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FE1 Exam Thread (Read 1st post!) NOTICE: YOU MAY SWAP EXAM GRIDS

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Comments

  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 239 ✭✭LawGirl3434


    All this is correct. It's about being smart with your time and not stretching yourself too thin. What exams are you doing? You could know the book inside and out but you're only allowed answer what they ask, so going through the papers will let you know what they ask and while predictions are a silly dangerous game you do see what comes up a lot and the more you see you're able to answer those the more confident you get.

    I've used the last 6 exams as my sample size / sample questions and that didn't fail me last set so I'd say going back to 2014/15 is about enough to avoid stressing too much and going back ages and ages.


    Thanks so much both! I’m doing contract, criminal, tort and criminal. Had exams in constitutional and criminal for my diploma last week and thought they went quite well so hopefully a bit of a confidence boost. I find constitutional and contract heaviest - I quite like tort and criminal. I’m currently reading through past papers and examiners reports, then going to start learning/ practicing past questions this weekend I think.

    Would you recommend this mix or learning and papers? Going to try to allocate time every at first (doing a 40hour week so ten hours each) but this may change depending on what I find tricky.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 42 frankiejoepat


    Would be great if someone could post what came up for constitutional and company in the autumn (18) sitting. I would be extremely, extremely grateful.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 387 ✭✭bigtophat13


    Thanks so much both! I’m doing contract, criminal, tort and criminal. Had exams in constitutional and criminal for my diploma last week and thought they went quite well so hopefully a bit of a confidence boost. I find constitutional and contract heaviest - I quite like tort and criminal. I’m currently reading through past papers and examiners reports, then going to start learning/ practicing past questions this weekend I think.

    Would you recommend this mix or learning and papers? Going to try to allocate time every at first (doing a 40hour week so ten hours each) but this may change depending on what I find tricky.

    I have an overlap of three with you (criminal, tort and constitutional) and I'm yet to start constitutional or criminal so I can't offer too much advice on those. Contract is pure content and he mixes topics so I'm afraid there's not much you can leave out but there are a few certainties / ones he loves. Struggling with tort myself as its so large and his questions aren't explained in the report.

    It's whatever works for you but I aim for notes and an understanding of either 1 big topic or 2 small a day. I didn't start really grinding case names til 2 weeks before or so when i understood everything. Mixing in questions to practice is a great idea and it would have helped me last time if I had time but I was preoccupied with just learning the stuff as I was short on prep time. Personally I prefer to do an entire subject first and be confident with it before moving onto the next as I have an irrational fear I'll go back to it in 2 weeks and have forgotten everything and it makes linking up related topics a little easier but to each their own. You seem to have an excellent idea of what works for you so try that to begin and then adjust as you see fit and see if you improve!

    Just careful not to burn out, 40 hours a week sounds fine, I was doing 90 hours near the end last time due to how stupidly short I left it and I was losing hair - not worth it.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 387 ✭✭bigtophat13


    Would be great if someone could post what came up for constitutional and company in the autumn (18) sitting. I would be extremely, extremely grateful.

    Company I sat it was:

    - Dir Duties to others besides the company essay
    - Duties of Receiver to the company problem
    - Ostensible Authority and Turquands Case essay
    - Personal Liability of dirs for the company - Bad books and lots of debt Problem
    -S819 Essay
    -SAP and Dividends Problem
    -S 212 and Foss v Harbottle Essay
    -Charges problem part a & b


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 16 lmsc


    Hey everyone, has anyone got any tips for studying for a resit? I’m sitting Equity in March for the second time and I have a fairly good set of notes from October. Should I spend my time doing past exam questions or what would be the best approach? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,017 ✭✭✭ArthurDayne


    lmsc wrote: »
    Hey everyone, has anyone got any tips for studying for a resit? I’m sitting Equity in March for the second time and I have a fairly good set of notes from October. Should I spend my time doing past exam questions or what would be the best approach? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

    I passed Equity on 3rd attempt. I gave some of my thoughts in post #6380


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 278 ✭✭lawless11


    Hello there. Anyone would have any summarised/typed notes for Constitutional or Tort please ? Can exchange against grids or other things (passed 5). You'd save a full-time working soul.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 42 frankiejoepat


