Bar Exam Preparation
Raising the bar on bar prep.
In April 2013, Loyola created a Bar Preparation and Learning Initiatives Department. The sole focus of the department is to assist all Loyola students and alumni in their preparation for any bar examination. Loyola now offers bar preparation courses, lectures, workshops, and individual tutoring for all.
For students, Loyola offers both civil and common law sections of the 3.0-hour courses Bar Preparation I (Fall semester) and Bar Preparation II (Spring semester). The Louisiana courses focus on commonly-tested subjects found on the Louisiana Bar Examination. The common law courses focus on the subjects found on the Multistate Bar Examination. Unlike the typical exam schedule for law school classes, these courses frequently test students during the semester, require homework, and require a final exam. Both civil and common law students are tested through essay and multiple choice questions. Students learn substantive law, study tactics, and writing strategies.
In addition, the Bar Preparation Department offers workshops for graduating third-year students on commonly-tested bar exam topics and on test-taking techniques and strategies.
For all of its graduates, Loyola offers civil law and common law Canvas courses, which allow graduates to ask questions about any bar examination and to receive answers from Loyola professors. The goal of the Canvas courses is to ensure that graduates are not studying for the bar examination in isolation. Instead, the Loyola community remains connected after graduation such that the graduates may directly contact professors, post questions on Canvas, attend or view Loyola bar examination lectures, and interact with one another.
If you are a student, graduate, or prospective student, please read below for more detailed information regarding the student and graduate courses offered by Loyola. Additionally, please review the below-listed website links, which will connect you to pertinent bar exam information for each state.
A simulated Louisiana Bar Examination day will be held by Suzanne Scalise and will be offered to first-time takers in mid-July.
Tips and Strategies: Suzanne Scalise
Persons: Monica Wallace
Community Property: Dian Tooley-Knoblett
Successions, Donations, and Trusts: Sandi Varnado
Sales and Leases/Obligations: Sandi Varnado
Security Rights: Dian Tooley-Knoblett
Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure: Blaine LeCesne
Torts: Bobby Harges
Criminal Law, Procedure, and Evidence: Bobby Harges
Federal Jurisdiction and Procedure: Lawrence Moore
Common Law Bar Exam Tips and Strategies: Suzanne Scalise
Civil Procedure: Father Larry Moore
Constitutional Law: Isabel Medina
Contracts: Commercial Transactions: Rob Garda
Contracts: Selected Topics for MBE Review: Craig Senn
Criminal Law and Procedure: John Blevins
Evidence: Chunlin Leonhard
Real Property: Marie Tufts
Secured Transactions: Chunlin Leonhard
Torts: Karen Sokol
The following courses are specifically designed to assist third year students with bar exam preparation for Louisiana and all other states.
LCIV-L949 Bar Preparation I: Civil Law, 3hrs.
Revisits fundamental principles of legal analysis in a systematic manner, building and consolidating skills needed to master the details of varied areas of law, to analyze the relationship between facts and legal rules, to identify legal issues, and to make persuasive written arguments in support of legal conclusions. Frequent written exercises and in-class examinations will be given.
LCIV-L950 Bar Preparation II: Civil Law, 3hrs.
Focuses on preparation for the Louisiana Bar Examination. This course addresses Louisiana rules of law and analysis frequently tested on the bar. Subjects covered may include, but will not necessarily be limited to, discreet portions of Code III (Security Rights), Louisiana Torts, Constitutional Law, Federal Jurisdiction and Procedure, and Louisiana Business Entities. In addition to a final examination, graded in-class examinations will be given for each subject. All examinations will closely resemble the actual bar examination questions.
LCOM-L949, Bar Preparation I: Common Law, 3hrs.
Revisits fundamental principles of legal analysis in a systematic manner, building and consolidating skills needed to master the details of varied areas of law, to analyze the relationship between facts and legal rules, to identify legal issues, and to make persuasive written arguments in support of legal conclusions. Frequent written exercises and in-class examinations will be given.
LCOM-L950 Bar Preparation II: Common Law, 3hrs.
Focuses on preparation for the Multistate Bar Examination. This course addresses practice multiple choice questions and practice essay questions on select topics within subjects covered by the Multistate Bar Examination. Subjects covered in the course may include Constitutional Law, Contracts and Sales, Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure and Evidence, Real Property, and Torts. In addition to a final examination, graded in-class examinations will be given for each subject. All examinations will closely resemble the actual Multistate Bar Examination.
Course Offerings:
Schedule of Louisiana Bar Examination
All classes on this list are the civil law versions, unless stated otherwise.
DAY 1
(1) Code I: 8 a.m.-10 a.m.
Property I
Property II
Community Property
Civil Law of Persons
(2) Code II: 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Successions
Louisiana Donations and Trusts
(3) Code III: 2 p.m.-5 p.m.
Obligations I
Obligations II
Sales and Leases
Security Rights
Miscellaneous Code Topics*
DAY 2
(4) Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure: 8 a.m.-10 a.m.
Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure
(5) Torts: 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Torts I
Torts II
(6) Business Entities: 2 p.m.-5 p.m.
Business Organizations
Mandate
DAY 3
(7) Constitutional Law: 8 a.m.-10:00 a.m.
Constitutional Law
Advanced Constitutional Law--14th Amendment
First Amendment (Speech and Religion)**
(8) Criminal Law: 10:30 a.m.-1 p.m.
Criminal Law
Constitutional Criminal Procedure
Evidence
(9) Federal Jurisdiction and Procedure: 2 p.m.-5 p.m.
Civil Procedure I
Civil Procedure II
Courts in a Federal System
Conflicts of Law is a course that is not tested in isolation; it may appear on Codes I-III and/or Torts.
* This includes liberative prescription, deposit, compromise, and quasi-contracts.
** Sometimes speech and religion are taught as two separate courses. Both are fair game for this section of the bar exam.
Bar Exam Information in Louisiana and Other States
All States:
National Conference of Bar Examiners and American Bar Association's Comprehensive Guide to Bar Admission Requirements 2021.
Louisiana Bar Exam Application Process:
Louisiana Supreme Court Court Committee on Bar Admissions: lascba.org/
Commercial Bar Prep Programs
Louisiana -- BarBri
General -- BarBri
Louisiana -- Kaplan
General -- Kaplan
Contact Us
Suzy Scalise
Director of Bar Preparation & Learning Initiatives
Phone: (504) 861-5483
Email: sscalise@loyno.edu
Office location: 420
Alysse Arceneaux
Coordinator for Academic Success and Bar Prep & Learning Initiatives Department
Email: amarcene@loyno.edu