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 in-timidating, daunting, and at times even unreasonable. I thinksome professors of freshmen law students are given the man-

date — To instill fear! Let the weak in spirit quit early, let thestrong remain and try to survive the grueling legal education.Law students encounter professors who “torture” them withpunishing recitation sessions and seemingly unanswerableexamination questions. Regardless of their preparation for alaw school exam, law students almost always nd their effortsinadequate in coming up with the correct answers. This is con-rmed when after the examination, the professor gives severalpossible answers to the questions which leaves the studentsmore baf ed about how they fared in their exams. Bottom line,professors including myself would say that it is how you argueyour answer and not the answer itself that will give you thehighest credit. This makes sense since even the Justices in thehighest court would inevitably have different ways of respond-ing to an issue presented by a case.

Law students, particularly freshmen, are expectedlyuptight, anxious and probably even terried when theyenter the law school. In preparing for an exam, students willtypically try to get each and every available reference material— textbooks, their own notes, their classmate’s notes, studyaids produced by a study group, study aids produced by a studygroup from another school, memory aids, past exams, etc. Onecan only imagine the extent of their photocopying budget. Oneof my advantages of being a working student was that I wasearning 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



8 PERFORMANCE BOOSTERS TO CONQUER ANY LAW EXAM2

more they know. Unfortunately, the more they know, the more

they forget. A human brain can only absorb, process and retainso much information. And even if they do remember everythingthey read, they are unable to correlate such informationwith the question in the actual exam. This is because of theintimidation factor.

I once had a student who confessed that she was petriedat the mere sight of me. And quite a few of her classmatesshared the same feeling. She said it was something in me

that even without uttering a single word, she was alreadyintimidated. (Probably my demeanor or my reputation in lawschool) Nonetheless, she told me that she really studied allthe reading assignments and allotted a signicant amount of time in my class compared to her other classes. However, whencalled for recitation, she told me later than as soon as she stoodup, she forgot everything she read the night before. She knewthe answer I assume, but she barely made sense. She tried toregain 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 professorswill tell their students the coverage of the exams, I give someparting words to my students who I may have ‘terried.’ I tellmy class that as a law school professor I play a role to insurethat they get quality legal training. Training not educationI say. Any person can read and perhaps understand any law

textbook, even a caveman with a good memory can memorizethe Bill of Rights verbatim. But for me, the most important skillthat any law student can acquire in law school is the abilityto think and act under pressure. The profession will exposethese future lawyers to several pressing cases where they willbe tested on how they can react quickly and accurately. A lawschool exam is just one of the tools through which students canacquire 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 certainstimuli. At examination time, law students typically enter theroom with so much fear. Fear of not knowing the answer to the



8 PERFORMANCE BOOSTERS TO CONQUER ANY LAW EXAM58

receive no part of the $50K, as explained above. As between

unsecured creditors, however, there is a possibility thatMaria/Juana’s claim will be subordinated by a court to KC’sclaim, based on corporate veil piercing principals [sic] due toinadequate 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 personalliability. However, the corporate form will be ignored in some

circumstances, including when the corporation is acting as thealter ego of the shareholders or when there was inadequatecapitalization of the corporation at the outset. Inadequatecapitalization is determined by looking at if the corporationhad adequate funds to meet its prospective liabilities. The timebetween incorporation and dissolution is also considered.

Here, Lavaco was funded with P4M and was dissolvedwithin one year. The short time in existence may be an indication

that the corporation was not adequately funded. However, itis unclear from these facts what caused Lavaco’s dissolution.If Maria/Juana were aware of increasing environmental costsand liability, P4M may not have been suf cient. If this is so thecorporate veil will be pierced. (Desire to shield from personalliability from environmental regulation is not enough to piercethe veil in and of itself.) When shareholders use the corporateassets 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 indicationthat Juana/Mary used Lavaco’s assets as their own and theydid observe all corporate formalities. Therefore, the veil willnot be pierced on this theory.

Since the veil can be pierced due to inadequatecapitalization, however, Juana/Mary’s claim on the unsecurednotes will be subordinated to KC’s claim. KC will receive theentire $P500,000. In the event the claims are not subordinated,

KC, Mary and Juana will equally divide the P500,000.



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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 confident 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 reflect 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 articu-

late 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



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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 can-

didates 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 mas-ter 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 defendtheir clients to the best of their capabilities, it is equally truethat passing the Bar examinations is a mandatory requirementin order to realize the said objective.

Certainly, in this booster, the secrets of how to take theBar exams are now in the open, up for grabs by any Bar candi-date who needs all the confidence booster he can get before tak-ing the most grueling examinations. While it is no guaranteethat reading this booster will assure the Bar candidate that hewill pass the Bar examinations, it will definitely improve hispreparations and bring his confidence level to a new high.

I know the amount of work, time, patience and passion forexcellence that was put into this work of the author and for all

these, Atty. Mison should be highly commended for bringingforth what was once discussed exclusively by Review schoolsand for unselfishly sharing so much of himself, his talents andskills with the legal community.

Atty. Plaridel J. Bohol, Jr.

Partner

Bohol Bohol Jimenez Law Of fi ce Professor of Law San Beda College of LawUniversity of the East College of Law



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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 barexams 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 torecover 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 statis-

tics available. But every year, on the average, only around 20%

of those who take the bar exams pass it. Roughly, that trans-lates to only about a thousand of the more than 5,000 who take

the bar exams annually.

It is in this context that I highly recommend this book.

I firmly believe there are only two (2) essential require-

ments for a candidate to pass the bar. The first is knowledge

of the law. The second is knowledge of the techniques for an-

swering bar questions properly. Like Siegfred Mison, I firmly

believe that the second is as important as the first. Your knowl-

edge of the law is nothing if you do not know when and how to

apply it.



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This book will definitely provide you with the right tech-

niques for passing the bar. Take time to read it especially be-

fore 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 Author

“12 Little Things Filipinos Can DoTo Help Our Country”

Partner Malcolm Law Of fi ces



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INTRODUCTION

Based on the results of the 2007 Philippine Bar examina-

tions, 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 ob-tained a passing grade of 75%, the passing grade mandated

under the existing Rules of Court, perhaps the quality of lawgraduates 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 passersthis 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? Thisbook 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 anylaw examination.

This book aims to provide exam-taking techniques or

“boosters” to enable the examinee to perform better in any lawexamination. Just like an athlete in any competitive sport, the

physical and mental attributes of the student should be at itspeak every time he/she has to take an exam. Manny Pacquiaoor Tiger Woods did not become champions by simply being gift-

ed 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 shifttheir 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

8 performance boosters-mison

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