    Company I sat it was:

    - Dir Duties to others besides the company essay
    - Duties of Receiver to the company problem
    - Ostensible Authority and Turquands Case essay
    - Personal Liability of dirs for the company - Bad books and lots of debt Problem
    -S819 Essay
    -SAP and Dividends Problem
    -S 212 and Foss v Harbottle Essay
    -Charges problem part a & b

    Thanks so much bigtophat. Looks like an ok paper. Just two small things:
    For Q4, that was a corporate personality question then or was it a question on reckless and fraulent trading?
    For Q6, that was capital maintenance?

    Thanks again!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 239 ✭✭LawGirl3434


    I have an overlap of three with you (criminal, tort and constitutional) and I'm yet to start constitutional or criminal so I can't offer too much advice on those. Contract is pure content and he mixes topics so I'm afraid there's not much you can leave out but there are a few certainties / ones he loves. Struggling with tort myself as its so large and his questions aren't explained in the report.

    It's whatever works for you but I aim for notes and an understanding of either 1 big topic or 2 small a day. I didn't start really grinding case names til 2 weeks before or so when i understood everything. Mixing in questions to practice is a great idea and it would have helped me last time if I had time but I was preoccupied with just learning the stuff as I was short on prep time. Personally I prefer to do an entire subject first and be confident with it before moving onto the next as I have an irrational fear I'll go back to it in 2 weeks and have forgotten everything and it makes linking up related topics a little easier but to each their own. You seem to have an excellent idea of what works for you so try that to begin and then adjust as you see fit and see if you improve!

    Just careful not to burn out, 40 hours a week sounds fine, I was doing 90 hours near the end last time due to how stupidly short I left it and I was losing hair - not worth it.


    This was so so helpful - thank you so much! Agree very much on the burnout point also - although I feel those 90 hour weeks are sort of inevitable towards the end if you’re a stresser (which I am!)


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 387 ✭✭bigtophat13


    Thanks so much bigtophat. Looks like an ok paper. Just two small things:
    For Q4, that was a corporate personality question then or was it a question on reckless and fraulent trading?
    For Q6, that was capital maintenance?

    Thanks again!

    No worries at all, I have the paper here so I'll have a look.

    With Q4 it's the latter - the liquidator comes to you for help as the company is 15m in the hole. Part (a) notes how the books and records are in a state and there were dodgy cash payments off the books with no records. Basic invoices have not been kept and there is little to no financial documentation.

    Q6 ..... Q6 gave me nighmares for weeks. I thought I blew it on this. I didn't do much on capital maintenance, almost nothing in fact but I had a little on dividends and a huge amount on directors that I couldn't use for Q1 (common law duties I had 50 cases learned and couldn't use them so I was determined to get them in somewhere) so the question is basically the parent company wants them to declare a distribution even though he knows they only have half what they want in distributable profits. I answered mine on the basis of distributions because he asked for that and referred to that part of the act, giving him a few dividends cases and then loads of directors cases to act in the best interest etc. just because I had the cases. It was a desperate effort and afterward I was sure I blew it because someone here told me that SAP was core to it on the basis they mention how the company adopted the 2014 act's optional provisions. Nevertheless I passed company with lots of room to spare, but that being said I had a couple answers that could have been 15s and this still might have been a 4/5 mark answer.

    In any case I hope that's some help! From my predictions coming into the last one liquidation is a good shout this time round as is examinership as a wildcard.


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 387 ✭✭bigtophat13


    This was so so helpful - thank you so much! Agree very much on the burnout point also - although I feel those 90 hour weeks are sort of inevitable towards the end if you’re a stresser (which I am!)

    Delighted to help :) I can relate don't worry, just make sure they're the grinding weeks so and not the learning ones as you'll only get frustrated and go through all manner of stages of grief coming up to them. And that's no help to you!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 42 frankiejoepat


    Sound out Bigtophat. Really appreciate the effort!!

    Sounds like a kinda strange paper - no corp personality; no reform Q; no corp borrowings. All three are usually pretty much nailed on.

