8 Performance Boosters-Mison

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1st Booster: Fear is not a Factor!  (Conquer your fear of law exams) Law school professors are generally characterized as intimidating, daunting, and at times even unreasonable. I think some professors of freshmen law students are given the mandate — To instill fear! Let the weak in spirit quit early, let the strong remain and try to survive the grueling legal education. Law students encounter professors who “torture” them with punishing recitation sessions and seemingly unanswerable examination questions. Regardless of their preparation for a law school exam, law students almost always nd their efforts inadequate in coming up with the correct answers. This is conrmed when after the examination, the professor gives several possible answers to the questions which leaves the students more baf ed about how they fared in their exams. Bottom line, professors including myself myself would say that it is how you argue your answer and not the answer itself that will give you the highest credit. This makes sense since even the Justices in the highest court would inevitably have different ways of responding to an issue presented by a case. Law students, particularly freshmen, are expectedly uptight, anxious and probably even terried when they enter the law school. In preparing for an exam, students will typically try to get each and every available reference material — textbooks, their own notes, their classmate’s notes, study aids produced by a study group, study aids produced by a study group from another school, memory aids, past exams, etc. One can only imagine the extent of their photocopying budget. One of my advantages of being a working student was that I was earning enough to support an unpredictable photocopying budget for law school. Students will then try to read, some even twice, all those materials they gathered. Of course, the more they read, the 1

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8 PERFORMANCE BOOSTERS TO CONQUER ANY LAW EXAM

more they know. Unfortunately, the more they know, the more they forget. A human brain can only absorb, process and retain so much information. And even if they do remember everything everything they read, they are unable to correlate such information with the question in the actual exam. This is because of the intimidation factor. I once had a student who confessed that she was petri ed at the mere sight of me. And quite a few of her classmates shared the same feeling. She said it was something in me that even without uttering a single word, she was already intimidated. (Probably my demeanor or my reputation in law school) Nonetheless, she told me that she really studied all the reading assignments and allotted a signi cant amount of  time in my class compared to her other classes. However, when called for recitation, she told me later than as soon as she stood up, she forgot everything she read the night before. She knew the answer I assume, but she barely made sense. She tried to regain her composure. She could not. With all her preparation, she still got a failing mark for her incoherent answer. Ah, another victim by the wayside! On the last day of regular classes where most professors will tell their students the coverage of the exams, I give some parting words to my students who I may have ‘terried.’ I tell my class that as a law school professor I play a role to insure that they get quality legal training. Training not education I say. Any person can read and perhaps understand any law textbook, even a caveman with a good memory can memorize the Bill of Rights verbatim. But for me, the most important skill that any law student can acquire in law school is the ability to think and act under pressure. The profession will expose these future lawyers to several pressing cases where they will be tested on how they can react quickly and accurately. A law school exam is just one of the tools through which students can acquire this skill. A good professor should have this in mind. However, for the most part, students are simply intimidated. How can fear be removed or at least mitigated? Fear is a psychological reaction of people to a certain stimuli. At examination time, law students typically enter the room with so much fear. Fear of not knowing the answer to the

1ST BOOSTER: FEAR IS NOT A FACTOR! (Conquer your fear of law exams)

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question; fear of forgetting what they studied; fear of  unking the exam and even fear of expulsion from the school. I say that there is a ready antidote for such fear – preparedness in mind, body, and spirit. To be mentally prepared, one can simply study all the reading assignments given throughout the course and pay attention to the lectures and class discussions. It can’t be that hard since that is part of being a law student. You pay tuition fees to attend your classes and read your books. To have your body physically prepared for an exam is easier. Just make sure you are well rested before each exam.  After an intense review session, relax. Of course, a little exercise won’t hurt. Science has proven that an increase in blood circulation thru exercise will always help the brain to function better. To have that spirit to conquer your fear, you need to psyche yourself up for the exam. Your psychological mindset before any exam will denitely affect how well you will perform. In golf, how you approach the game dictates how you score at the end of the day. Prior to any tournament, a golfer checks the wind conditions, studies the fairway and pin placement, and formulates an overall game plan even before his rst swing. Tiger Woods, maybe the greatest golfer of all time, would always say that he plays in a tournament to win, nothing else. It is not out of sheer audacity that he says this but simply out of well-placed condence in his game. He is condent that so long as he puts in the time to practice, he can score well in any given day. You too can score well in any exam as long as you put in the time to be prepared. Preparation for an exam will give you that con dence. Those fears of forgetting and failing will be negated by how you approach any given exam. Believe that you will pass, and you will. As long as you studied what you were supposed to study, there is nothing to fear. Of course, the approach as recommended recommended in this book should help, I hope. Remember, a law school exam is not designed to intimidate students. It is formulated by professors professor s who were once students. There is no secret code to break to answer their questions.

