Picking 2L and 3L Courses in the NextGen Era: Which Bar-Tested Classes Actually Matter

Law students have always asked which upper-level courses to take for the bar. The answer used to be long. With the changes that took effect in July 2026, it's gotten shorter and more focused.

What changed

On the legacy UBE: Effective with the July 2026 bar exam, the Multistate Essay Exam (MEE) no longer tests Conflict of Laws, Family Law, Trusts and Estates, or Secured Transactions. NCBE has said that Family Law and Trusts and Estates will be tested regularly through the Multistate Performance Test from July 2026 through February 2028. On the MPT, you're given the law in a file and library, so you don't need to memorize those subjects.

On the NextGen UBE: The new exam, which debuted in July 2026 in a first group of jurisdictions, tests eight foundational subjects: Business Associations, Civil Procedure, Constitutional Law, Contracts, Criminal Law (including constitutional protections in criminal procedure), Evidence, Real Property, and Torts. It also tests lawyering skills like legal research, legal writing, issue spotting and analysis, and client counseling. NCBE has announced that Family Law will be added as a tested foundational subject starting in July 2028.

The legacy UBE remains available to jurisdictions through the February 2028 administration.

Courses that line up with the core eight

Most of these are 1L courses. The upper-level ones to prioritize are:

• Evidence. Heavily tested and hard to learn from scratch in bar prep. Take it.
• Business Associations (Corporations, Agency, Partnership). Tested on both exams and a common MEE subject. Take it.
• Criminal Procedure (constitutional protections). Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Amendment rules are tested. Worth taking.
• Constitutional Law (if your school splits it). If only part is required, consider the other half.

Where state-specific rules matter

Some jurisdictions test local law in addition to the UBE, and some states aren't UBE jurisdictions at all. California, for example, runs its own exam and tests subjects like Wills and Trusts and Community Property. If you know where you'll practice, check that jurisdiction's bar admissions website for its tested subjects before you choose courses.

Don't choose only for the bar

Bar-tested courses matter, but they're not the only consideration. Classes in your practice area, clinics, and writing-intensive courses build skills the NextGen exam cares about, like client counseling and legal writing. A balanced schedule usually beats one built entirely around bar subjects.

Build your rule base early

Every bar-tested course you take in law school is one you won't learn cold during bar prep. The students who have the easiest summer are the ones who kept their rules fresh after the final, not the ones who crammed and forgot.

Where Lexora Prep fits

Lexora Prep is a Black Letter Law rule-training platform covering 8 bar-tested subjects with 700+ concise rule statements. You practice them from memory through five modes, and Lexora tracks which elements you miss and brings those rules back over time. Law students use it to lock in rules while a course is still fresh, so they don't have to relearn it from zero in bar prep.

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About Lexora Prep

Lexora Prep is a Black Letter Law rule-training and essay practice platform for law students and bar exam candidates. It gives you 700+ concise rules across 8 bar-tested subjects and asks you to recall them, not just reread them, through five modes: Typing, Fill Blank, Rule Elements, Ordering, and Flashcards. Lexora tracks the elements you miss, brings weak rules back for review, and builds each session around your weak areas and available study time. When you're ready to apply the law, Essay Practice gives you 120+ original essays with detailed feedback on issue spotting, rule accuracy, application, conclusions, and organization.

For law students, that means rule statements that are ready for finals, and a head start on the bar exam you'll take after graduation.

Start practicing free → The Free plan includes a rule-practice preview and 3 Essay Practice questions.

Lexora Prep is a supplemental study tool, not a full bar review course, and it does not guarantee exam results. Legal rules can vary by jurisdiction; verify important rules with your course materials.