So, after much deliberation, I’ve decided to take the July 2007 California Bar. I could’ve chosen any of the other 49 states, since I don’t have a job lined up yet, but I think it’s best if I return to San Francisco – the beautiful city by the bay. The CA Bar is a little intimidating, though. To get myself in the right mindset, I started searching the ‘net and found all these great blogs written by other law students who took the Bar in 2006. Their posts have actually been quite helpful, so I am inspired to post my thoughts and comments on the last semester of law school and Bar preparation in the hopes that someday some other anxious 3L will come across my blog and find refuge (or a good laugh) in these words.

My first experience with the Bar so far is signing up for the Barbri Bar Review Course. I didn’t sign up first year because I couldn’t really figure out what exactly Barbri was and why I should put down $100 for it my second week of law school! Besides, how could I think about the Bar when it was still three years away??? Once it became more clear to me, I continued to rebel, thinking some better, cheaper option might come along. But, since Barbri essentially has a monopoly on bar course offerings, I decided to follow along in the footsteps of so many others. So, for better or worse, I signed up today. I entered my information, hit submit, the page refreshed, and there it was – the cost of the Barbri Review Course. $3,325.00. Uh………. I was NOT expecting that. And with tax it comes to a grand total of $3400. Add that to the general application fees for the actual Bar application, and I’m looking at approximately $5,000 for the “privilege” of possibly becoming a bonafide lawyer. Seriously??? Seriously.