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8 PERFORMANCE BOOSTERS TO CONQUER ANY LAW EXAM

receive no part of the $50K, as explained above. As between unsecured creditors, however, there is a possibility that Maria/Juana’s claim will be subordinated by a court to KC’s claim, based on corporate veil piercing principals [sic] due to inadequate capitalization at the outset of the corporation. Piercing the Corporate Veil  A corporation is a separate legal entity designed to insulate its of cers, directors, and shareholders from personal liability. However, the corporate form will be ignored in some circumstances, circumstances, including when the corporation is acting as the alter ego of the shareholders or when there was inadequate capitalization of the corporation at the outset. Inadequate capitalization is determined by looking at if the corporation had adequate funds to meet its prospective liabilities. The time between incorporation and dissolution is also considered. Here, Lavaco was funded with P4M and was dissolved within one year. The short time in existence may be an indication that the corporation was not adequately funded. However, it is unclear from these facts what caused Lavaco’s dissolution. If Maria/Juana were aware of increasing environmental costs and liability, P4M may not have been suf cient. If this is so the corporate veil will be pierced. (Desire to shield from personal liability from environmental regulation is not enough to pierce the veil in and of itself.) When shareholders use the corporate assets as their own or otherwise ignore corporate formalities, the corporate form may be ignored to hold the shareholders personally liable for corporate debts. Here, there is no indication that Juana/Mary used Lavaco’s assets as their own and they did observe all corporate formalities. Therefore, the veil will not be pierced on this theory. Since the veil can be pierced due to inadequate capitalization, however, Juana/Mary’s claim on the unsecured notes will be subordinated to KC’s claim. KC will receive the entire $P500,000. In the event the claims are not subordinated, KC, Mary and Juana will equally divide the P500,000.

DEDICATION

To those who will make use of this book, heed the words of advice of your mentors and professors for they know better  – at least for the time being. To those who will write questions in any law exam, fear now — for the “mystery” behind your questions shall soon be revealed in this book. To those who will check the answers in any law exam, rejoice — for the checking shall soon be effortless and cease to be a headache.  And to those who have given me the inspiration, I wholeheartedly dedicate this simple “booster” manual. 8/16

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FOREWORD

Ever since I joined the academe, I have met so many kinds of law students. Most of them are scared out of their wits every time they take an exam. Some of them are con fident but they still end up with a so-so grade in the exam. Some of them study their hearts out but their exam grades do not re flect the amount of work they put into their preparation. If you are one of these students, then this booster book is for you! Law students, regardless of which school they earned their law degree from, are more or less equal when it comes to their “knowledge of the law.” The greatest disparity among law students that I have taught is found in their ability to articulate what they know into writing. This booster book authored by my fellow professor, Atty. Mison, is one of the many useful books that law students MUST read and imbibe. The experience of Atty. Mison as a student in taking and passing law exams (including the Philippine Bar and even the California Bar) represents a diverse approach in dealing with a time-pressured exam. Further, the experience of Atty. Mison as a professor in preparing and checking law exams gives the reader an insight worth knowing to “conquer any law exam.” Ultimately, the principles in this booster book extend to any law practitioner whose objective is to write pleadings that contain a very organized, logically presented, and legally accurate arguments. I salute Atty. Mison for this commendable work.

 Atty. Willard B. Riano  Dean  San Sebastian College of Law v

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FOREWORD

 Atty. Siegfred B. Mison’s new magnum opus is a familiar topic that is brought to fore by a learned and practical author whose objective is to alleviate the plight not only of the Bar candidates but also of the Professors and Bar examiners. Indeed, the result of the 2007 Bar Examinations is more than a wake up call to all members of the legal community. The work Atty. Mison had put into this booster indicates his rich experience as a conscientious academic mentor & scholar; studious drill master and a fierce competitor in sports and in the field of law.

While it is true that the study of law is aimed to produce good and principled lawyers who would protect and defend their clients to the best of their capabilities, it is equally true that passing the Bar examinations is a mandatory requirement in order to realize the said objective. Certainly, in this booster, the secrets of how to take the Bar exams are now in the open, up for grabs by any Bar candidate who needs all the con fidence booster he can get before taking the most grueling examinations. While it is no guarantee that reading this booster will assure the Bar candidate that he will pass the Bar examinations, it will definitely improve his preparations and bring his confidence level to a new high. I know the amount of work, time, patience and passion passi on for excellence that was put into this work of the author and for all these, Atty. Mison should be highly commended for bringing forth what was once discussed exclusively by Review schools and for unselfishly sharing so much of himself, his talents and skills with the legal community.

