PRO HAC VICE 2020/21 BAR EXAMINATIONS: THE BEST EVER?
Ever since Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice, Hon. Marvic Leonen, was designated as Chairman of the 2020 Bar Examinations and eventually the 2020/21 Bar Examinations, since no examinations was held last year due to the raging COVID-19 pandemic, the prolific jurist has promised that this will be the “Best Bar Examinations Ever”. It has become a battle cry and they used the same as hashtag to drumbeat the excitement of longed reforms in the toughest, most grueling, and most celebrated professional examinations in the country.
For Barristers or Bar Candidates (please stop calling them Barristas), the best Bar Examinations would mean the one with the most number of passers. Like in 2016, more than 3,000 souls were admitted to the noble profession of law. But this year’s Bar Exams, although beset and hounded by challenges and upheavals caused by the virus, already brought the much-needed changes in the conduct of the Bar Exams. The Exams was already decentralized from the Imperial Manila to different testing centers all over the country. This will save financial resources and will also boost morale to our Barristers from the provinces. Emotional and psychological considerations, i.e., feeling homesick and inferior, will no longer be factors. Notably, it will be using laptops which will make handwriting as a non-issue already.
Recently, the Honorable Supreme Court issued Bar Matter No. 3860 (Grading System for the 2020/21 Bar Examinations) in a Resolution dated 03 August 2021. BM No. 3860 suspended Section 14, Rule 138 of the Rules of Court on the grading system of the Bar Exams and adopted the recommendations of Bar Chairman Justice Leonen. The weight for each subject will still be the same, namely: Political Law (15%), Labor Law and Social Legislation (10%), Civil Law (15%), Taxation (10%), Commercial Law (15%), Criminal Law (10%), Remedial Law (20%) and Legal Ethics and Practical Exercises (5%). The passing grade is 75% with no disqualification score for any subject. The only disqualifier is violation of the honor code and any commission of misconduct during the exams. There will be no Top 10 but all candidates who got 85% and above shall be recognized for their exemplary performance. Law schools will also be ranked and recognized depending on their categories based on number of students.
But that is not all, Justice Leonen issued Bar Bulletin No. 25 dated 27 August 2021 explaining and expounding BM NO. 3860. Each subject will have 15-18 straightforward 5-point questions designed to address entry-level competency. Bar Bulletin No. 25 states that there will be no sub-questions. This author assumes there will be no more “questions-not-meant-to-be-answered-only-meant-to-test-your-composure” like “What is a Writ of Amparo?” which terrorized the Bar Examinees years back when it was still not incorporated in our legal system.
Finally, the best reform brought by Bar Bulletin No. 25 is the clear criteria in scoring. For example, to earn a perfect score of 5.0 in a question, the answer should: (1) present the correct legal conclusion; (2) supported by correct legal bases; and (3) delivered in a complete but succinct, clear, and polished manner with minimal errors in grammar. It will be a score of 4.0 if the answer presents a correct legal conclusion, correct legal basis but there are flaws in communication. It will be a score of 3.0 if it has a correct legal conclusion but invokes incorrect, inapplicable, and inappropriate legal bases, even if it invoked some correct legal bases. The score of 2.0 will be given to answer if it presents an incorrect legal conclusion, although in discussing the legal bases, the examinee exhibits a capacity for effective legal reasoning and communication, such as coherent and cogent formulation of answers and adequate reference to legal authorities. A grade of 1.0 will be given to an answer which presents an incorrect legal conclusion, demonstrates inability to reason and communicate effectively, although there is a bona fide attempt to deliver an answer befitting the question. It will be a score of 0 if there is no answer given. Unfortunately, the 2020/21 Bar Exams will be on a pro hac vice meaning applicable only to this particular occasion. As explained by Justice Leonen, the reason is that both batches suffered ordeal and challenges brought by COVID-19. Nonetheless, we have seen drastic reforms which will make the Bar Exams more equitable and inclusive. #BestBarExamsEver