MPRE Practice Questions

How MPRE questions work

The MPRE is a two-hour computer-based exam with 60 multiple-choice questions, including 50 scored items and 10 unscored pretest items. The pretest questions are indistinguishable, so answer every item. NCBE does not subtract points for incorrect responses. The average working time is two minutes per question, although short and complex scenarios need different amounts of reading time. Each question has four choices, and NCBE asks for the best answer.

The questions below are original instructional scenarios, not NCBE questions. They do not reproduce secure or retired exam items. They use the ABA Model Rules as the stated framework and paraphrase their principles. NCBE says amendments to the ABA Model Rules or Model Code enter MPRE coverage no earlier than one year after ABA approval, so older wording can remain testable during that interval. State rules can differ; unless a question gives a local rule, analyze it under the Model Rules and the MPRE’s stated majority approach for related legal principles.

A dependable way to analyze an ethics scenario

Identify the actor and role first: lawyer, client, prospective client, judge, prosecutor, or firm supervisor. Then identify the relationship and timing: current client, former client, prospective client, or no client relationship. Read for the trigger facts, including what the lawyer knows, whether consent is informed, whether harm is imminent, and who has authority to decide.

Separate what a rule requires from what it permits. “May disclose” does not mean “must disclose,” and a client’s preferred means do not necessarily control when the lawyer must decline unlawful assistance. Determine whether a consent exception requires specific conditions. Finally, choose the action that complies while addressing the immediate problem. A plausible ethical course that skips the rule’s trigger or consent safeguards is not the best answer.

Question 1: confidential information and serious harm

A lawyer represents a client in a civil dispute. In a private meeting, the client says he plans to sabotage a chemical line at a facility the next morning. The lawyer reasonably believes the plan could expose nearby workers to toxic gas. The lawyer has not been asked to help carry it out. Under the ABA Model Rules, what is the best response?

A. The lawyer must keep the information confidential because it came from a client. B. The lawyer may reveal information to the extent reasonably necessary to prevent reasonably certain death or substantial bodily harm. C. The lawyer may disclose every detail of the representation to the press. D. The lawyer must withdraw but may not take any step to prevent harm.

Best answer: B. Rule 1.6’s confidentiality duty is broad, but its exceptions include disclosure reasonably believed necessary to prevent reasonably certain death or substantial bodily harm. The lawyer should limit disclosure to what is reasonably necessary and use appropriate authorities or emergency channels. The imminent timing and serious physical risk activate the exception.

Why the other choices fail: A overlooks the express serious-harm exception. C goes too far: even when disclosure is permitted, the amount should be limited to what is reasonably necessary and shared with an appropriate recipient. D treats withdrawal as a substitute for preventing a grave imminent danger. The exception permits disclosure; the facts do not turn it into a general license to publicize client information.

Question 2: current clients with directly adverse interests

A small firm represents a restaurant in a lease negotiation. A second partner is asked to represent the landlord in a separate matter against that same restaurant, seeking damages from an unrelated accident. Both clients are current firm clients. The lawyers believe they can competently handle both matters and ask the clients to sign a general advance waiver. What is the central issue under Rule 1.7?

A. The firm can proceed because the matters are unrelated. B. The firm can proceed whenever both clients sign any waiver. C. Direct adversity between current clients creates a conflict; consent is possible only if the rule’s consentability requirements are met and each affected client gives informed consent confirmed in writing. D. The conflict is automatically cured by assigning different partners.

Best answer: C. Rule 1.7 covers direct adversity between current clients even when the matters are unrelated. The lawyer must reasonably believe competent and diligent representation can be provided to each, the representation must not be prohibited by law, and it cannot involve one current client asserting a claim against another current client represented by the lawyer in the same litigation or proceeding. If consentable, each affected client must give informed consent confirmed in writing.

Why the other choices fail: A confuses a former-client substantial-relationship analysis with current-client direct adversity. B treats a signature as a substitute for informed consent and ignores nonconsentable conflicts. D misunderstands imputation: changing the individual lawyer does not automatically remove a firm conflict.

Question 3: former client and a new adverse matter

An attorney previously represented a software company in a confidential acquisition. A year later, a new client asks the attorney to sue that company over alleged misrepresentations in the same acquisition. The former client has not consented. May the attorney accept?

