In the Belly of the Beast: Writing Exams

• Author: Allan C. Hutchinson
• Pages: 205-229

There is nothing quite like law school examinations: they seem to

afflict students in ways that only an imminent visit to the dentist can

come close to repeating. They are both a special form of examination

and a special form of legal writing. Unlike most exams to which you

will be accustomed, law school examinations are not simply about

memorizing large amounts of material and regurgitating them in a

stylish fashion to obtain a good grade. The ability to memorize, recall,

and state the information is a definite and useful talent, but the main

focus of most law exams is on the practical application of that infor-

mation. Having a photographic memory certainly helps, but it will get

you only part of the way. Law school examinations test whether you

understand the material by requiring you to use that material in an

effective and cogent manner. Accordingly, knowing the course and

cases backwards and forwards is a necessary but not sufficient prepa-

ration for examination success. It has to be understood that law

school examinations are not a trivia quiz; they rarely test students’

knowledge of the minutiae or detail of legal judgments and statutes

in the belly of the beast

writing exams

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for their own sake. As such, law school examinations are not about

memory, but about issue-spotting and argument: the examination is

an occasion when students are given a platform to display their abil-

ity to argue persuasively. In this way, law school examinations test the

combination of skills that derive from an effective grasp of legal

sources, legal reasoning, and legal writing.

No two law professors agree on much, least of all the perfect

examination question or answer. Indeed, it is a mistake to imagine

that there are perfect answers. At best, there are better and worse

models of how to approach and answer examination questions.

However, there are certain fundamental skills and insights that you

would do well to learn if you want to succeed at law school examina-

tions. What follows is an attempt to provide you with an appropriate

context of information about examinations so that you will be able to

study and write them with less anxiety and more success. First, I will

introduce the broader context in which evaluation and examinations

take place, and then provide a series of suggestions and tips on how

to study for and write examinations. Although incorporating these

techniques into your array of other studying skills will not assure you

of an A standing, they will assure that you fulfil your potential and be

in the top half of your class. Remember that few people fail exams; it

is simply a question of how well you do.

the broader context

Before addressing the nitty-gritty of preparing for and writing exams,

it is instructive to consider the general and institutional background

against which law school evaluations take place. Although there are

many pedagogic and educational reasons to move beyond the three-

hour, 100 percent examination at the end of the course, most

Canadian law schools rely on this form of evaluation as a major

device for grading students. There is considerable debate around the

whole question of whether there is a need for any grading at all with-

in law schools. After all, you had to do exceptionally well to make it

this far. Whereas some argue that grading systems merely pander to

the legal profession in that they provide a convenient way to sort

206 / the law school book