Make your first attempt at the bar exam your last with Quimbee

  • 91% bar exam pass rate*
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* First-time UBE takers who have completed at least 75% of Quimbee Bar Review or Quimbee Bar Review+. The margin of error is 5.9%.

Hawaii bar exam information

General exam information
Exam typeNon-UBE
MBE
MEE
MPT
Jurisdiction-specific component
Upcoming registration datesNovember 1, 2024 (February 2025 exam); April 1, 2025 (July 2025 exam)

What is the Hawaii bar exam?

The Hawaii bar exam assesses whether an examinee is competent to practice law in the State of Hawaii. Passing the bar exam is an essential step in becoming a lawyer in Hawaii. Examinees are tested on a variety of legal subjects. Bar exam scores are scaled, meaning that scores are adjusted to reflect the relative difficulty of a particular exam. These adjustments ensure that no examinee is unfairly penalized or rewarded for taking a more or less difficult exam.

Studying for the Hawaii bar exam is a full-time job that requires discipline, determination, and—for most people—a formal course structure. Quimbee Bar Review is expertly designed to help you prepare for the Hawaii bar examination in the most efficient and effective way possible. Our bar review course includes 1,400+ real practice questions from past bar exams, detailed answer explanations, and comprehensive outlines of MBE subjects.

Read on to learn more about the Hawaii bar exam.

What is the Hawaii bar exam format?

The Hawaii bar exam consists of the MBE, the MEE, the Multistate Performance Test (MPT), and the Hawaii Legal Ethics Examination.

Multistate Bar Examination (MBE)

The MBE is a six-hour, 200-question multiple-choice examination developed by the National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE) and administered by participating jurisdictions, including Hawaii, on the last Wednesday in February and the last Wednesday in July of each year.

According to the NCBE, the purpose of the MBE is to assess the extent to which an examinee can apply fundamental legal principles and legal reasoning to analyze given fact patterns.

The MBE is divided into morning and afternoon testing sessions of three hours each, with 100 questions in each session. There are no scheduled breaks during either the morning or afternoon session, though test taskers typically may be excused from the exam room during the test. Be sure to check with your jurisdiction, however, as the rules regarding leaving the exam room may vary.

Of the 200 questions on the MBE, 175 questions are scored. The remaining unscored 25 questions are used by the NCBE to test potential future questions. The scored questions are distributed evenly, with 25 questions from each tested subject area. The Hawaii bar exam subjects include civil procedure, constitutional law, contracts, criminal law and procedure, evidence, real property, and torts.

Multistate Essay Examination (MEE)

The MEE consists of six 30-minute issue-spotter questions. The MEE is administered on the Tuesday before the last Wednesday in February and July of each year.

Subjects that may be tested on the MEE include business associations, civil procedure, conflict of laws, constitutional law, contracts, criminal law and procedure, evidence, family law, real property, torts, trusts and estates, and Article 9 (secured transactions) of the Uniform Commercial Code. The MBE counts for 50 percent of the total Hawaii bar exam score.

Multistate Performance Test (MPT)

The MPT is the third component of the Hawaii bar exam. The MPT is not a test of substantive knowledge. The MPT consists of two 90-minute problems designed to mimic real-world tasks that a new attorney might be assigned.

The materials for each MPT include a file and a library. The file consists of the facts of a fictitious case and includes legal documents related to the case. The library contains statutes, cases, and other forms of rules. The file and library will include both relevant and irrelevant information; it’s up to you to figure out what you’ll need to complete your task. The examinee’s task will be outlined in a memorandum contained in the file.

Jurisdiction-Specific Component

The Hawaii bar exam also includes the Hawaii Legal Ethics Examination. This component consists of 15 multiple-choice questions and is administered on the Tuesday morning of the bar exam. Hawaii allows 30 minutes for this exam component. For more information on the Hawaii Legal Ethics Examination, please see the Hawaii State Judiciary’s website. The MEE, MPT, and Hawaii Legal Ethics Examination are equally weighted for a cumulative 50 percent of the total Hawaii bar exam score.

Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE)

A passing score on the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE) is also required to become a licensed Hawaii attorney. The MPRE tests an examinee’s knowledge of the ethics rules related to the practice of law. According to the NCBE, the purpose of the MPRE is to “measure examinees' knowledge and understanding of established standards related to the professional conduct of lawyers.”

The MPRE’s questions are largely based on the American Bar Association (ABA) Model Rules of Professional Conduct and the ABA Model Code of Judicial Conduct, but the MPRE also covers relevant court decisions as well as procedural and evidentiary rules.

The MPRE consists of 60 multiple choice questions—50 scored questions and 10 unscored questions. As with the MBE, each question on the MPRE is followed by four possible answer options. You’ll have two hours to complete the exam.

The MPRE is offered three times per year, typically in March, August, and November. Be sure to register early—the regular registration fee is $135, but the late registration fee is $220.

The MPRE is scored on a scale that ranges from 50 to 100. Hawaii requires a minimum-passing MPRE score of 85.

Hawaii bar exam information

Below is a list of frequently asked questions (FAQs) that provides helpful information to Hawaii bar examinees.

What are the Hawaii bar exam dates?

The Hawaii bar exam is offered twice a year on the last consecutive Tuesday and Wednesday in February and July. The Hawaii bar exam is typically administered in Honolulu.

When do I need to register for the Hawaii bar exam?

The regular deadline for the February 2025 exam is November 1, 2024. The regular deadline for registering for the July 2025 bar exam in Hawaii is April 1, 2025. For the latest deadline updates, please see the Hawaii State Judiciary's website.

What are the fees for the Hawaii bar exam?

The regular application fee for the Hawaii bar exam is $500. For more details on fees, visit the Hawaii State Judiciary's website.

When will I receive my Hawaii bar exam results?

Hawaii bar exam results are released approximately 10-12 weeks after the exam is administered. Hawaii bar exam results are posted publicly on the Hawaii State Judiciary's website.

What is the statewide pass rate for all exam takers in Hawaii?

57% (February 2024)

Please note that this is not the pass rate for Quimbee Bar Review, but rather the average for all people who took the bar exam in Hawaii. To see Quimbee Bar Review's pass rates, please go here.

What is the Hawaii bar exam contact information?

The Hawaii Board of Bar Examiners is the organization responsible for overseeing admission to the bar in Hawaii. It is through this board that you will register for the bar exam, receive exam information, and obtain your score.

Address:
Aliiolani Hale
417 South King Street
Honolulu, HI 96813

Email: [email protected]

Websitehttp://www.courts.state.hi.us/legal_references/bar_application

How do I get Hawaii bar exam news?

News and information about the Hawaii bar exam can be found on the Hawaii State Judiciary's website.

What is the best Hawaii bar exam prep course?

Quimbee does not provide state-specific coverage for the Hawaii bar exam, but you can use Quimbee Bar Review to supplement your bar prep. All of the course material for Quimbee Bar Review is available from your computer.

Hawaii Bar Practice Tests

Quimbee’s course offers several full-length practice MBEs and thousands of MBE practice questions—many licensed directly from the NCBE. 

Hawaii Bar Study Guide

With Quimbee, you’ll watch Quimbee's beautifully designed video lessons, practice multiple choice questions to test what you've learned, and read through Quimbee's expert-written outlines. And true understanding isn’t just answering a question correctly. You need to know why you got a question right or why you got a question wrong. That’s why Quimbee provides you with detailed explanations for every practice question so that you can understand the difference between the correct and incorrect answers.

Quimbee’s outlines provide comprehensive coverage of all MBE and MEE subjects. Quimbee Outlines are written by experts and are perfectly tailored to the NCBE’s subject matter outlines, so you can be confident you’re studying only the material that’s tested on the bar exam.

So, if you’re wondering how to pass the Hawaii bar exam, check out Quimbee Bar Review, and you’ll see why Quimbee is the best MBE review tool available.

Make your first attempt at the bar exam your last with Quimbee

  • 91% bar exam pass rate*
  • 100% money-back guarantee
  • 1,600+ real questions from past bar exams
* First-time UBE takers who have completed at least 75% of Quimbee Bar Review or Quimbee Bar Review+. The margin of error is 5.9%.
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