Vermont Bar Exam

Vermont Bar Examiners

Vermont Board of Bar Examiners
111 State Street, Suite 9B
Montpelier, VT 05609-0701
(802) 828-3281

Bar Exam Format

Vermont has adopted the Uniform Bar Exam (“UBE”), which has the MPT and MEE on Tuesday and the MBE on Wednesday

Day 1

Day one consists of: 1) two MPT questions in the three-hour morning session; and 2) six MEE questions in the three-hour afternoon session.

Day 2

Day two consists of: 1) 100 multiple choice questions in the 3-hour morning session; and 2) 100 multiple choice questions in the 3-hour afternoon session.

Reciprocity

Basically, if a lawyer has been actively practicing law for 5 of the past 10 years in another United States jurisdiction, then the lawyer could obtain admission to the Vermont Bar without examination.

Generally, a current member of the Maine or New Hampshire Bar who has been actively practicing law in Maine or New Hampshire for the past 3 years could obtain admission to the Vermont Bar without examination.

To obtain admission, such a lawyer or member must attend at least 15 hours of continuing legal education (“CLE”) on Vermont practice and procedure.

An applicant can transfer a MBE scaled score of at least 135 to Vermont, if the MBE was taken concurrently with the Vermont bar exam.

Effective April 18, 2016:

  • For admission by examination, Vermont has both CLE and experiential (mentorship program) requirements.
  • Vermont will permit admission on a transferred UBE score of 270 within 3 or 5 years after attaining the score.
  • An attorney may not seek admission without examination if, within the prior 5 years, the attorney has failed the Vermont bar exam or failed to score 270 on any UBE.

Subjects/Topics

The Vermont bar exam’s Multistate Essay Exam (“MEE”) questions may test these subjects:

  • Agency;
  • Article 9 of the U.C.C. – Secured Transactions;
  • Conflict of Laws (will not be the sole subject of a question);
  • 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 Vermont 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

Approximately 8 to 10 weeks after the Vermont bar exam, the Vermont Board of Bar Examiners mails letters to all of the examinees notifying them of whether they passed or failed the exam.  The board of bar examiners will post a list of the successful examinees on its website.  The board of bar examiners will not answer any in-person or telephone inquires about any examinee’s results.

Scoring/Grading

A passing score on the Vermont bar exam is 270 of 400 points (i.e., 135 on a 200-point scale).  The MPT is weighted 20%, the MEE is weighted 30%, and the MBE is weighted 50%.

Pass Rate/Stats

Commonly, the Vermont bar exam pass rates range from 59% to 83% for total takers, 62% to 96% for the first-time takers, and 13% to 70% for the repeat takers.