July 2026 – February 2028
From July 2026 to February 2028, the NextGen bar exam will test the following foundational concepts and principles and foundational lawyering skills:
- Foundational concepts and principles: business associations, civil procedure, constitutional law, contract law, criminal law, evidence, real property, torts
- Foundational lawyering skills: legal research, legal writing, issue spotting and analysis, investigation and evaluation, client counseling and advising, negotiation and dispute resolution, client relationship and management
Other areas of legal knowledge will also appear on the NextGen bar exam to provide the context for testing one or more foundational lawyering skills, but examinees are not expected or required to develop a base of knowledge in those areas. For those questions, examinees will be provided with the necessary legal resources (e.g. statutes, regulations, and case law) to demonstrate the skills being tested. From July 2026 through February 2028, family law and trusts and estates will appear in these skills-focused questions on every exam.