Bar Exam Information

Dates, Cost & Location

Dates, Cost, and Location

In the Peach State, lawyers get to practice law at the nation’s most innovative firms while enjoying the laid-back lifestyle that Georgia does best. Every year, you have two opportunities to take the Georgia Bar Exam: once in February and once in July. The February exam takes place over two days: February 24–25, 2026. Although the dates for the July exam haven’t been confirmed yet, you should expect it to be administered towards the end of that month. The deadline to apply for the February exam is October 1, 2025, while the deadline for the July exam is March 4, 2026.

If you apply for the Georgia Bar Exam before you graduate from law school, the exam application fee for the February exam is $450. If you apply after graduation, the fee is $750. Both the February and July administrations of the exam have a laptop fee of $105.

Unlike most U.S. states, Georgia doesn’t use the Uniform Bar Exam (UBE) version of the bar exam. Instead, Georgia uses a bar exam that is unique to the state. On the first day of the exam, you’ll spend the first three hours answering two Multistate Performance Test (MPT) questions, which take ninety minutes each to complete. These questions will primarily test your skills in legal writing, organization, and analysis. After a break for lunch, you’ll spend another three hours answering four essays, which take forty-five minutes each to complete.

On the second day, you’ll spend six hours answering two hundred multiple-choice questions on the Multistate Bar Examination (MBE). These questions are split into two sections of one hundred questions each, so that you have a lunch break in between.

Starting in July 2028, Georgia will be using the NextGen version of the bar exam. The NextGen bar exam is designed to prioritize real-world lawyering skills more than past versions of the bar. The NextGen exam will not test the following subjects: Conflict of Laws, Family Law, Secured Transactions, and Trusts & Estates. The NextGen exam will include more questions about practical legal work, such as legal writing, negotiations, and client relationships.

What subjects will you be tested on?
For the four essays on day one of the exam, you may be tested on Business Organizations, Family Law, Federal Practice and Procedure, Georgia Practice and Procedure, Non-Monetary Remedies, Professional Ethics, Trusts, Wills & Estates, Secured Transactions (including Articles 2, 3, & 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code), as well as all MBE subjects listed below. These subjects may also appear on the MPT, but that test focuses more on your ability to write a clear and convincing argument than your knowledge of a particular area of law. The relevant laws that apply to the MPT questions will be given to you in the question prompts. Even so, it can still be helpful to familiarize yourself with the Georgia Bar Exam subjects when studying for the MPT.

For the MBE, you may be tested on Constitutional Law, Contracts and Sales, Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure, Evidence, Federal Civil Procedure, Real Property, and Torts.

What’s the minimum score for the MPRE?
To pass the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE) in Georgia, you must receive a scaled score of at least 75 within twenty-five months of passing the Georgia Bar Exam.

How is the exam scored?
The MPT, MEE, and MBE are combined into a single scaled score. The MBE is worth 50% of the total score, while the MPT is worth 21.4% and the four essays are worth 28.6% total. To pass, you must achieve a combined scaled score of 270 out of 400.

When are the results released?
Usually, the results of the February exam are released by the end of May, but there is no fixed or guaranteed timeframe for when the results will be sent out. The results for the July 2025 Georgia Bar exam were released on September 26, 2025, so although the results for the July 2026 can be expected to be received in a similar timeframe, there is no guaranteed date.

Can I transfer my MBE scores from another jurisdiction?
Although you can’t transfer an out-of-state MBE score to Georgia, you can take an Attorneys’ Exam to practice law in Georgia. To be eligible for the exam, you must already be admitted to practice law in another state, be in good standing in all jurisdictions where you’re licensed, and not have previously taken the Georgia Bar Exam.

What about reciprocity across states?
Georgia has reciprocity with the following jurisdictions: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, the Virgin Islands, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.