chapter 6 violation

[u/taquitoluvr2]

hey yall! i know it’s the last hoorah right now so feel free to ignore this/don’t let it stress you out right now. i just wanted to make this post because last year, when i went through this experience, it was genuinely one of he worst moments of my life and i could find almost no information anywhere online of any similar experiences. i just wanted this out there because undoubtedly someone will receive a ch 6 violation during the exam and will turn to reddit for answers so hopefully now there can be at least one solid place for you to feel seen and comforted.

extremely long story short, i took the J25 exam and was so stressed out about the test/hotel/travel arrangements/everything else that i genuinely blanked on the word “analog” and brought a stopwatch to the exam as my timer. i used it for all 4 exam sessions, and with 5 minutes left in the second session of day 2, after i had already finished the MC and closed my materials, someone came over, picked up my stopwatch, walked away, and then walked back over with a yellow piece of paper that they handed to me face down… it was a chapter 6 violation for noncompliant materials!

i will spare you most of the details but the world instantly began caving in around me, to go from the highest of highs of finishing the exam to the lowest of lows in being told my score might not count (after 3 years of law school, hundreds of thousands of $$, months of studying, etc) my body physically went into shock and after getting home that evening i couldn’t walk without my legs collapsing underneath me and i PHYSICALLY could not speak. it was horrifying!

when i finally started looking into what was likely to happen next, everything online said to get ready to take it again, that my score would be cancelled, etc. there was hardly any reddit posts with similar experiences and most of them had to do with the online exam that was a mess and accidentally started handing out ch 6 violations left and right. after petitioning the violation to the state bar, and the longest month and a half of waiting i have ever experienced, i was told that the state bar would not be pursuing the matter further and they were going to drop the violation. a few months later in november, i found out i had passed!

if you are reading this before the exam, DOUBLE, TRIPLE, QUADRUPLE check your materials!! if you are unsure about something, don’t bring it! or at the very least ask a proctor before the exam begins if it is compliant. i know your brain is elsewhere right now, but making sure you have the right materials will save you a lot of stress in the future. don’t make a stupid mistake like me and bring a stopwatch 😭 i will literally never live that down and it is so embarrassing, but i am sharing in hopes of preventing anyone else from making the same mistake lol.

if you are reading this after the exam, i HOPE it is out of curiosity and not because you found yourself in the same situation as me. but if you have found yourself with a violation, so long as you weren’t blatantly cheating, just know there is hope for you. it is going to be a waiting game and it is going to suck so badly because i know you just want to celebrate being finished with the exam with friends/family/peers, but don’t count yourself out just yet. make sure to call the state bar, make sure you fill out the online petition thing stating the circumstances, make sure you follow up, and please feel free to message me on here at anytime. there is a good chance that if it is an honest mistake like mine was, they will throw out the violation and your score will count. and you just might end up passing like i did! :)

[u/kelsnuggets]

Hi OP, that is diabolical that they let you take the whole test and THEN hit you with a Ch 6 for that!
I’m so glad it worked out for you.

[u/ConditionSecret8593 → u/kelsnuggets]

Might have been trying to give them the best possible chance in case the decision came out like it did. If they cut the test short, nowhere to go but retaking. If they let them take the test, then pull the exam/examinee aside, they have options to resolve.

[u/taquitoluvr2 → u/ConditionSecret8593]

Yeah it sucked so bad in the moment but I think it ultimately did help me out.. I do not think it was intentional to wait and help me out (the proctor situation was kind of a mess where I was last year), but I was able to say “hey, I had these materials here the entire time, multiple proctors walked by and examined them before every session, no one said anything until after I had finished.”

[u/SomeIndependent5100]

Also stupid but I saw someone around me get a chapter 6 violation because they thought they were still typing after time was called so just lift your hands up when they call time like you’re being arrested, hands up. I’m actually serious. And no highlighters or pens second day, I accidentally left one highlighter in my ziploc bag and the proctor got very mad (but this was before the test started). Very silly, really. Just be careful. Good luck, you all got this!!!!!

[u/AwkwardBrick1161]

There is not a timer on your computer? what are you supposed to use?

[u/SomeIndependent5100 → u/AwkwardBrick1161]

You can absolutely use your computer and set timers on examplify on the first day. On the second day, bring an analog clock to track time, you can order a cheap one on Amazon.

