North Dakota Bar Exam

North Dakota Bar Examiners

North Dakota State Board of Law Examiners
Judicial Wing, 1st Floor
600 E. Boulevard Avenue
Bismarck, ND 58505-0530
(701) 328-4201

Bar Exam Format

The North Dakota law examiners administer the Uniform Bar Exam (“UBE”).  Thus, the North Dakota bar exam has these parts: the MPT, the MEE, and the MBE.

Day 1

During day one, you have two MPT tasks to do in the three hours prior to the lunch break, and six MEE answers to write in the three hours afterward.

Day 2

During day 2, you have 100 MBE multiple choice questions to answer in the 3 hours prior to the lunch break, and another 100 to answer within the 3 hours afterward.

Reciprocity

Basically, North Dakota provides for admission to practice law there by motion if: 1) you have eligibility by either practicing of law in, or obtaining certain scores on the Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam (“MPRE”) and the MBE or the UBE taken in, another jurisdiction; and 2) you fulfill all other applicable requirements.

Subjects/Topics

The North Dakota bar exam’s essay portion 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;
  • Partnerships;
  • Real Property;
  • Torts; and
  • Trusts and Future Interests.

Bar Exam Dates

The North Dakota 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 Idaho State Bar will grade and report the Idaho bar exam results about six weeks after the exam.  The Idaho State Bar will post a list of the passers online, mail confirmation letters, and give “pass or fail” results by phone.

Scoring/Grading

You have to score at least 260 to pass the North Dakota bar exam.  Your scaled score on the Multistate Performance Test (“MPT”) is weighted 20%, on the Multistate Essay Exam (“MEE”) is weighted 30%, and on the Multistate Bar Exam (“MBE”) is weighted 50%.

Pass Rate/Stats

The North Dakota bar exam pass rates can vary by administration. Over some administrations, the pass rates have been:

  • for total takers, between 91% and 47%;
  • for first-time takers, between 100% and 56%; and
  • for repeat takers, 80% and 0%.