Becoming a lawyer: 5 tips for passing the CRFPA exam
The Regional Professional Training Center for Lawyers (CRFPA) exam is a long and tedious process that can discourage many Law Tuition. As the back-to-school written tests approach, here are some tips to optimize your chances of success.
1) Keep up to date with legal news
Mastering current legal debates can be decisive during the summary test or the “grand oral”. Numerous sources are at your disposal: the general press, all specialized legal journals, the websites of the courts (Court of Cassation, Council of State, CEDH, etc.), or even the Facebook pages of legal news sites (Le Petit Juriste, Actualité du Droit…). For example, it is essential to find out about the reform of contract law to be able to calmly approach the law of obligations test. Marc, a young lawyer in urban planning law, recalls: “During my Grand Oral, a feature article in Le Monde on penal reform allowed me to shed original light on the issue, which without doubt doubtless been beneficial.”
2) Choose your subjects wisely
When you register, you will be asked to choose the subjects that you will take in writing and oral. Personal and Family Law, General or Special Criminal Law, Administrative Law, Commercial and Business Law, Collective Proceedings and Security, Labor Law, Civil or Criminal Procedures… it is easy to get lost, especially if one did not develop particular affinities with these subjects during university studies. Despite everything, it is advisable to choose subjects that you have already studied in a bachelor’s or master’s degree : it will be much faster to learn a program that you have only partially assimilated before.
3) Stay informed
Faced with the workload required by the programs, it can be tempting to isolate yourself to stay focused. However, between the start of your preparation and the CRFPA tests, a lot of information can circulate regarding the test procedures, unforeseen changes, last minute advice… Therefore, it can be extremely useful to establish relationships with other exam candidates, and to regularly visit the various Facebook groups linked to your YEI. This will ensure you don’t miss anything and avoid unpleasant surprises.
4) Free yourself from preconceived ideas about preparation
After M1 or M2, with or without preparation, all year round or only in the summer… there are many options available to you to prepare for the bar exam. Opinions are often clear-cut and leave room for many uncertainties. Organize yourself according to your personal constraints and your objectives, and avoid listening to the often vague interpretations that many students indulge in regarding the so-called miracle recipe for passing the exam.
Keep in mind that your success will not be conditioned by the choice of your institute of judicial studies (IEJ) or by your combination of subjects, but only by your knowledge and your method.
Chloé, admitted to the Paris Bar, states: “We often hear that civil procedure is better rated because it is less selective than criminal procedure. However, I chose the latter without having studied it at university and I obtained a score of 15/20”.
5) De-stress
First, this is an exam, not a competition.
This means in concrete terms that everyone can have it because all you need is to obtain an average of 10/20 on all the tests. Your admission to the bar exam is in no way conditioned by any ranking, and the performance of your classmates has no impact on your chances of success. Second, it is possible to take this exam three times. Many lawyers do not pass the first time, and no one will ask you how many times you have taken the exam.