Law Preview reviews

Our alums explain how Law Preview has helped thousands of incoming 1Ls become top law students

Our students thrive

Since 1998, BARBRI Law Preview has been helping students find success in law schools across the country. Consistently, they attribute their law school success to Law Preview and the important difference it made for them during their first year and beyond.

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"I am happy to report that I just received my last grade and have an overall GPA of 4.15 at Albany Law! Better than I could have even dreamed of (and pretty good for having 2 small kids!). I just wanted to say thank you- the info I received in law preview was a huge part of knowing how to study and what to do to get where I wanted to be. I just wanted to say thank you- the info I received in law preview was a huge part of knowing how to study and what to do to get where I wanted to be."
Paige F., Albany Law School of Union University, 2021
"Without Law Preview, I would have had no clue what to expect from my first semester. Instead, I felt a step ahead of all the other students. I had a plan of action to attack all the work, and I knew what the professors were looking for in classes. The price paid for Law Preview paid off. I ended up in the top ten percent of my class after the first semester with A’s in three out of my five classes."
Anonymous, University of Kansas School of Law, Class of 2011
"Law Preview on demand was a great choice for me as an evening law student working full time. I wasn’t able to take off for a week of in-person Law Preview, but I could fit On-Demand into my schedule. Law Preview helped me go into my first year of law school with confidence by teaching the basics of the core 1L subjects, case briefing, and what to expect from my professors. I even spoke with Don Macaulay over the phone and he helped me figure out how to structure my study schedule around work and other commitments for the first semester. All of this preparation helped me come out of my first semester with an A average. Overall, I couldn’t be happier that I decided on Law Preview!"
Samantha K., University of Maryland School of Law, Class of 2022
"I wanted to write and let you know that BARBRI was extremely helpful to me during my 1L year! I was able to get a summer associateship at Vinson & Elkins and just made the Texas Law Review! Thanks again for all your help."
Thuy N., University of Texas School of Law, Class of 2022
"I thought I came in with substantially less nerves about case briefing than many of my classmates. This made the adjustment to law school far easier than I anticipated [3.77 GPA after fall semester]."
Anonymous, Vanderbilt University School of Law, 2022
"Law Preview did a good job of hustling its students along the learning curve associated with the transition to the dense material that is law as well as the Socratic Method of teaching. This valuable experience allowed me to focus on the substantive issues in the course earlier than my counterparts."
Joseph L., Rutgers University School of Law, Class of 2013
"Law Preview got me ready to hit the ground running. Prior to taking Law Preview, I did not know how to do law school. In the course, I learned the methods I need to use everyday to be successful. I heard many people say they wasted time doing useless things first semester, thanks to Law Preview I avoided this."
Madison L., Arizona State University Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, 2022
"I strongly believe my Law Preview experience allowed me to go into law school feeling familiar with the central topics of each doctrinal class. Having this feeling of familiarity, it allowed me to not stress. Not only that, I was able to manage my time extremely well due to the tips we learned during Law Preview. I took on other responsibilities during the first semester, but because I was able to balance them all in addition to school, I was able to finish the semester with Honors in all three of the fall doctrinal classes. Thank you, Law Preview!"
Anonymous, Northeastern University School of Law, 2021
"Law Preview equipped me to write case briefs, focus on the important things in lecture, start outlines early, and use test-taking strategies while following a schedule!"
Anonymous, University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, Class of 2023
"Law Preview provided a good insight into the law school experience before I actually started which calmed all my anxieties by having an idea of what to expect. The knowledge of the subject matter discussed in Law Preview also came in handy when it came up during the lectures which made it seem more like a revision as it was familiar, especially in areas like Torts and Contracts."
Farari M., Texas Southern University, Thurgood Marshall School of Law, Class of 2024
"I felt I was definitely more prepared at the beginning of the semester when a lot of people wondered what a case brief was and what IRAC stood for whereas I could focus on the substantive courses because Law Preview taught me how to approach briefing and exam taking. The exam-taking strategies and advice from the professors were especially helpful. It’s like I knew what it took to get an ‘A. Thank you [ranked #15 out of 166 after first semester]."
