Strange Bar Exam Stories To Make You Feel Better

Strange Bar Exam Stories To Make You Feel Better

If you’ve taken the bar exam in person, you likely witnessed at least something out of the ordinary. Gameday pressure impacts everyone differently and the bar exam is admittedly very pressure-filled. If you’re looking for a break from studying and preparing for the bar exam, these stories will undoubtedly entertain you. Check out these strange bar exam stories!

Strange Bar Exam Stories To Make You Feel Better

Lights Out

Our first bar exam story for you is a real trip back in time. Back before people used to take the bar exam on laptops, they had typewriters. Yes, typewriters. Those who wanted to type the exam using a typewriter had to report to the “typists’ testing site.” Now, for a group of applicants, bringing one electric typewriter was definitely playing it way too fast and loose. Two electric typewriters? Still too risky. How about two electric typewriters and one manual typewriter? Well for Jill Switzer and some friends in 1976, that was the perfect blend. They loaded up their typewriters onto trollies and headed up to the fifth floor of the exam center. Along the way, they picked up quite a few quips, comments, and snide remarks from other applicants.

During those times, taking two electric typewriters was considered standard operating procedure. If one failed, the other could be used as a backup. Well, for Jill Switzer and Co., they had planned for the unlikely. How was an electric typewriter going to work if the power went out? Well, within the first couple of minutes on day one, the power totally went out. Lucky for Jill, she had brought a manual typewriter so she was able to continue the exam! So, while others panicked, Jill powered through and passed!  This just goes to show you can never be too prepared for the bar exam!

A Shaky Start

Before we start our next bar exam story, let us remind you of one thing. Nobody, and we mean nobody, wants to fail the bar exam. After all, the bar exam is the key to entry for lawyers and the culmination of three years of law school. That fact is definitely illustrated by the applicants in this final story.

Among other more impressive attributes, California is known for its incredibly powerful and devastating earthquakes. Well, the 2008 bar exam applicants in San Diego and Los Angeles got to experience that firsthand! During the 2008 California Bar Exam, the tectonic plates underneath the Golden State decided they wanted to spice things up. During the essay portion of the exam, a 5.8 magnitude earthquake struck the greater Los Angeles area. It was so powerful that it could be felt in San Diego! As we mentioned above, nobody was going to let an earthquake get in the way of becoming an attorney. Applicants continued working underneath desks until the all-clear was given. As if the bar exam wasn’t stressful enough!

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