5,686 law graduates take bar exams Sunday

Street children pick up balloons used by schools in bidding their Bar examinees good luck on the first Sunday of the Bar exams. INQUIRER.net FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines – A total of 5,686 law graduates on Sunday started taking the month long bar examination at the University of Santo Tomas.

The examination will be conducted on four Sundays of October – 7, 14, 21, and 28 – which is a month early than last year’s bar examination, Deputy Clerk of Court and Bar Confidant Ma. Cristina Layusa said.

The Manila Police District together with the National Bureau of Investigation has been tapped to secure the area.

Layusa said a total 5,710 petitions were filed to take the bar exams, five have been denied, and 19 have been withdrawn.

The law graduates will take Political Law this Sunday morning and Labor and Social Legislation in the afternoon, a return to its original schedule unlike last year where examinees took the exam on three subjects in two Sundays.
Other schedule for the bar exam are the following: Civil Law (morning) and Taxation (afternoon) on Oct. 14; Mercantile Law (morning) and Criminal Law (afternoon) on Oct. 21; Remedial Law (morning) and Legal Ethics and Practical Exercises (afternoon) on Oct. 28.

Quoting the Rules of Court, Layusa said “a candidate may be deemed to have passed his examination successfully if he has obtained a general average of 75%.” The rule disqualifying applicants having grades in any subject falling below 50% has been abolished since 2010.”

A liquor ban was also in place around the perimeter walls of UST up to 8pm.

The first bar exams were held in 1901, with 13 examinees.