how much is the skin of my teeth?

The MPRE people sent me a brisk email today. Your score, they informed me, is ready to be retrieved from our website at your leisure. I was in Community Property, not at leisure, but I immediately pulled down my report and opened it. There, in a small box next to my name, was a tidy little 79. There was a note indicating that my score had been sent to the California bar.

And that was it. No indication as to whether 79 was a passing score. Just the number.

This presented a problem. I was so unprepared for the exam that I didn't know what was a passing score. I had assumed my score report would have some sort of message indicating the outcome, perhaps a little pat on the back for outstanding ethics or a shake of the finger for the opposite. But there was nothing.

I wasn't very optimistic. The exam was harder than I had expected (well, as I didn't precisely prepare for the test, I'm not sure I can truly claim it was harder than expected, but we'll just ignore that detail for now). My score report indicated that the highest possible score was 150. One does not have to have an engineering background to figure out that 79 out of 150 is not exactly stellar.

I abandoned any hope of following Prof. ComProp's discussion of premarital contracts and started searching for the California MPRE score requirements. Google failed me at first. Instead of retrieving a definitive answer, it brought me JCA's post about getting her MPRE score, which sent me into a tizzy of worry. 79 was passing for California in 2004, but surely it had changed; Massachusetts required an 85 even in 2004. I found a 2004 report from the California Committee of Bar Examiners that recommended changing the minimum score to 100. Egads. I resigned myself to handing the extortionists at BarBri $250 for the prep course and studying properly.

Prof. ComProp directed a question to my row, and I returned momentarily to community property and Barry Bonds' disputed prenuptial agreement with his ex-wife, Sun Bonds. My head momentarily cleared of plans to retake the test in November and I realized that the definitive answer would undoubtedly be linked from the official California Bar page. A few seconds later, I had my answer:

The required minimum score on the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination in California is an unrounded, scaled score of 79.00.

Yes! 

Comments

[CM]

Nice job! That means your studying was efficient.

[Cathy]

How much effort did it take not to launch into an end-zone celebration style dance right then?

Assuming, of course, that you didn't :-)

[Rayne of Terror]

Lucky girl! How cool is that. In Illinois you need an 80 so I was knotted up for you for a paragraph or two.

We have been using your YouTube train links lately if you notice those outgoing links getting used a great deal. Henry's all about the choo choos this week. He likes the loud ones in NJ and I can't say that I blame him.

[transmogriflaw]

Cathy, it was hard to resist. I was so tempted!

CM, that's one reason why I am pleased. Getting the lowest possible passing score on a pass/fail exam is an optimal use of resources.

[transmogriflaw]

Oops, Rayne, I missed your comment - glad you like the YouTube links!

And it's good I don't have to practice in Illinois!

[Kelly]

Well done! I remember getting that envelope in the mail and having NO EARTHLY IDEA what score was necessary to pass in Indiana. Why can't they just tell you whether you passed and be done with it? Such torture.

[teahouseblossom]

Omigosh..congrats!! That's terrific news.

[wil]

Ah, glad you slid by. Doesn't bode well for a future in family law, though. Stick to Torts and Contract Law -- lots of room for you to manuever your shaky ethics around in... (grin)

[Scheherazade]

Yay!

[bt]

I'm so glad for you. I had the opposite experience and was so angry at the wasted stress and time studying. Well done. No, scratch that. Perfectly done!