 Atty. Plaridel J. Bohol, Jr.  Partner  Bohol Bohol Jimenez Jimenez Law Of   fi ce

 Professor of of Law  San Beda College College of Law University of the East College of Law vii

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FOREWORD

I have a friend in law school who took the bar examination a year ahead of me. Unfortunately, he did not pass the bar. He tried to appear unaffected by it, but truly, I could feel his pain deep inside. He kept himself busy by teaching in a university and doing several other things. Two years later, he took the bar exams for the second time. He failed again. This time around, my friend got himself re-assigned to a university in Mindanao, leaving in Manila his wife and two small daughters. Perhaps my friend wanted some quiet time and space for a while. Three years later, my friend took the bar exams again. For the third time, he didn’t make it.  A little over two years later, I heard my friend and his wife separated. According to his wife, my friend was never able to recover from his failed attempts to pass the bar examinations. It affected him mentally, emotionally and psychologically. Truly, the bar exams can destroy many things – a plan, a career, a relationship, a family, and even a life. I do not know how many plans, relationships, families, or lives have been ruined by the bar exams. There are no statistics available. But every year, on the average, only around 20% of those who take the bar exams pass it. Roughly, that translates to only about a thousand of the more than 5,000 who take the bar exams annually. It is in this context c ontext that I highly recommend this book. I firmly believe there are only two (2) essential requirements for a candidate to pass the bar. The first is knowledge of the law. The second is knowledge of the techniques for answering bar questions properly. Like Siegfred Mison, I firmly believe that the second is as important as the first. Your knowledge of the law is nothing if you do not know when and how to apply it. ix

This book will definitely provide you with the right techniques for passing the bar. Take time to read it especially before plunging into a tedious bar review. It would take you only a day to finish and understand the 8 principles in this book. It is my wish that this book will be able to help many candidates pass the bar. It is my wish that this book will be able to save a lot of pains and troubles. It is my wish that this book will be able to save a lot of plans, relationships, families, and lives. My highest praise to the author for sharing his precious time, talent and treasure to help others attain their own dream in life – which is to become a lawyer – like him.

 Atty. Alexander L. Lacson  National Bestselling Bestselling Author Author “12 Little Things Filipinos Can Do To Help Our Country” 

 Partner  Malcolm Law Law Of  fi ces

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INTRODUCTION 

Based on the results of the 2007 Philippine Bar examinations, we can speculate on two things. First, the standards of  the examiners (as well as the Bar Chairman) of developing the 2007 Bar questions and checking the answers perhaps were simply too high. Second, since only 5% of the examinees obtained a passing grade of 75%, the passing grade mandated under the existing Rules of Court, perhaps the quality of law graduates has deteriorated. It had to take an unprecedented move by the Supreme Court to lower the passing grade from 75 to 70 just to accommodate a higher number of Bar passers this year. What made the 2007 Bar examinations more dif ficult to pass as compared to previous Bar examinations? Was it the questions, the strict checking, or the quality of students? This book does not aim to provide the reasons whatever they may be. The fact remains that law students and/or Bar candidates now and in the future will always have dif ficulty in passing any law examination. This book aims to provide exam-taking techniques or “boosters” to enable the examinee to perform better in any law examination. Just like an athlete in any competitive sport, the physical and mental attributes of the student should be at its peak every time he/she has to take an exam. Manny Pacquiao or Tiger Woods did not become champions by simply si mply being gifted or talented in their craft. They had to put in a lot of hours to train before a big fight/game and develop the ability to shift their skills into high gear upon command. I have taken the Bar examination twice. The first time was in 1996 in Manila and the second was in 2005 in California. My preparations in both were similar – regimented, focused, and geared towards developing peak performance at a certain time. I virtually isolated myself for 5 months for the Philippine Bar and for 6 weeks for the California Bar as I strategized my xi

approach to these examinations. My desire in this book is to share what I did that helped me perform better during the four Sundays of September in 1996 and during the three consecutive days of the last week of February 2005. Some of the suggested performance boosters in this book may have already been said by professors and done by examinees in the past. However, when taken as whole and internalized to the fullest, examinees in a law exam should have the ability to have the fighting heart of a Pacquiao or the killer instincts of  Tiger Woods to complete the mission on any given day.

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8 PERFORMANCE BOOSTERS (TO CONQUER ANY LAW EXAM) TABLE OF CONTENTS

1st Booster: Fear is not a Factor!  (Conquer your fear of law exams  2nd Booster: Beat the the Clock!  (Manage your time effectively.)  3rd Booster: Dissect Dissect the Essay!  Essay!  (Know the “Call of the Question”)  4th Booster: Spot the Issue; Win Half Half the Battle!  Battle!  (Some Proven Methods to Locate Issue[s] in a Problem)  5th Booster: Make Make a Road Map. (An outline organizes your answer. Translation: Maximum Points) 6th Booster: Write a Masterpiece!  (A well-written work makes the answer easier to understand and check) 7th Booster: Know the Enemy!  (Having a crystal bowl won’t hurt.) 8th Booster: Conquer All Others!  •Summary •Bonus: Sample Question, Analysis and Answer 

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