11,437 show up for 1st day of Bar examinations
This year’s more than 11,000 aspiring lawyers have “a good fighting chance” to pass the Bar examination, which was designed to be reasonable and fair, according to Bar chair and Supreme Court Associate Justice Amy Lazaro-Javier.
Out of 13,192 admitted Bar examinees, a total of 11,437 hopefuls showed up on the first day on Sunday, Lazaro-Javier said in a press conference at the University of Santo Tomas.
Among the takers, 5,215 are first-timers, 4,239 are second-timers and 1,984 are “refreshers.”
Asked about the possible passing rate for this year’s exam, Lazaro-Javier refused to give a prediction but emphasized that her standard was “reasonableness.”
“Because the questions are reasonable and fair, I think my [Bar] babies have a good fighting chance,” she said.
“With every question that I crafted, I really asked for discernment and wisdom and my standard is to ask reasonable questions, to be fair,” she added.
Lazaro-Javier also noted that the questions were limited to doctrines, principles and her own cases, which, all in all, were intended to ensure that every subject was equally covered.
In the 2024 Bar exams, a total of 3,962 bar-takers passed with the passing rate at 37.84 percent. The Supreme Court en banc at the time decided to adjust the passing grade to 74 percent from 75 percent to allow more applicants to pass, Associate Justice Mario Lopez said.
In a viral video message, Lazaro-Javier said she had reserved the “biggest venue” for the oath-taking of those who would pass this year.
Asked to expound on this, the associate justice said: “My message speaks for itself. I think my heart speaks my thoughts and my best wishes for my babies.”
She also encouraged the Bar takers to “keep going” and show up in the succeeding days of the exams.
“Success is not a product of just one decision or just one action. It’s a series of decisions to show up and do your best. If they don’t show up, that’s it. It’s the end of the line. But I want my babies to keep fighting til the end and win this challenge,” Lazaro-Javier said.
Based on the Bar chair’s statistics, 241 of the examinees are persons with disabilities, 206 are senior citizens and 41 women are pregnant.