Anonymous, Loyola University Chicago School of Law, Class of 2011
"Wow! That’s how Law Preview has effected my law school experience. Attending that intense week of Law Preview set me up for success. Not only did I have the opportunity to get a ‘preview’ of the classes and the type of environment that I would be entering into, I got to look at some of the hardest cases before the real thing even started. That might not seem like a lot, but reading Palsgraf through once simply isn’t enough. Through the first semester I’m ranked in the top 10% of my class. There’s room for improvement for sure, but I know that I wouldn’t have gotten this far without the help of Law Preview!"
Anonymous, Dickinson School of Law (formerly Pennsylvania State University, The Dickinson School of Law), Class of 2011
"Law Preview really helped put into perspective what the first semester of law school would be like. The substantive overview of each core first year class really prevented me from feeling lost or overwhelmed, the study calendar helped me know when and how to study, and the materials on exam writing are absolutely invaluable. Law Preview is the difference between drowning and succeeding your first semester."
Amelia D., University of California, Hastings College of the Law, Class of 2012
"It helped me understand the rigor and intensity of the environment. I came in with a strong sense of urgency which helped me stay on pace."
Anna H., University of Miami School of Law, Class of 2023
"I entirely credit Law Preview with my success this semester. I came into the week-long class with no idea of what law school really was and more importantly for my GPA, what law professors really wanted. Law Preview gave me a road map of how to succeed. I closely followed their advice and have two A’s and an A- to show for it. Next semester, I plan to continue my regimen from the fall while also signing up for the online exam review through Law Preview. I really can’t say enough good things about this program and I’ve been encouraging all my law school bound friends to sign up."
Emily W., Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law Yeshiva University, Class of 2013
"Law Preview laid the foundation for my study routine. Coupled with Barbri Mastery, I tried to adhere as closely as possible to Don’s schedule for reading, briefing, etc. Demystifying 1L was immensely helpful and I encountered many of the cases I read during Law Preview. It goes without saying that reading cases in advance is tremendously beneficial. Moreover, having a concrete process for briefing allowed me to hit the ground running for the first semester."
Anonymous, Georgetown University Law Center, Class of 2024
"I can’t tell you how much I appreciated Law Preview. I was only accepted to Albany off the waitlist in early June 2009, and I wasn’t feeling too great about my prospects for success. Now, after having completed my 1L year, I’m proud to report that I ranked #19 out of 250 students. Beyond preparing me for the substantive classes, LP helped me gain confidence and avoid the potholes that challenge every 1L no matter where they go to school. I definitely feel that Law Preview also gave me a leg up on my classmates in a number of ways — whether it was briefing cases or putting together an effective study schedule — Law Preview removed a lot of the trial and error and I entered my first year with a plan of attack and that was without question a major factor in my success."
Joseph B., Albany Law School of Union University, Class of 2012 (transferred to George Washington University Law School)
"Law Preview was the ‘Dummies Guide to Law School’ that I really needed. While the classes themselves helped give me a brief substantive overview, it was the organizational and study skills that I really appreciated. I was always prepared for class with the 2 day ahead approach but more importantly I was prepared for my exams because I had been studying all along and using the best study tools out there. Don kept telling us that everyone in our classes were going to know the exact same law going into the exam, but what was going to separate us from the rest of them was that we were going to know how to apply it because we hadn’t just been memorizing. Instead, we had been learning it, working with it, and wrestling with it from week one because of all the skills and techniques we learned from Law Preview."
Emily H., New England School of Law, Class of 2013
"It was good coming into law school with an idea of what to expect. Aside from being familiar with some of the substantive material covered in class first semester, it was helpful knowing what to expect from the law school experience. There were multiple occasions during the semester when I found myself looking back on the notes I had taken at law preview for clarification on different things. All in all Law Preview was a great experience [ranked #25 out of 144 after first semester]."
