The Nevada Bar Exam
Structure, Topics Dates, Cost, Scores (2024)
The Nevada Bar Exam is a three-day exam administered by the Supreme Court of Nevada. Nevada is one of the few remaining states to have not adopted the Uniform Bar Examination (UBE®). Still, the silver state uses one UBE component—the Multistate Bar Examination (MBE®), developed by the National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE®). The remaining components are a Nevada-specific essay exam and the Nevada Performance Test (NPT), developed by the Board of Bar Examiners of the State of Nevada.
Nevada is one of only eleven states that have not adopted the UBE. Fortunately, this article details everything you need to know about this unique bar exam. Read on to learn about the Nevada Bar Exam's pass rates, application deadlines, eligibility requirements, reciprocity, score transfer, fees, subjects, format, and more.
Nevada Bar Exam Structure
The Nevada Bar Exam is administered biannually over three days on the last Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday of February and July. The exam consists of the following three equally weighted (33% each) components:
- MBE — Examinees will have two 3-hour sessions to answer 200 multiple-choice questions.
- NPT — Six 1-hour essay questions testing examinees' knowledge of fundamental legal principles and Nevada law.
- Nevada Essay Component — Two 2-hour tasks that simulate fundamental lawyering skills in a realistic situation.
The written components of the exam (NPT/Essay Component) are administered on the first and third days of the exam.
Nevada Bar Exam Dates, Requirements, and Scheduling
Aside from saving you stress, preparing your application for the Nevada Bar Exam and submitting it before the first filing deadline will also save you from paying a $550 late filing fee. See below for important deadlines, dates, and fees.
Exam Dates
Online applications must be submitted by 11:59 pm (PST) on the deadline date. Submitting an application after the timely filing deadline but before the final filing deadline requires an additional $550 late filing fee.
| Filing Periods | February 27-29, 2024 | July 30-Aug. 1, 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Timely Filing Deadline | October 1, 2023 | March 1, 2024 |
| Final Filing Deadline | December 1, 2023 | May 1, 2024 |
Requirements
To sit for the Nevada Bar Exam, you must have graduated from an ABA-accredited law school with a Juris Doctorate (JD). This requirement can be waived if you have your non-ABA-accredited law school education evaluated for equivalency and have been actively practicing law in another state for at least ten of the twelve years preceding your application.
Scheduling
All Nevada Bar Exam applicants must register through the ClearVantage online application system. Applications are accepted through online submission only. Answering "yes" to any question on the application requires you to submit supplemental responses for that question. You will need to input your NCBE number. If you don't have one, be sure to register.
Nevada Bar Exam Cost and Fees
Fees and costs associated with registering for the Nevada Bar Exam vary depending on the examinee's status (first-time applicant repeater, attorney, etc.) and the date by which they file. Below is a detailed and up-to-date list of exam-related fees.
| Application Fees | |
| First Time | $755 |
| Repeater | $755 |
| Attorney | $1,055 |
| Late Fees | |
| First Time | $1,305 |
| Repeater | $1,305 |
| Attorney | $1,605 |
| Other Fees | |
| Laptop Use | $150 |
| Copy of Application | $35 |
Payment Policies
Payment will only be accepted by online submission via credit or debit card at the time you submit the application. There are no exceptions and no refunds.
Cost-Saving Options
Nevada Bar Exam application fees have recently increased. Taking The Law School Admission Test (LSAT®), attending law school, and applying for the bar exam isn't cheap. Fortunately, there are cost-saving options available to qualifying candidates. The State Bar of Nevada has released a Program Development Grant Funding Report outlining such opportunities. You can also search the AccessLex Institute Law School Scholarship Databank.
Nevada Bar Exam Subjects and Topics
The Nevada Bar Exam covers 15 subjects as well as pleadings and practices under both the Nevada-state and Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and issues regarding ethics. These subjects are covered in the Nevada-specific written components. The MBE has seven subjects, many of which are also included in the Nevada components.
Testable Subjects on the Nevada Bar Exam Essay Portion
The Nevada Bar Exam Essay Portion consists of six one-hour essay questions administered in an open-book format. Each question may involve one or more of the subjects listed below. Some subjects may be paired together. Other subjects may be omitted. However, there is always one question involving ethics. Possible subjects include:
- Agency and Partnership
- Community Property
- Conflict of Laws
- Constitutional Law
- Contracts
- Corporations
- Criminal Law and Procedure
- Evidence
- Persons and Domestic Relations
- Real Property
- Remedies
- Torts
- Uniform Commercial Code (Articles 2 and 9)
- Wills
- Estates and Trusts
Examinees will also be tested on pleadings and practices under both the Nevada Rules of Civil Procedure and the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and ethics.
Testable Subjects on the NPT
The NPT tests examinees' ability to carry out fundamental lawyering skills with simulated tasks. You will be provided with a file containing source documents (transcripts, correspondence, investigative reports, etc.) and a library that may contain legal sources based on Nevada law, including cases, statutes, administrative regulations, and other legal authority commonly cited in a legal memorandum or used for reference. You must use these materials to complete two 2-hour tasks testing the following skills:
- Factual Analysis
- Legal Analysis and Reasoning
- Problem-Solving
- Identification and Resolution of Ethical Dilemmas
- Written Communication
- Organization and Management of Legal Tasks
The skills tested on the NPT are nested in the context of the subjects possible on the essay component.
