5,686 aspiring lawyers to take Bar exams

MANILA, Philippines -  A total of 5,686 aspiring lawyers will take the 2012 Bar examinations to be held on the four Sundays of October, starting today, at the University of Santo Tomas (UST) in Sampaloc, Manila.

Supreme Court (SC) Associate Justice Martin Villarama Jr. is the chairman of this year’s Bar Examinations Committee.

Deputy Clerk of Court and Bar Confidant Ma. Cristina Layusa said the SC has accepted 5,686 examinees from a total of 5,710 petitions to take the Bar exams.

There were 6,200 Bar examinees last year, with 1,913 passers.

Layusa said the high court modified the format for this year’s exams wherein seven of the eight subjects will have 60 percent multiple choice questions and 40 percent essay type problems.

Every Sunday, there will be two subjects, unlike last year when there were two Sundays with three subjects to accommodate the memorandum writing in the afternoon of the last Sunday of the exam.

The essay section of the exams will require the examinee to prepare a trial memorandum or a decision based on a documented legal dispute.

The 2012 Bar exams will be conducted as follows: Oct. 7, Political Law and Labor and Social Legislation; Oct. 14, Civil Law and Taxation; Oct. 21, Mercantile Law and Criminal Law; and Oct. 28, Remedial Law and Legal Ethics and Practical Exercises.

Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim has issued Executive Order 32 prohibiting the sale and distribution of beer and other intoxicating beverages on the examination dates in the vicinity of UST.