Anonymous, Mercer University Walter F. George School of Law, Class of 2011
"I was often asked during the first few weeks where I’d worked in the law previously. I had literally no legal experience before BarBri Law Preview other than having read a couple of cases, not the ones we’d studied. But the Law Preview course both set me on the right footing for the year and gave me an overview of how the coursework would fit together. Finally, the practice outlining was invaluable."
Peter S., Northwestern University School of Law, 2022
"I’m not sure what my rank is. My school only ranks 1Ls at the end of the academic year. My grades after first semester were: A in Contracts, A in Crim Law and A- in Torts. The top 10% gets A’s and the next 15% get A-‘s. . . . I am very happy that I attended Law Preview for the following reasons: practice reading and briefing cases; having some briefs already written at the beginning of law school; knowing what some of the seminal cases are about in each subject area; getting it beaten into my head that I need to actually brief all the cases (which I did); doing the reading two days ahead so I never got behind, even if something came up; learning about reporter names, how to tell where a case is from, research strategies; having the confidence at the beginning of the semester that I knew what I was doing . . . Being in Law Preview was really exciting because it confirmed for me that I find the law interesting and that law school was the right decision for me. Also, having confidence at the beginning of the semester is a huge advantage. Even if by the end of the semester it seemed like everyone else was comfortable with the material, etc., I still think I benefited by being calmer/more confident right from the beginning."
Anonymous, Case Western Reserve University School of Law, Class of 2011
"I came in feeling comfident in my ability to brief cases and Barbri taught me how to read cases. The learning curve was still very steep, but I went in feeling like I had already dipped my toes in over the summer before plunging in head first. Many of the cases we covered in Barbri were also covered in my class, which was very helpful too."
Anonymous, University of Michigan Law School, Class of 2022
"It prepared me to know what to expect and how to manage the task load with a solid background and foundation to enhance my learning capabilities."
Barbara H., Northeastern University School of Law, Class of 2022
"The techniques we learned were extremely helpful. During finals study time, everybody else was outlining; my outlines were finished as of the last class day so I was able to study and work on the hypos. I was even able to incorporate a ‘nugget’ section into my notes that came in very handy on the exams. Thanks for everything!"
Kate L., University of Denver College of Law, Class of 2013
"Law Preview was critical in giving me the strategic advantages that allowed me to excel during the 1L year. Many of my colleagues did not realize the correct pacing and preparation schedule until it was far too late. I appreciated Don’s realistic and blunt advice about the difficulties you will face during the first year. Law school is about hard work and proper preparation, and Law Preview made this unambiguously clear through the Strategies for Academic Success sessions, as well as the experience of preparing for the mini-courses at Law Preview. . . . Last, and maybe most important, I left Law Preview excited to start school. When the year began I was able to step through the doors with the confidence of having an explicit and detailed plan about what was going to happen. Carrying through with the Law Preview schedule allowed me to go into exams confident, relatively stress-free, and somewhat rested. While this it was not a particularly fun experience to go through finals, I know that my experience was far better than most. [Ranked top 1% after first year]."
Anonymous, Indiana University School of Law, Bloomington, Class of 2011
"Law Preview made me feel comfortable walking into my first day of law school and knowing that I had a distinct advantage over my fellow classmates. Instead of spending valuable time figuring out how I was supposed to approach my courses, I was already assessing the material in a way that prepared me most effectively for exams."
Anonymous, Pepperdine University School of Law, Class of 2013
"Law Preview gave me a head start on the competition [ranked #4 out of 85 students]."
Anonymous, Michigan State University Detroit College of Law, Class of 2011
"If I hadn’t taken this course I would have been absolutely railroaded by my classes."
Matt E., Stanford Law School, Class of 2021
"Law Preview really helped be grasp the overarching concepts of the doctrinal classes. I felt much more confidant and comfortable going into my first semester."
Emily A., UIC John Marshall Law School, Class of 2023
"Law Preview gave me the techniques that have allowed me to be successful my first year."
Anonymous, SMU Dedman School of Law, Class of 2021