you know regarding the subject of the question. However, as stated
earlier, your first paragraph should contain your best answer or reason, and use the
later paragraphs for secondary arguments and for your “ifs” and “buts” and “howevers.”
How do you know how long your answer should be? Note the number of points
allocated for the particular problem. Two points would not require a full page, probably
just half a page or less. Four points would require more than half a page, probably a full
page or more.
13. Use neutral language whenever you want to indicate an alternative answer.
For example, if you want to indicate that Sections 3, 4, 5 and 9 of the Bulk Sales
Law are not applicable, you may use the following neutral formulation: “It should be
noted, however, that certain commentators on the law have observed that where the
sale does not involve a merchant selling a stock of goods in bulk (as in this case),
Sections 3, 4, 5 and 9 of the Bulk Sales Law are not applicable.” [Note: The Bulk Sales
Law is not part of the coverage of the current bar examination.]
14. Don’t abbreviate words unnecessarily.
Resist the urge to abbreviate a word which isn’t usually abbreviated or the
abbreviation of which isn’t commonly known. For example, you may use “RA” for
“Republic Act” or “PD” for “Presidential Decree” but don’t write “amt.” when you mean
“amount”, or “agst.” when you mean against”. Remember, you are not sending text
messages.
15. Use “visual signals” in writing your answer.
Good, clear visual signals help the examiner grasp your answer quickly. The
absence of signals or the use of fuzzy ones hinders him.

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 What is a “visual signal”? An elementary example is the indentation at the
beginning of a paragraph. It says to the reader, “This is a new paragraph.” The
indentation is a signal that we all recognize and respond to without conscious thought.
[Note: You could also write your paragraphs with both sides justified.]
In any case, whether your writing is justified left or in block form, leave a space
between paragraphs.
The paragraph itself is a signal. It may mean that you have another reason or
argument for your answer, or a different aspect of the problem to discuss.
Punctuation marks are also signals. A period, as we all know, indicates the end
of a sentence. A colon usually signals that an enumeration is about to be made.
Depending on the objective, one signal may be more appropriate than another.
For example, if you were asked to give five examples of exempt transactions under the
Securities Regulation Code, it would be better (because the enumeration would be
noticed faster) if you list them vertically rather than horizontally. It would also be
better (because the examiner would readily notice if you completed the enumeration) if
you use numbers rather than letters in making the list. Use Arabic, rather than Roman,
numerals.
16. Finally, write legibly.
If the examiner cannot read (and, thereby, understand) your answer, your
observance of the foregoing rules would not help you at all.

-o-

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