Table of Contents
- Taking the NextGen Bar Exam
What Is the NextGen Bar Exam?
Is Your State Adopting NextGen?
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Big changes are coming to the bar exam. The NextGen bar exam will debut in July 2026 and will fully replace the Uniform Bar Examination (UBE) 2 years later. Read on to discover what you’ll face on the NextGen exam.
What Is the NextGen Bar Exam?
The NextGen exam takes a practice-oriented approach to assessment and focuses on the skills and substantive knowledge expected of a newly licensed attorney. The exam covers 4 foundational skill areas: issue spotting and analysis, client advising, legal research, and legal writing.
Out with the old, in with the new
The NextGen exam does away with the old components of the UBE, namely, the Multistate Bar Examination (MBE), the Multistate Essay Examination (MEE), and the Multistate Performance Test (MPT). Some NextGen multiple-choice questions will be patterned after the current MBE, with examinees expected to resolve a legal issue by choosing the best of 4 answer options. But examinees will also face new question styles:
- Issue-spotting multiple-choice questions. After a short fact pattern, examinees review a list of 6 legal concepts and select the 2 that are applicable. If an examinee selects 1 correct answer choice, partial credit is awarded. These questions are a shift from traditional MBE problems because they test the examinee’s ability to issue spot rather than recall detailed rules and apply them.
- Integrated question sets. Integrated questions examine realistic lawyering scenarios. The examiners provide fact documents, such as notes from a client interview, a police report, or a deposition excerpt, and legal resources, such as statutes and cases. Multiple-choice and short-answer questions follow. Then, the examiners provide further factual and legal materials and ask additional questions. Integrated question sets test practical lawyering skills and extend across multiple subject areas. For example, an integrated set could test client counseling skills and require knowledge of evidence and civil procedure.
- Longer drafting problems. This question type is a variation on the MPT; the examiners provide a file with factual information and a library of legal resources. Examinees must draft or edit common legal documents, such as memos, briefs, and contracts.
Subjects tested
Most areas from the UBE remain tested on the NextGen exam, including business associations, civil procedure, constitutional law, contracts, criminal law and procedure, evidence, real property, and torts. Family law will be added to the NextGen exam for the July 2028 administration.
Notably, the NextGen exam is dropping coverage of conflict of laws, wills, trusts and estates, and secured transactions. Although examinees won’t be expected to have mastered trusts and estates, the subject may appear on the exam alongside legal resources, such as statutes or caselaw.
Notably, the NextGen exam is dropping coverage of conflict of laws, wills, trusts and estates, and secured transactions. Although examinees won’t be expected to have mastered trusts and estates, the subject may appear on the exam alongside legal resources, such as statutes or caselaw.
Less memorization required
Here’s some happy news. For the subjects that remain, the NextGen exam reduces the scope of material examinees must commit to memory. Many concepts will require general familiarity instead of detailed knowledge. Plus, examinees will be given legal resources that assist with answering many questions.
Research skills tested
The NextGen exam contains a new focus on legal research skills. Examinees will demonstrate practice-oriented skills, including generating the proper research question, identifying efficient research strategies, and brainstorming appropriate search terms.
Professional responsibility tested
The addition of professional responsibility is also a significant shift from the UBE. The NextGen exam tests a selected set of Model Rules of Professional Conduct that naturally arise in client-advising scenarios. Examinees will see questions testing conflicts, confidentiality, and other areas. Here’s the list of rules tested:
- Rule 1.1, Competence
- Rule 1.2(a) and (d), Scope of representation and allocation of authority between client and lawyer
- Rule 1.3, Diligence
- Rule 1.4, Communications
- Rule 1.6(a) and (c), Confidentiality of information
- Rule 1.7, Conflict of interest: current clients
- Rule 3.1, Meritorious claims and contentions
- Rule 3.3(a)(1)–(2), Candor toward the tribunal
- Rule 4.1, Truthfulness in statements to others
- Rule 4.2, Communication with persons represented by counsel
- Rule 4.3, Dealing with unrepresented persons
Note that the NextGen exam’s coverage isn’t intended to replace the Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam (MPRE). The MPRE will remain a stand-alone exam, and it’s likely that many jurisdictions will continue to require passage for bar admission.
Is Your State Adopting NextGen?
States face a choice of licensure options. The National Conference of Bar Examiners will release test materials for both the UBE and NextGen for a 2-year period, beginning with the July 2026 exam and continuing through the February 2028 exam.
As a result, jurisdictions could begin administering the NextGen exam as soon as July 2026 or stay with the UBE through the February 2028 administration. In addition, jurisdictions could adopt a state-authored exam or establish pathways to licensure that do not rely on bar passage. In short, the landscape is shifting, but here’s what we know so far:
As a result, jurisdictions could begin administering the NextGen exam as soon as July 2026 or stay with the UBE through the February 2028 administration. In addition, jurisdictions could adopt a state-authored exam or establish pathways to licensure that do not rely on bar passage. In short, the landscape is shifting, but here’s what we know so far:
States that will adopt NextGen
- Arizona will administer the NextGen exam beginning in July 2027.
- Connecticut will administer the NextGen exam, but the first administration date hasn’t been announced.
- Iowa will administer the NextGen exam beginning in July 2027.
- Kentucky will administer the NextGen exam beginning in July 2027.
- Maryland will administer the NextGen exam beginning in July 2026.
- Missouri will administer the NextGen exam beginning in July 2026.
- Nebraska will administer the NextGen exam beginning in July 2027.
- Oregon will administer the NextGen exam beginning in July 2026.
- Wyoming will administer the NextGen exam beginning in July 2027.
States that have declined NextGen for now
- Florida has announced that it will not adopt NextGen for the July 2026 administration, but it may adopt the exam in the future. For July 2026, Florida will continue to use the MBE as a component of its exam.
- Pennsylvania has announced that it will not adopt NextGen for the July 2026 administration, but it may adopt the exam in the future.
Taking the NextGen Bar Exam
The NextGen exam-day experience will differ from the current bar exam. The NextGen exam eliminates the use of paper test packets and answer sheets. Instead, examinees will take the exam entirely on laptop computers. Moving to a computer-based test format will place a premium on examinees’ abilities to parse questions and legal authorities on-screen.
In addition, the NextGen exam reduces the overall duration of testing. The UBE requires 2 days of testing, with morning and afternoon sessions of 3 hours each. The NextGen exam will shorten the testing window to a day and a half.
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In addition, the NextGen exam reduces the overall duration of testing. The UBE requires 2 days of testing, with morning and afternoon sessions of 3 hours each. The NextGen exam will shorten the testing window to a day and a half.
Quimbee has your back in law school and beyond. Expert-written case briefs, outlines, and a practice-oriented bar review course give you the edge you’ll need to ace law school finals and conquer the bar exam. Want to learn more about the unique features Quimbee Bar Review+ uses to help prepare you for the bar exam? Book a 30-minute consultation and course tour for free.
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
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