A. Yes, because the earlier representation ended. B. Yes, if the attorney promises not to use confidential information. C. No, because the new matter is the same or substantially related and materially adverse to the former client, absent informed consent confirmed in writing. D. Yes, because litigation is different from transactional work.

Best answer: C. Rule 1.9 generally bars a lawyer from representing a new person in the same or a substantially related matter when that person’s interests are materially adverse to a former client, unless the former client gives informed consent confirmed in writing. The acquisition facts are central to the proposed claim, making the matters substantially related.

Why the other choices fail: A ignores continuing duties to former clients. B’s promise does not itself cure the conflict; the rule protects the former client and confidential information through a consent requirement. D focuses on the format of the work instead of whether the matters are substantially related and materially adverse.

Question 4: client proposes fraud using the lawyer’s work

A client tells counsel that it will use a draft disclosure prepared by the firm to conceal a known defect from investors. The client asks the lawyer to finalize and transmit it. The lawyer’s services would assist the client’s planned fraud. What should the lawyer do?

A. Transmit the disclosure because the client controls the representation’s objectives. B. Explain that the lawyer cannot assist criminal or fraudulent conduct, advise the client to correct course, and take appropriate steps to avoid or withdraw from the assistance. C. Immediately disclose all client confidences to all investors without assessing necessity. D. Finish the disclosure but place a disclaimer in the lawyer’s file.

Best answer: B. Rule 1.2(d) prohibits a lawyer from counseling or assisting conduct the lawyer knows is criminal or fraudulent, while allowing discussion of legal consequences and good-faith efforts to determine the law. The lawyer should not complete a document that will further the fraud. Depending on the circumstances, the lawyer may need to withdraw and consider whether a Rule 1.6 exception permits a limited disclosure to prevent or mitigate specified substantial financial injury caused through use of the lawyer’s services.

Why the other choices fail: A confuses the client’s authority over objectives with a right to require unlawful assistance. C assumes a broad disclosure duty that does not automatically exist; confidentiality and exception conditions still matter. D does nothing to stop the lawyer’s work from facilitating the conduct.

Question 5: candor when a client offers false testimony

In a civil bench trial, a client testifies that she signed a contract on a particular date. The lawyer later receives a reliable email from the client admitting the date was fabricated. The proceeding is still open. What must the lawyer do under Rule 3.3?

A. Preserve the false testimony because Rule 1.6 always controls. B. Take reasonable remedial measures, which may include disclosure to the tribunal if necessary, even if that requires disclosure of information otherwise protected by Rule 1.6. C. Tell opposing counsel to correct the record. D. Wait until the client repeats the lie under oath.

Best answer: B. Rule 3.3 requires reasonable remedial measures when a lawyer knows material evidence offered by the client is false. The duty continues through the conclusion of the proceeding and applies even if compliance requires disclosure of information otherwise protected by Rule 1.6. The lawyer should first seek correction through the client where feasible, but must take further reasonable steps if necessary.

Why the other choices fail: A ignores Rule 3.3’s express priority in this setting. C improperly shifts the lawyer’s duty to opposing counsel. D delays action despite actual knowledge and a continuing proceeding. The key trigger is knowledge that material evidence already offered is false.

Question 6: communicating with a represented person

An attorney represents a tenant in a pending housing dispute. The landlord is represented by counsel in the matter. The tenant’s lawyer wants to call the landlord directly to ask about settlement authority. The landlord’s lawyer has not consented. What is the best answer under Rule 4.2?

A. The call is permitted because settlement is routine. B. The lawyer may communicate directly only if the tenant is also on the call. C. The lawyer must not communicate about the matter with the represented landlord unless the landlord’s lawyer consents or law or court order authorizes it. D. The lawyer may call because the lawyer represents the opposing party, not the landlord.

Best answer: C. Rule 4.2 generally prohibits a lawyer from communicating about the subject of a representation with a person the lawyer knows is represented in that matter, unless that person’s lawyer consents or the communication is authorized by law or court order. The opposing counsel’s consent is the usual route for a direct settlement discussion.

Why the other choices fail: A does not create an exception for routine or settlement communications. B’s presence of the lawyer’s own client does not supply consent from the other person’s counsel. D ignores that the contact is directly with a represented opposing party about the matter.

Question 7: disputed client funds

A lawyer holds settlement proceeds in a client trust account. The client and a medical provider each claim a specific portion of the funds, and the lawyer knows the provider has asserted a valid lien. The client demands that the lawyer distribute the entire balance to her immediately. What should the lawyer do?