    Frightened of leaving myself short but our of the last eight sittings, I would usually have 6 or 7 with October '17 being the only sitting where I would only have 4 and a half.

    I have constitutional, company and equity this spring. Five passed, three to go.

    Goodluck if you're still sitting them and thanks again.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 239 ✭✭LawGirl3434


    Delighted to help :) I can relate don't worry, just make sure they're the grinding weeks so and not the learning ones as you'll only get frustrated and go through all manner of stages of grief coming up to them. And that's no help to you!

    I hear ya! I feel the next 2 weeks will be learning/ past papers and then the last 3 weeks will be the cramming cases style!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 294 ✭✭Vegetarian2017


    General Question
    has anyone ever took the approach of say highlighting the manual and only taking night before type notes ie. case names one fact and bullet points. so effectively u are mainly studying from Manual meaning rwading through it a few times well highlight parts to understand then move to your bullet points. instead of writing to try condense the chapter down to 6 or 7 pages to again condense to 1 or 2 pages of bullet points towards the end.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8 sls16


    Hey guys,

    I'm looking for an up to date EU grid if anyone has one? The one I have is only up until 2016.

    Also, if anyone has any general advice on sitting the EU exam that would be great!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 116 ✭✭Bayb12


    General Question
    has anyone ever took the approach of say highlighting the manual and only taking night before type notes ie. case names one fact and bullet points. so effectively u are mainly studying from Manual meaning rwading through it a few times well highlight parts to understand then move to your bullet points. instead of writing to try condense the chapter down to 6 or 7 pages to again condense to 1 or 2 pages of bullet points towards the end.

    This is what I did basically. Covered all topics in manuals then took to papers/grids to see what was absolutely essential to go back over and what could be skimmed/bulleted. Worked for me, I was able to at least identify every topic in every exam and passed them all first attempt


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 294 ✭✭Vegetarian2017


    Bayb12 wrote:
    This is what I did basically. Covered all topics in manuals then took to papers/grids to see what was absolutely essential to go back over and what could be skimmed/bulleted. Worked for me, I was able to at least identify every topic in every exam and passed them all first attempt


    thanks, so you read/highlighted the manual and did not take condensed notes of examinable topics? then skimmed over and did bullet points of the main topics. I just don't want to go back in a fee weeks and feel I've to read a whole manual and my bullet notes being no use. ughhh yet condensing all chapters i am getting nowhere not to mention my handwriting is horrendous after lengthy periods of writing !!
    any notetaking tips are appreciated. It really is a weak area for me.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 116 ✭✭Bayb12


    thanks, so you read/highlighted the manual and did not take condensed notes of examinable topics? then skimmed over and did bullet points of the main topics. I just don't want to go back in a fee weeks and feel I've to read a whole manual and my bullet notes being no use. ughhh yet condensing all chapters i am getting nowhere not to mention my handwriting is horrendous after lengthy periods of writing !!
    any notetaking tips are appreciated. It really is a weak area for me.

    Well obviously everyone is different but personally I found I was getting bogged down with making notes and not actually reading the materials. I could spend hours in an evening making notes and not get anywhere so I decided to just read all my manuals instead. I made small notes on the manuals as I read but mainly highlighted so I could go back over material.

    Once I had covered my key topics I repeatedly tested myself by indetifying topics on the past papers and writing down whatever I could remember. That's just what worked for me, I found it more reassuring to know I was at least looking at each topic once than trying to have notes. It also helped me figure out which topics I just had a mental block with and couldn't grasp so if I could get away with leaving them out I did


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 294 ✭✭Vegetarian2017


    Bayb12 wrote:
    Well obviously everyone is different but personally I found I was getting bogged down with making notes and not actually reading the materials. I could spend hours in an evening making notes and not get anywhere so I decided to just read all my manuals instead. I made small notes on the manuals as I read but mainly highlighted so I could go back over material.

