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The Smart Guide to the Illinois Bar Exam
A Guide to Mastering the Illinois Bar Exam
Illinois Bar Exam Format
Illinois is a Uniform Bar Exam (UBE) jurisdiction. All UBE jurisdictions use the same 3 sections:
Multistate Bar Exam (MBE)
200 multiple choice
Multistate Essay Exam (MEE)
6 essays
Multistate Performance Test (MPT)
2 writing assignments
Illinois Bar Exam Dates
July 2026 exam: July 28-29, 2026
Feb. 2027 exam: Feb. 23-24, 2027
*The Illinois Bar Exam takes place on the last Tuesday & Wednesday of February and July.
How to Prepare for
the Illinois Bar Exam
(FREE Study Guides)
Click the links above for FREE study guides covering each section of the bar exam.
Contact Info
Illinois Board of Admissions to the Bar
625 S. College St.
Springfield, IL 62704-2521
Website: https://www.ilbaradmissions.org/home
Phone: (217) 522-5917
Fax: (217) 522-3728
Frequency Charts
(FREE Charts & Statistics)
Click the links above for FREE Frequency Charts covering each section of the bar exam.
Subjects Tested on Illinois Bar Exam
MEE Essay Subjects
- Business Associations (Agency, Partnerships, Corporations, LLC’s)
- Civil Procedure
- Constitutional Law
- Contracts
- Criminal Law & Procedure
- Evidence
- Real Property
- Torts
Note: Starting with the July 2026 exam, the following subjects are no longer tested on the MEE: Conflict of Laws, Family Law, Secured Transactions, Trusts & Future Interests, and Wills & Estates.
MBE Subjects
- Civil Procedure
- Constitutional Law
- Contracts
- Criminal Law & Procedure
- Evidence
- Real property
- Torts
Minimum Passing Score
For Illinois, the UBE minimum passing score is 266.
Jurisdiction-Specific Component
NO