- CHERYL G. CRUZ
The Supreme Court said Tuesday that it will release the results of the 2020/2021 Bar Examinations on April 12, with the oath-taking of successful examinees to be held on May 2.
The SC said in a press briefer that Associate Justice Marvic Leonen, the 2020-21 Bar Examinations Committee chairperson, has asked the Court to hold a special en banc session on April 12 for his report on the first-ever digitalized and regionalized Bar examinations, and the release of its results.
The oath-taking of the successful Bar examinees is scheduled on May 2. The venue, time, and other details shall be announced later, the SC said.
The SC said 11,790 paid their application fees, but only 11,378 examinees showed up on the first day of the exam Feb. 4, including the more than 160, who took the tests at the University of St. La Salle in Bacolod.
The USLS was one of the 31 local testing sites for the Feb. 4 and 6 exams, the first time that the Bar was held in multiple venues, shortened to two days instead of the usual four consecutive Sundays and administered in Manila, and done digitally, with examinees bringing their own laptops and downloading questions from a secured online application.
The SC, in Bar Matter No. 3860, or the Grading System for the 2020/21 Bar Examinations, also decided to do away with coming up with the Top 10 topnotchers, and instead will release the list of examinees, who have earned recognition for exemplary performance for obtaining a total weighted score of 85 percent or higher.
The subjects in the examination shall be given relative weights, including 15 percent for Civil Law, Labor and Social Legislation, 10 percent; Commercial Law, 15 percent; Criminal Law, 10 percent; Political and International Law, 15 percent; Taxation, 10 percent; Remedial Law, 20 percent; and Legal Ethics and Practical Exercises, 5 percent.
To successfully pass the Bar, an examinee’s total weighted score across all subjects must be equivalent to at least 75 percent, computed in accordance with the relative weights per subject.
“A total weighted score equivalent to below 75 percent will mean that an examinee did not pass the exams. This is without prejudice to the lowering of the minimum total weighted score required to pass the 2020/21 Bar Examinations, as may be deemed appropriate and resolved by the Supreme Court en banc, upon recommendation of the Bar chairperson,” the SC said.
The performance of each law school in the examinations shall be reported by ranking and listing law schools from the most to the least percentage of passers from among their total first-time examinees. There shall be separate lists categorizing law schools in relation to the number of their first-time examinees.
Another list shall be prepared, indicating law schools with examinees recognized for exemplary performance. Law schools included in this list shall be ranked and listed from those with the most to the least number of examinees recognized for exemplary performance, the SC said.
Leonen proposed the modification in the grading system to enable a more reasonable approach to appraising and reporting on Bar Examination performance.
“Everyone is now a Bar bet,” he said in socmed post. “All the best for everyone. Take care of each other.”/CGC
