Essay 1: Professional Responsibility
Client relationships, criminal conduct, and AI-assisted work
Read the sample answer and question pointers →A QUESTION-TO-ANSWER STUDY SERIES
July 2026 California Bar Exam
Sample Answers & Annotated Questions
Five original essay responses and a performance-test client letter, with issue outlines and numbered pointers on the actual exam questions.
Practice first, compare second
These are original, ungraded teaching examples. They are not official State Bar selected answers or graded student submissions. Use them to compare reasoning and organization after you attempt the questions.
Choose an essay or the performance test
Essay 2: Community Property & Succession
Classify each asset before applying omitted-spouse protection
Read the sample answer and question pointers →Essay 3: Remedies & Restitution
Trace the assets, distinguish remedies, and analyze delay
Read the sample answer and question pointers →Essay 4: Business Associations
Separate preincorporation obligations from later corporate debts
Read the sample answer and question pointers →Essay 5: California Evidence & Constitutional Law
Answer each numbered objection, then separate hearsay from confrontation
Read the sample answer and question pointers →Performance Test: In re Freeman Potential Litigation
A client letter, a six-statement analysis, and a worked writing plan
Read the sample answer and question pointers →How to study with the question markup
- Try the clean question. Write your own issue outline or timed answer first.
- Open the marked-up text. Each page includes the actual question text with highlighted issue triggers and numbered teaching pointers. You can read it directly in your browser; the PDF is optional.
- Compare the response. Look for rule application, competing arguments, organization, and a conclusion responsive to the call.
- Revise one passage. Turn a lesson into a specific improvement and test it on another question.
Official questions and original teaching responses
The State Bar's July 2026 packet supplies the essay questions and the PT file and library. Our highlighted pointers, issue outlines, and sample responses are added instructional material. The official clean source is linked on every response page. These examples do not replace the instructions for your own examination.
Official past-exam archive · More past California exam questions