Hawaii Bar Exam
Hawaii Bar Examiners
Board of Examiners
Supreme Court of Hawaii
Ali’iolani Hale, Room 103
417 S. King Street
Honolulu, HI 96813-2912
(808) 539-4919
Bar Exam Format
The Hawaii bar exam consists of the Hawaii section on Tuesday, the MBE on Wednesday, and the Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam (“MPRE”), which occurs separately.
Day 1
Day one includes a 4-hour morning session in which to answer the 6 MEE questions and the 15 Hawaii Legal Ethics Test questions. On average, you have about 30 minutes to answer each of the MEE questions. Typically, you have about 30 minutes for the Hawaii Legal Ethics Test. Day one includes a three-hour afternoon session in which to answer the two MPT questions. You have 90 minutes to answer each of them.
Day 2
Day two includes 100 multiple choice questions in the 3-hour morning session and 100 multiple choice questions in the 3-hour afternoon session.
Reciprocity
Although admission on motion is not generally available, Hawaii allows it on specific and limited grounds for:
- full-time faculty members of the University of Hawaii Law School;
- full time, active duty, uniformed service, judge advocates for uncompensated representation of certain military-related clients; and
- lawyers employed by a non-profit legal services provider eligible for indigent legal assistance funds.
Subjects/Topics
The essay questions on the Hawaii bar exam can examine these subjects:
- Agency;
- Article 9 of the U.C.C. – Secured Transactions;
- Conflict of Laws;
- Constitutional Law;
- Contracts (including Article 2 of the U.C.C. – Sales);
- Corporations;
- Criminal Law (including Criminal Procedure);
- Decedents’ Estates;
- Evidence Law;
- Family Law;
- Federal Civil Procedure;
- Limited Liability Companies;
- Partnership;
- Real Property;
- Torts; and
- Trusts and Future Interests.
The Hawaii Legal Ethics Test examines the subject of Ethics by multiple choice questions.
Bar Exam Dates
The Hawaii bar exam is held in February and July. The exam is usually on the last Wednesday and prior Tuesday of each month.
2024
- February 27-28, 2024
- July 30-31, 2024
Exam Results
The Hawaii board of bar examiners usually release bar exam scores approximately 10 to 12 weeks after administering the exam.
Scoring/Grading
To pass the Hawaii bar exam, a taker must score at least 134 on a 200-point scale. The Board of Examiners weighs the Multistate Bar Exam (“MBE”) 50% and the Hawaii section 50%. The Hawaii section has 10 equally weighted parts: 6 Multistate Essay Exam (“MEE”) questions, 1 Hawaii Legal Ethics Test, and 2 Multistate Performance Test (“MPT”) questions.
Pass Rate/Stats
Over several Hawaii bar exams, the pass rates have ranged from 60% – 87% for total takers, 68% – 92% for the first-time takers, and 5% – 63% for the repeat takers.