A. Distribute all funds to the client because the client is the lawyer’s only client. B. Keep the disputed portion in trust until the dispute is resolved, promptly distribute any portion not in dispute, and account for the funds. C. Pay the provider without telling the client. D. Put the funds in the law firm operating account while the parties negotiate.

Best answer: B. Rule 1.15 requires client and third-party property to be safeguarded. When ownership of part of the funds is disputed, the lawyer should keep the disputed amount separate until resolution and promptly deliver portions to which there is no dispute, subject to applicable law and the lawyer’s obligations. Maintain records and communicate the accounting.

Why the other choices fail: A ignores the third party’s known claim. C fails to communicate and may distribute funds without resolving the client’s position. D commingles entrusted property with firm funds, creating a serious safekeeping problem.

Question 8: judge’s financial interest and recusal

A judge’s spouse has entered an appearance as counsel for one side in a pending case. The judge knows of the relationship before taking up the matter. The parties say they would prefer the judge to stay on the case. What is the best course under the Model Code of Judicial Conduct?

A. Proceed because the holding is small. B. Disclose the interest and assess disqualification under the applicable judicial conduct rule; the judge must not decide the case if the required disqualification standard is met. C. Ask the parties to waive the issue privately without disclosure. D. Sell the shares after the hearing.

Best answer: B. The judge must assess disqualification under the applicable Model Code provision. A spouse’s role in a firm appearing in the proceeding is a specific relationship that can require disqualification. The judge should disclose the relevant circumstances and follow the rule’s procedure for any permissible remittal. Party preference alone does not erase a mandatory ground or substitute for the required disclosure and process.

Why the other choices fail: A ignores a relationship that can affect impartiality. C asks for a private, uninformed waiver and bypasses the prescribed process. D does not remove the conflict during the hearing and may create additional questions about when the judge learned of it. Identify the listed ground first, then consider whether the code permits remittal and what safeguards it requires.

Question 9: lawyer as negotiator and truthfulness

During settlement negotiations, opposing counsel asks whether the client has already accepted a competing offer. The lawyer knows the client has accepted, but the client instructs the lawyer to say no. The lawyer believes disclosure would weaken the client’s bargaining position. What should the lawyer do?

A. Make the false statement because negotiations are not formal proceedings. B. Decline to make a knowingly false statement of material fact and discuss with the client a truthful response or lawful refusal to answer. C. Reveal every confidential fact about the client’s negotiations. D. End the representation immediately without explanation.

Best answer: B. Rule 4.1 prohibits a lawyer, in representing a client, from knowingly making a false statement of material fact or law to a third person, subject to its specified context. The lawyer should not lie simply because the communication occurs in negotiation. The lawyer can consider a truthful response or decline to answer where permitted, while maintaining confidentiality.

Why the other choices fail: A incorrectly limits truthfulness duties to tribunals. C overcorrects by disclosing more confidential information than necessary. D is not the first response; the lawyer should advise the client about the boundary and seek a permissible way to proceed.

Why small facts change the answer

Ethics questions often turn on one trigger: knowledge rather than suspicion, current versus former client, substantial relationship, informed consent, a proceeding still pending, or whether another person is represented in the matter. Build a short checklist for each rule family. Do not import a confidentiality exception from one rule into every scenario. A permissive disclosure exception does not automatically create a duty to disclose; a tribunal duty can override confidentiality in a narrower setting.

The MPRE also tests judges, prosecutors, law firms, advertising, fees, trust property, unauthorized practice, and regulation of the profession. Use NCBE’s subject matter outline to distribute study across the categories. The approximate ranges are blueprint guidance; not every subtopic appears on every exam. Do not study only the high-profile confidentiality and conflict rules.

Review each answer choice

After answering, state the rule trigger in plain language and identify which fact satisfies it. Then classify each distractor: wrong actor, missing consent, wrong timing, overbroad disclosure, failure to protect a third party, or action based on an assumed exception. This develops rule application instead of answer-letter memory.

Questions above are original and do not predict a scaled score. NCBE provides free sample questions and sells retired authentic items with explanations. Use the official material for examples of NCBE’s style and the Model Rules for rule language. When a real jurisdiction has adopted a variation, the MPRE generally tests the stated majority or model rule unless the question supplies a local rule; this practice set states its model-rule framework explicitly.