Testable Subjects on the MBE
The MBE is administered in two 3-hour sessions on Wednesday (Day 2) of the bar exam. It is scored on a 200-point scale and presents candidates with 200 multiple-choice questions. Remember, there are 25 unscored pilot questions for future exams. The remaining 175 questions are divided evenly among the following seven MBE subjects:
- Constitutional Law
- Contracts
- Criminal Law/Procedure
- Evidence
- Civil Procedure
- Real Property
- Torts
Exclusive access to dozens of practice questions from recent bar exams.
Nevada Bar Exam Scoring/Grading
The three components of the Nevada Bar Exam are weighted equally (33% each). Each component is assigned 60 possible points, with 42 points constituting minimum competence. A total raw score of 126 is required to pass the Nevada Bar Exam. Components are graded as follows:
- Essay Component — Each of the six essays is worth 10 points, and a cumulative raw score of 42 constitutes minimum competence.
- NPT — Each of the two performance tests is worth 30 points and a cumulative raw score of 42 continuous minimum competence.
- MBE — Only 175 of the 200 multiple-choice questions are graded. The remaining 25 are pilot questions for future exams. An NCBE-scaled score of 138 is required to pass and will result in a raw score of 42.
Nevada MPRE Minimum Passing Score
Before you can practice law in Nevada, you must also pass the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE®) with a minimum score of 85. The MPRE features 60 multiple-choice questions administered over two hours. Check out our article, About the MPRE, to learn more about the mandatory exam.
Nevada Bar Exam Results and Pass Rates
As is typical with bar exams across the country, the Nevada Bar Exam's repeater pass rate is markedly lower than the first-timer pass rate. This phenomenon is likely because many examinees who failed the first time haven't changed their study habits significantly.
| Exam | Overall Pass Rate |
First-Timer Pass Rate |
Repeater Pass Rate |
Results Release Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 2023 | 63% | 71% | 36% | October 6 |
| Feb. 2023 | 53% | 65% | 36% | May 5 |
Below are the annual pass rates for the NV Bar Exam since 2017, divided into first-time examinees and repeaters.
| Exam | First Timers | Repeaters | Overall | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | No Of Candidates | Pass Rate | No Of Candidates | Pass Rate | No Of Candidates | Pass Rate |
| 2022 | 416 | 61% | 98 | 40% | 514 | 57% |
| 2021 | 439 | 66% | 100 | 38% | 539 | 61% |
| 2020 | 331 | 71% | 163 | 36% | 494 | 59% |
| 2019 | 350 | 70% | 176 | 39% | 526 | 60% |
| 2018 | 336 | 68% | 164 | 27% | 500 | 54% |
| 2017 | 324 | 71% | 199 | 38% | 523 | 59% |
Nevada Bar Exam Results
Nevada typically releases bar exam results eight weeks following the administration of an exam and posts them to the State Bar of Nevada website. Results for the July 2023 exam were released on October 6, 2023, and February 2023 exam results were released on May 5, 2023.
What Makes the Nevada Bar Exam Unique?
Nevada is one of 11 states that has not fully adopted the UBE. While Nevada uses the MBE, its essay and performance components are unique to the Nevada Bar Exam. These Nevada-specific components require examinees to study a variety of laws unique to the state, possibly making the NV Bar Exam more difficult than other bar exams.
Foreigners Eligibility
Foreigners are eligible to sit for the Nevada Bar Exam if they:
- Have their education evaluated as commensurate with educational standards set by the ABA.
- Have been actively practicing law in a country where "English common law substantially forms the basis of jurisprudence and English is the language of instruction and practice in the courts."
- Have been actively practicing law for at least ten of the twelve years preceding their application.
Nevada Bar Exam Reciprocity
Nevada does not have reciprocity or admission by motion of any kind. Only limited certification is available for faculty of the National Judicial College and Boyd School of Law, and designated governmental agencies.
Final Takeaways
Challenging though it might be, you can pass the Nevada Bar Examination with the right study plan and prep provider. However you choose to prepare for it, we wish you the best of luck with the Nevada Bar Exam.
Whether you are taking the UBE for the first time or you are a repeater, the best way to be among those who pass the Nevada Bar Exam is to study with practice questions and mock exams that mimic the actual bar exam.
If practice feels like the real thing, the real thing will feel like practice. The Themis + UWorld full bar review bundle offers 4000+ MBE practice questions. Each question has been curated by our premier team of legal experts or is licensed by the NCBE.
You'll gain access to 100+ MEE practice essays and 22 MPT practice questions from past exams. In addition, our MBE QBank offers customizable flashcards, performance tracking, answers filled with detailed illustrations, readings paired with bite-sized video lectures, and thorough explanations for each answer choice.
Contact Details of the Nevada State Bar
If you have any questions, you can contact the Nevada State Bar using the information below.
| State Bar of Nevada Contact Information | |
|---|---|
| Medium | Info |
| Phone | 702-382-2200 |
| Phone (Payment Info) | 702-463-5730 |
| [email protected] | |
| Address | State Bar of Nevada Admissions Department 3100 West Charleston Blvd., Suite 100 z Las Vegas, NV 89102 |
