First day of 2026 Bar exams underway

MANILA, Philippines — The first day of three-day 2026 Bar examinations in local testing centers across the country began on Sunday, Sept. 6.

“This is not a test for the weak,” Associate Justice Samuel Gaerlan, 2026 Bar exam chairperson, told examinees.

“Yet you are here, not by chance, but by choice, because you believe in the power of your purpose.”

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“The decision to pursue a career in law is not one made lightly. It has cost you years of your life and pieces of yourself you may never get back,” Gaerlan said. “Your time is NOW.”

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This morning, the exam will tackle political and public international law while the afternoon session will have commercial law and taxation.

The second and third days of the Bar exams are scheduled on Sept. 9, and 13.

On the second day, examinees will take on civil law and land titles and deeds and labor law and social legislation, while the third day will be about criminal law, remedial law, legal and judicial ethics, with practical exercises.

In 2025, a total of 5,594 out of 11,420 examinees passed the examinations, for a passing rate of nearly 49 percent. /gsg