    Bayb12 wrote:
    Once I had covered my key topics I repeatedly tested myself by indetifying topics on the past papers and writing down whatever I could remember. That's just what worked for me, I found it more reassuring to know I was at least looking at each topic once than trying to have notes. It also helped me figure out which topics I just had a mental block with and couldn't grasp so if I could get away with leaving them out I did


    Thank you this is very helpful. whilst i have the magic 3 i had typed out notes that were doing the rounds. so i worked from them and squished say a chapter on 1 or 2 pages learn off. however wasn't too sure if id catch myself put doing same with the manuals. as in picking it up in 3 or 4 weeks times and thinking what the hell snall notes are useless/and almost a whole manual to read. knowing it is doable is great, thanks


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 387 ✭✭bigtophat13


    Sound out Bigtophat. Really appreciate the effort!!

    Sounds like a kinda strange paper - no corp personality; no reform Q; no corp borrowings. All three are usually pretty much nailed on.

    Frightened of leaving myself short but our of the last eight sittings, I would usually have 6 or 7 with October '17 being the only sitting where I would only have 4 and a half.

    I have constitutional, company and equity this spring. Five passed, three to go.

    Goodluck if you're still sitting them and thanks again.

    It was very odd, my lovely SLP question didn't come up, no reform, weird directors Q and I was fully expecting liquidation, got very lucky to be covered!

    You should be fine but I was ok for the last huge amount of sittings too and nearly got caught. Better with 2 mediocre topics that'll get you 8/20 or 10/20 than 1 that will get you 15 but leaves you looking at a possible 0!

    We only have constitutional in common, yet to start notetaking for that one or criminal, any advice on what the core areas are so I can leave some out?


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 387 ✭✭bigtophat13


    I hear ya! I feel the next 2 weeks will be learning/ past papers and then the last 3 weeks will be the cramming cases style!

    Gonna be a fun month and a half for us !


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 66 ✭✭lawlad101


    Does anyone have grids for contract or constitutional? I have (slightly outdated) grids for EU and Criminal :)


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,891 ✭✭✭iamanengine


    Does agreement to agree come under Offer and Acceptance? I see it came up in Q1 Spring 2018 but I can't find any mention of it in the manual


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 15 marc24


    Hi does anyone know what came up in EU in the last sitting (Oct 18) thanks


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 20 FE1s2018


    Does anyone have the October 2018 papers for Equity, Property, Tort and Constitutional? Can swap materials from the other 4. Any general advice on those subjects would be great too.

    Thanks!


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 237 ✭✭z6vm1dobfnca3x


    Could someone please send me a grid for property? :) I can send you back a slightly outdated equity grid!


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 17 Emtec


    Does agreement to agree come under Offer and Acceptance? I see it came up in Q1 Spring 2018 but I can't find any mention of it in the manual

    Yeah it's offer and acceptance. Probably not in the manual because it's a minor area that doesn't come up very often. Know the gist of it and have a key case. I wouldn't lose any sleep over it.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 121 ✭✭TemptationWaits


    Hi everyone! As a long time creeper of this thread, and having now passed all 8 Fe1s in 3 sittings, I thought I would just throw in my 2 cents.

    First I'd like to thank the user @Teamhrach (dont think I can tag here) who left a tip for the equity exam last October, basically saying to make sure and cover joint accounts if you're doing secret trusts. I went back over that and it turned out to come up in the exam! So thank you! :) how do I buy you a pint through this??

    The main piece of advice I have for everyone is to expect the unexpected. I failed constitutional first time. Family came up on one question and I hadn't covered it. I felt afterwards it would have been a handy one to do so I covered that chapter for the next sitting, even though it wasn't a banker by any means. And what do you know - two questions on family! Similarly, when I was sitting equity I had a glance over mareva injunctions even though everyone was saying that never ever came up 2 years in a row and the grid showed a pattern of every other year for the past 15 years or something like that. But there it was on the paper, second time running! Again, when I sat EU, the banker question on institutions that always came up was nowhere to be seen.

    Of course the grids are highly useful and I relied on them a lot in my studies. But nothing is for sure, you never know that your sitting might be the time a previously predictable examiner might decide to throw a curveball. Beware of mixed questions too. Of course you'll have to cut sections, but you might be very grateful in the paper if you learned even a definition or 2 cases from a weaker topic of yours if it's mixed in with a question about your best topic.

