Bar Exam Prep

MEE Prep

The Multistate Essay Exam (MEE) consists of 6 essay questions administered over 3 hours. The MEE tests your ability to identify legal issues, apply legal rules to facts, and communicate your analysis in a clear, organized essay. Beyond the 7 MBE subjects, the MEE also tests subjects that do not appear on the multiple-choice bar exam.

Below you will find in-depth study guides for each non-MBE MEE subject, including high-yield topics, essay writing approaches, key rules you must memorize, commonly tested issues, and strategies to maximize your score on exam day.

6

Essay Questions

3 Hours

30 minutes per essay

5

Non-MBE Subjects Covered

MEE Subjects

Business Associations

Tested 6 of last 10 exams

Business Associations on the MEE tests your understanding of agency, partnerships, and corporations. The exam focuses on fiduciary duties of agents, partners, and corporate directors and officers, as well as the formation and governance of different business entities.

8 high-yield topics12 key rules10 sample issues

Conflict of Laws

Tested 5 of last 10 exams

Conflict of Laws on the MEE tests your ability to determine which state's law applies when a dispute involves contacts with multiple jurisdictions. The exam covers choice of law methodologies, constitutional limitations on choice of law, and the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments.

7 high-yield topics10 key rules8 sample issues

Family Law

Tested 5 of last 10 exams

Family Law on the MEE tests your knowledge of marriage, divorce, child custody, child support, spousal support, and property division. The exam frequently combines multiple family law issues in a single fact pattern, requiring you to address jurisdictional questions, the validity of marriage, grounds for divorce, and the financial and custodial consequences of dissolution.

8 high-yield topics12 key rules10 sample issues

Trusts & Estates

Tested 7 of last 10 exams

Trusts and Estates on the MEE is one of the most frequently tested subjects. The exam covers wills, intestate succession, trust creation and administration, fiduciary duties of trustees, will substitutes, and powers of appointment. Questions often combine multiple issues across wills and trusts in a single fact pattern.

9 high-yield topics13 key rules10 sample issues

Secured Transactions (UCC Article 9)

Tested 5 of last 10 exams

Secured Transactions on the MEE tests your understanding of UCC Article 9, which governs security interests in personal property. The exam focuses on the creation (attachment), perfection, and priority of security interests, as well as the rights of secured parties upon default.

8 high-yield topics13 key rules10 sample issues

How to Approach the MEE

The MEE rewards structured, organized writing. Unlike the MBE, which tests rule recognition through multiple choice, the MEE requires you to identify issues from an open-ended fact pattern, state the applicable rule, apply the rule to the facts, and reach a conclusion. The IRAC method (Issue, Rule, Application, Conclusion) is the standard framework, and graders expect to see it consistently.

Time management is critical. With 30 minutes per essay, you should spend approximately 5 minutes reading and outlining, 22 minutes writing, and 3 minutes reviewing. Do not spend all your time on one issue at the expense of others — the MEE typically contains multiple issues per question, and graders award points for each issue spotted and analyzed, even briefly.

Use the subject-specific study guides below to focus on the highest-yield topics, learn the key rules you must memorize, and practice the essay approaches that will help you write clear, point-scoring answers under exam pressure. Each guide includes sample issues that mirror the types of questions the NCBE has tested in the past.

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