Bar exam passers at more than 1T

THE country has 1,913 new lawyers, based on the results of last year’s bar examinations.

The number represents 31.94 percent of 6,200 law graduates who passed the exams.

The Supreme Court (SC) will release today the names of the successful examinees.

Supreme Court Administrator and spokesman Midas Marquez said last year’s national passing percentage is the second highest for the decade following the 32.89 percent in 2001.

The SC, Maquez said, opted not to lower the passing percentage from 75 percent.

For the first time, the SC introduced in the Bar Exams the new format of multiple choice questions (MCQ), which made up 60 percent of the total score.

Essay-type items, which used to be the sole format, will make up 40 percent.

A total of 6,200 law graduates from over a hundred law schools nationwide took  the exams held at the University of Sto. Tomas (UST) in Manila on four consecutive Sundays last November.

In an interview, lawyer Alex Monteclar, dean of the University of San Carlos (USC), said they are expecting a higher passing percentage for the school’s bar examinees.

“With the 32.89 percent national passing percentage, we expect that USC will also have an increase in our passing rate,” Monteclar told Cebu Daily News.

“We hope there is a topnotcher (from USC),” he added. Monteclar said the increase in the passing rate in the 2011 Bar Exams may be due to the introduction of the MCQ.

Monteclar said USC would just be waiting for the SC to release the names of the successful examinees today.