The Basics
The Multistate Performance Test (MPT) consists of two 90 minute items.The materials for each MPT include a File and a Library. The File consists of source documents containing all the facts of the case. The specific assignment the examinee is to complete is described in a memorandum from a supervising attorney. The File might also include transcripts of interviews, depositions, hearings or trials, pleadings, correspondence, client documents, contracts, newspaper articles, medical records, police reports, or lawyer’s notes. Relevant as well as irrelevant facts are included. Facts are sometimes ambiguous, incomplete, or even conflicting. As in practice, a client’s or a supervising attorney’s version of events may be incomplete or unreliable. Examinees are expected to recognize when facts are inconsistent or missing and are expected to identify sources of additional facts.
The Library may contain cases, statutes, regulations, or rules, some of which may not be relevant to the assigned lawyering task. The examinee is expected to extract from the Library the legal principles necessary to analyze the problem and perform the task. The MPT is not a test of substantive law; the Library materials provide sufficient substantive information to complete the task.
The weight of the MPT varies by jurisdiction, but is usually weighted as 20% of the bar exam.
MPT Questions from the NCBE
Released MPT questions and point sheets from older administrations of the MPT can be located here: http://www.ncbex.org/exams/mpt/preparing/.
Additionally, some states release MPT questions used in more recent administrations of the MPT.
New York released MPTs: https://www.nybarexam.org/ExamQuestions/ExamQuestions.htm
Arkansas released MPTs: https://www.arcourts.gov/administration/professional-programs/bar-exam
Minesotta released MPTs: https://www.ble.mn.gov/bar-exam/representative-good-answers/