Not sure where to start? Or what to use? Check out this flowchart that shows what exam prep study aids are available by feature.
These series include problems/ questions and model answers relating to the area of law being discussed. All series are available online.
Acing Series
Emanuel Crunchtime
Examples & Explanations series
Exam Pro
Friedmans Practice Series
Glannon Guides
Questions & Answers Series
Steve Emanuel's First Year Questions and Answers, Second Edition
Off the Charts Law Summaries by Key to abbreviations used below:
| Feature | Series |
Review and Understand Key Concepts |
Examples & Explanations (AP) Emanuel Crunchtime (AP) Inside series (AP) Acing Series (WA) Concepts & Insights (WA) Understanding Series (LD) |
Practice Multiple Choice Questions |
Emanuel Crunchtime (AP) Exam Pro Objective (WA) Friedman’s Practice Series (AP) Glannon Guides (AP) Mastering Multiple Choice for Federal Civil Procedure (WA) Questions & Answers (LD) |
Practice Short Answer Questions |
Acing (WA) Emanuel Crunchtime (AP) Examples & Explanations (AP) Questions & Answers (LD) Steve Emanuel’s First Year Questions & Answers (AP) Step-by-Step (WA) |
Practice Essay Questions |
Exam Pro Essay (WA) Step-by-Step (WA) Friedman's Practice Series (AP) Emanuel Crunchtime (AP) - select titles |
Flowcharts |
Acing Series (checklists) (WA) Emmanuel Crunchtime (AP) Off the Charts Law Summaries (P) Contract Law, Flowcharts and Cases (P) |
Interactive / Simulated |
Exam Pro (select subjects) (WA) Step-by-Step (WA) |
Outlines |
Emanuel Law Outlines (AP) Black Letter Outlines (WA) Gilbert Law Summaries (WA) Quick Reviews (WA) |
The law library provides online access to past exams given in the law school, when available. Some professors don’t provide access to past exams through the law library. If you are unable to locate exams for your professors, please check with them.
Exams are searchable by professor and by course. If we have exams for your professor, you'll see the course name followed by EXAMS. In the example below, Father O'Brien has exams for Family Law and Trusts & Estates. He also has books on course reserve for both classes. Course reserves are listed under non-EXAM entries.
Family Law- EXAMS
Trusts & Estates- EXAMS
Trusts And Estates
Family Law
Use the search box below to locate exams. You must enter your CUA user name and password to view and print exams. Contact csl-ref@cua.edu with questions.
The staff at the Law Library has created a system that allows law students to request their own exam submission, the exam questions/prompts, and any other supplementary or explanatory material made available by the faculty (e.g. model answers).
Visit the Law Library’s TWEN page for more information and to submit a request. Please note that you will need to add the Law Library as a course on TWEN.
Requests can be submitted at any time, but the Law Library is able to respond to requests only M-Th 10am-6pm, and Fridays 8am - 4pm. Access will expire at 11:59pm (EST) two days after you receive the documents. If you need access again, please submit a request using the form on the Law Library's TWEN page. You can make multiple requests for the same exam. Exams are retained on file for 12-18 months, so they are available for review throughout the academic year.
Linked titles are available online through West Academic Study Aids. Print titles are located in the Reference Room and may be checked out for 1 week, with a renewal of 1 week.
Getting to Maybe: How to Excel on Law School Exams by
This is a classic, recommended by faculty and students. Getting to Maybe teaches how to excel on law school exams by showing the reader how legal analysis can be brought to bear on examination problems. The book contains hints on studying and preparation that go well beyond conventional advice. The authors also illustrate how to argue both sides of a legal issue without appearing wishy-washy or indecisive. Above all, the book explains why exam questions may generate feelings of uncertainty or doubt about correct legal outcomes and how the student can turn these feelings to his or her advantage.
How to Write Law Exams: IRAC Perfected by
This book focuses on law school and bar exams rather than the kind of assignments seen in legal writing classes. As such, the book helps students improve their grades in all of their substantive courses, not just in their first year legal writing class. Includes detailed student-written examples of the IRAC method in action. Annotated with line-by-line critiques, these sample essays show readers exactly what can go wrong in a law school exam and how to fix those problems before they appear on a graded paper.
Law School and Exams by 
Law School Exams: a Guide to Better Grades by 
Law School Secrets: Outlining for Exam Success by 
Mastering the Law School Exam by
This book is practical rather than theoretical where the emphasis is on providing the type of detailed examples necessary to show students precisely “how to do it” and “how to write it.” By working with numerous illustrations in the context of substantive law, students learn to: Fill the gap between what the professor refers to as learning to “think like a lawyer” and the actual means for doing so. Create a successful path from note-taking -to outlining-to exam writing. Identify the basic skills that exams seek to test and the precise manner in which they are tested. Become familiar with the general types of law school exams through examples and detailed analyses of sample answers. Use the language of the law in the writing of issues, statements of the rule, and analysis of the facts.
Open Book: the Inside Track to Law School Success by
Open Book introduces them to the basic structure of our legal system and to the distinctive features of legal reasoning. To prepare students for exams, the book explains in clear and careful detail what exams are designed to test. It then devotes a single, clearly written chapter to each step of the process of answering exams. It also contains a wealth of material, both in the book and digitally, on preparing for exams.
The Perfect Practice Exam by 
Writing Essay Exams to Succeed in Law School by 