IRAC Simplified

Not to over-simplify, but the crux of what you're trying to do with bar exam essays is the following. And if you do it well, with enough knowledge of the law, you're going to score high. For each issue you've spotted:

1: tell the graders the question you hope to be able to answer in your conclusion. 2: provide the graders with the law you'll need to answer that question from step 1. More law than you need loses time, less law than you need loses points. Aim here for the perfect balance.

3. Take that law from step 2 and bring in the facts that the graders have provided you. It's the combination of the law from step 2 and these facts that allow you to answer the question you've asked in step 1. Analyze each element of the legal rule as if taking apart an engine and examining each individual component. That's essentially what legal analysis is, analyzing components of legal rules.

4. Through your analysis in step 3, answer the question you asked in step 1.

It's IRAC, nothing new here. And it's perfect for a bar exam.