Important Changes to the Kentucky Bar Exam

The Kentucky Supreme Court issued an Order on December 29, 2016 making changes to the Kentucky Bar Exam. Some of these changes are in effect for the July 2017 bar exam

The Kentucky Supreme Court issued an Order on December 29, 2016 making changes to the Kentucky Bar Exam.  Some of these changes are in effect for the July 2017 bar exam, and are detailed below:  

1.   MPRE Score:  Passing score on the MPRE will be an 80 (up from 75) starting with all MPRE administrations AFTER July 1, 2017.  If you have already taken the MPRE and passed with a score of 75 or greater, you do not need to retake the test.

2.   Beginning July 2017, the following subjects will be tested on the essay portion of the Kentucky Bar Exam:

  • Contracts, including sales and secured transactions;
  • Constitutional Law
  • Business Entities (corporations, partnerships, and/or others)
  • Criminal Law and Procedure
  • Civil Procedure
  • Family Law
  • Property (real and/or personal)
  • Torts
  • Estates (wills and/or trusts)
  • Evidence
  • Such other subjects as the Board may select from among questions proposed by the National Conference of Bar Examiners.

This means that the following subjects have been removed:  Administrative Law and Procedure, Conflict of Laws, Federal Taxation and Negotiable Instruments.

3.   Starting with the July 2019 Bar Exam, Kentucky may also include items from the Multi-state Performance Test (MPT), prepared by the National Conference of Bar Examiners.  We are currently unsure how many MPT items will be added or how that will relate to the other sections of the Bar, but we will keep students updated as we receive additional information.  You can learn more about the MPT test at http://www.ncbex.org/exams/mpt/.

Some details about the application process have also been clarified and fees have increased for attorney applicants.  To see all the changes, please see the full order at: http://courts.ky.gov/courts/supreme/Rules_Procedures/201611.pdf.  You can also look to the Kentucky Bar Examiner’s website to monitor information about the Bar Exam (As of 1/5, the current changes are not yet reflected on the Bar Examiner’s website): http://www.kyoba.org/

Contact Angela Lechleiter in the Academic Success Office (angela.lechleiter@louisville.edu) if you have questions.