I Am Considering Appealing My Michigan Bar Exam Score—What is the Next Step?

I Am Considering Appealing My Michigan Bar Exam Score—What is the Next Step?

Many students have come to us asking “I am considering appealing my Michigan bar exam score — what is the next step?”

They also ask “Do you review essays for free?” “What is the turnaround time?” “Should I study even if I hire you to write my appeal?” In this post, we answer all of those questions!

Update 1/1/23: Michigan no longer allows examinees to appeal their bar exam score! We will no longer be writing appeals for Michigan Bar Exam takers.

I Am Considering Appealing My Michigan Bar Exam Score.
What is the Next Step?

If you are considering appealing your Michigan bar exam score, the next step is as follows:

• You should call or email the BLE on as soon as possible and ask how many points you need back. It is best to find this out before making any final decisions. Even though your score can give you a decent idea of how many points you need back on appeal, it is best to have it confirmed. Another thing to consider is to add your converted essay score and MBE score together, then divide it by two. See if you are actually a half point closer than you think. (The BLE rounds down!) For example if your essay score is a 130, and your MBE  is a 136, your score is a 133.0 on the dot. However, if your essay score is 131 and your MBE score is 136, your score is actually 133.5 (which is closer to winning an appeal – you may even need one less point to pass on appeal!). However, in both cases, your score will appear as “133” on your score report. You should also read this post on “Should I appeal my Michigan Bar Exam Score?” Be realistic about whether an appeal is a possibility.
• Request your essays. Make sure to follow their instructions so that you do not delay receiving your letter. Typically, you need to send a $20 money order made to the State of Michigan with a letter that includes your name, seat number, and request. Read the instructions carefully. If you do not do this properly, you may not even get your essays back until the appeal deadline has passed!
• As soon as you get your essays, send us your essays and your score report! We will review them and tell you exactly what we would appeal (in quite some detail!) for free. This includes how many questions we would appeal and what we would argue.
• Finally, we will make a recommendation on whether you should appeal.

We wrote half of the passing appeals for the July 2015 Michigan bar exam. We love helping clients pass on appeal. To read testimonials and learn more about our Michigan bar exam appeals, please click here.

When Will I get My Appeal Results Back?
Should I Study While I am Waiting for Appeal Results?

It generally takes three weeks to get results back (sometimes four).

If you are appealing your bar exam in the summer (that is, if you failed a February bar exam), appeals are due on approximately June 12. Even if you send them in early, they will all be graded at the same time and results will all be released at the same time. It will then take approximately three weeks from June 12 to receive results. You will likely know by July 4 if you passed. However, note that at that point, it is too late to begin studying for the next bar exam if you hope to pass (you will only have three weeks, or less!).

Thus, we generally recommend that students study for the July bar exam from the beginning as if their appeal will not pass. This helps maximize the chances that you will be licensed this year!

If you are appealing your bar exam in the winter (that is, if you failed a July bar exam), it is not as important to start studying instantly because you will have more time! (Appeals are usually due around November 20 and you should have results back before the holidays.) However, we still recommend that you start studying early regardless of whether you choose to appeal.

What Other Information Should I Know about the
Michigan Bar Exam Appeal’s Process?

We recommend you read the following Michigan bar exam appeal articles if you are considering appealing your Michigan bar exam score: (If you want to read all of our posts, click here: Michigan Bar Exam Appeals – or click on specific posts below):

• How Many Points do I Need to Pass the Michigan Bar Exam on Appeal? This will give you an approximate number.
• Should I appeal my Michigan Bar Exam Score?  We tell you how to figure it out in this post.
• How to Choose a Michigan Bar Exam Appeal Attorney If you are considering hiring an attorney, please read our article on how to choose one and which questions you must make sure to ask!
• Michigan bar exam appeals testimonials from our firm. Here are what people are saying about us!
• How to Write a Michigan Bar Exam Appeal. This is for those looking to write their own appeal. It provides a lot of guidance so you do not make the same mistakes that we see a lot of people make!
• What is a Michigan Bar Exam Appeal and how does the process work? This reveals exactly how the Michigan bar exam appeals process works!
• Should I write my own Michigan bar exam appeal or have someone write it on my behalf?This answers a question that a lot of potential clients ask us! The answer depends on a number of factors, which we detail in this post.
• How many points should I request on my Michigan bar exam appeal? Should you be realistic and request 3 or should you be ambitious and ask for 20? We reveal the strategies we see work the best!
• How to Win your Michigan Bar Exam Appeal – Five Common Mistakes to Avoid.
• Michigan Bar Exam Appeals Statistics – Here is everything we know about Michigan bar exam statistics.

• Looking to Pass the Bar Exam on Appeal?

  Check out our information on Michigan bar exam appeals here. JD Advising founder and her partner founded the Heidemann Jabbori law firm. This firm frequently writes the vast majority of passing appeals in the State of Michigan. It wrote all of the passing appeals in Michigan for the July 2018 Michigan bar administration.