    My second main piece of advice is - if you can afford the 115 euro at all, GET THE RECHECK! It's worth the gamble especially if you might lose your training contract or if it's your last exam. Guys, after tort last October sitting, I came out of that exam hall so depressed I went home and ate McDonalds out of the bag under the duvet. And if that's not a cry for help! It was no surprise that I failed that exam - and not by a narrow margin. I had no intention of rechecking but was encouraged to do so, so I sent in the application and the cheque the day before the deadline. And miracle of miracles, I came up 15 per cent! There are probably factors in the marking scheme that we aren't aware of at all - I wouldn't be surprised if in some instances they bump people up over the line if more people than average have failed or if they're getting complaints from law firms whose intake plans are being messed up. So do seriously consider applying for a recheck even if you're sure there's no hope.

    Aside from that, it's really about putting in the tedious hours and learning off by heart all the cases. Some people get all 8 in two sittings, for others a certain exam just catches them several times. Remember that there is a huge element of luck to how nice a paper you get (pass rates fluctuate every year) and if your desired topics come up - your result is probably even affected by the examiner's mood or how your paper compares to the papers corrected immediately before it. So it's really a measure of chance more than anything else!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 110 ✭✭lisac223


    Hi everyone! As a long time creeper of this thread, and having now passed all 8 Fe1s in 3 sittings, I thought I would just throw in my 2 cents.

    First I'd like to thank the user @Teamhrach (dont think I can tag here) who left a tip for the equity exam last October, basically saying to make sure and cover joint accounts if you're doing secret trusts. I went back over that and it turned out to come up in the exam! So thank you! :) how do I buy you a pint through this??

    The main piece of advice I have for everyone is to expect the unexpected. I failed constitutional first time. Family came up on one question and I hadn't covered it. I felt afterwards it would have been a handy one to do so I covered that chapter for the next sitting, even though it wasn't a banker by any means. And what do you know - two questions on family! Similarly, when I was sitting equity I had a glance over mareva injunctions even though everyone was saying that never ever came up 2 years in a row and the grid showed a pattern of every other year for the past 15 years or something like that. But there it was on the paper, second time running! Again, when I sat EU, the banker question on institutions that always came up was nowhere to be seen.

    Of course the grids are highly useful and I relied on them a lot in my studies. But nothing is for sure, you never know that your sitting might be the time a previously predictable examiner might decide to throw a curveball. Beware of mixed questions too. Of course you'll have to cut sections, but you might be very grateful in the paper if you learned even a definition or 2 cases from a weaker topic of yours if it's mixed in with a question about your best topic.

    My second main piece of advice is - if you can afford the 115 euro at all, GET THE RECHECK! It's worth the gamble especially if you might lose your training contract or if it's your last exam. Guys, after tort last October sitting, I came out of that exam hall so depressed I went home and ate McDonalds out of the bag under the duvet. And if that's not a cry for help! It was no surprise that I failed that exam - and not by a narrow margin. I had no intention of rechecking but was encouraged to do so, so I sent in the application and the cheque the day before the deadline. And miracle of miracles, I came up 15 per cent! There are probably factors in the marking scheme that we aren't aware of at all - I wouldn't be surprised if in some instances they bump people up over the line if more people than average have failed or if they're getting complaints from law firms whose intake plans are being messed up. So do seriously consider applying for a recheck even if you're sure there's no hope.

    Aside from that, it's really about putting in the tedious hours and learning off by heart all the cases. Some people get all 8 in two sittings, for others a certain exam just catches them several times. Remember that there is a huge element of luck to how nice a paper you get (pass rates fluctuate every year) and if your desired topics come up - your result is probably even affected by the examiner's mood or how your paper compares to the papers corrected immediately before it. So it's really a measure of chance more than anything else!

    Thank you for taking the time to write this out, needed that!


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 38 HenryHodgson


    Hi guys,

    Could a kind soul pls let me know what came in EU in October?

    Thanks :)


This discussion has been closed.
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