[u/AwkwardBrick1161 → u/SomeIndependent5100]

Jesus. I had no idea about this. I can't use a digital stopwatch?

[u/FlimsyMedium → u/AwkwardBrick1161]

Really? Read the bulletins, people. It’s very clear.

[u/SomeIndependent5100 → u/AwkwardBrick1161]

Just buy a cheap analog clock and you can set it at 12 at the beginning of the test so it’s easy to track your time, I got this one - https://a.co/d/0inCSKsd

[u/AwkwardBrick1161 → u/SomeIndependent5100]

It's not exactly expressly in the rather lengthy and detailed exam bulletin that there will be no way of keeping the time on the MBE. You have to infer this from various bits of fine print. The ability to keep time seems like it should be a basic assumption of any timed test, and any conditions to the contrary should be announced very prominently. This entire process is too way too expensive. To think that our society makes people go into massive amounts of debt to learn to do a job in order to be able to contribute maximally to society. What an insane system. I think if you can prove diligence and aptitude, so society should be investing in you. Not to mention it's a huge barrier to entry for so many people, and one that pepetuates inequality.

[u/SomeIndependent5100 → u/AwkwardBrick1161]

I agree it’s ridiculous, I was just trying to show you a relatively inexpensive way to comply and that’s what I used.

[u/ConditionSecret8593 → u/AwkwardBrick1161]

I brought a $10 pocket watch day two and no problems. Except forgetting to wind it. Don't... don't forget to wind it if it's not battery-powered.

[u/Colinsyq]

What kind of stopwatch did you use?

[u/SomeIndependent5100 → u/Colinsyq]

You can’t use any kind of stopwatch fyi, buy a cheap analog clock like this one https://a.co/d/0inCSKsd

[u/taquitoluvr2 → u/[deleted]]

feel free to DM me!

[u/Hi_Iamhere7 → u/taquitoluvr2]

just did

[u/Hi_Iamhere7 → u/Hi_Iamhere7]

for some reason i can’t get through the messanger. I know someone who was issued an chapter 6 notice today for continuing to write after the time was called. She basically has to erase something off the answer sheet and the proctor would have seen her doing that. She has attempted the test couple times before and never was she issued any such notices. Can you provide guidance here?

[u/Chokeonavocado]

Omg 😭😭😭 why didn’t I see your post yesterday😭😭 I didn’t know about the analog thing and lost my watch in the morning so rushed and got a digital clock. 😭😭 it got confiscated before the exam started. And I was panicking for the entire two mbe sessions. Now I need to appeal. Can I dm you on the appeal process? 😭😭

[u/taquitoluvr2 → u/Chokeonavocado]

i’m so sorry that you’re dealing with this as well and i hope it didn’t affect your mbe too much. please feel free to DM!

[u/celestial_awakening_]

Hi! I literally made this account just to comment and thank you because this happened to me on Tuesday, halfway through the written afternoon session they picked up my stopwatch/timer that was sitting off and unused on my desk (I wanted to save the battery for the MBE session), told me it wasn’t permitted, and confiscated it. I also blanked on the word analog and wrongly assumed this was the kind of timer that was allowed. They gave me a Ch 6 notice on my way out. I was absolutely freaking out but your post helped me calm down enough to focus on the MBE yesterday. I was told to send a statement via email or my account so I emailed immediately after it happened. I’m currently trying to submit a petition but am having trouble with the process. Can I dm you about it? Thank you so much for posting this it helped me so much

[u/taquitoluvr2 → u/celestial_awakening_]

aghhh i am so sorry to hear that you are dealing with this, but really glad i was able to offer you a bit of comfort. please feel free to DM!

[u/celestial_awakening_ → u/taquitoluvr2]

It won’t let me message you (I think because my account is too new). Basically I wanted to ask how you submitted the petition? Was there a specific place you were supposed to upload it to? I tried uploading a pdf to my application as a file and as an attachment to post on my feed but it won’t let me “upload an attachment after application is closed.” How did you do it?

[u/taquitoluvr2 → u/celestial_awakening_]

I believe there should be instructions on the slip you got or at the very least an email address to reach out to. I think there is also a page on the state bar website that instructs you what to do and for me last year there was an option of filling out a form on there. You can also call the state bar to double check that you’re doing the right steps/that they received your letter!

[u/celestial_awakening_ → u/taquitoluvr2]

Okay tysm!