Bangladesh Bar Council MCQ common mistakes
Bangladesh Bar Council MCQ · Understand the traps and how to avoid them.
Memorising article numbers of the Constitution in isolation and then answering scenario questions by matching a keyword to a remembered number, without checking which Part or which constitutional doctrine the question is actually testing.
Most candidates revise the Constitution by rote lists of articles, so under time pressure they pattern-match a familiar word to a familiar number instead of analysing the fact pattern; the exam deliberately frames questions as short scenarios rather than 'which article deals with X'.
What to do instead
For each high-yield article, write a one-line note covering what right or power it creates, who can enforce it, and the leading principle behind it, then practise converting each note into a two-sentence fact pattern and answering it. Build a habit of stating the issue first, then the article, then the application.
Treating the 'State' and 'person' for the purposes of fundamental rights enforcement as covering every respondent, and missing the distinction between writ jurisdiction against public authorities and ordinary suits against private parties.
Candidates conflate constitutional remedies with general civil remedies and never learn which bodies are 'authorities' within the writ jurisdiction; questions often plant a private company or a statutory body to test exactly this line.
What to do instead
Prepare a short table of respondents: State organs, statutory corporations, bodies performing public functions, and purely private parties. For each, note the correct forum and remedy. Answer every writ question by first classifying the respondent, then choosing the remedy.
Answering contract questions by reciting definitions of offer, acceptance and consideration instead of applying the sequence to the facts, and so missing issues such as revocation timing, counter-offer, or absence of intention to create legal relations.
Coaching materials reward definition recall, so candidates never build the habit of running a checklist over the facts; exam questions hide one or two defects in an otherwise valid-looking transaction.
What to do instead
Use a fixed seven-step checklist on every contract fact pattern: offer, acceptance, consideration, intention, capacity, free consent, legality. Write the conclusion only after ticking each step and noting which element is missing or defective.
Confusing the remedies under the Specific Relief Act with damages, and answering 'specific performance' automatically whenever a contract is breached, without considering whether damages are adequate or whether the contract is determinable.
Candidates learn specific performance as a synonym for 'remedy for breach' and never study the statutory bars; the exam tests exactly those bars through short scenarios.
What to do instead
Memorise the statutory grounds on which specific performance is refused and the categories of contracts that cannot be specifically enforced. For each practice question, first ask whether damages are an adequate remedy, then check the bars, and only then select specific performance.
In tort questions, jumping to the elements of the tort named in the question stem without checking whether a defence (volenti, contributory negligence, statutory authority, necessity) or a limitation issue applies.
Candidates revise torts as a list of separate torts and treat defences as a minor topic, so they stop analysing once they recognise the tort and select the first option that states its elements.
What to do instead
After identifying the tort, always run a two-line defence check before choosing the answer. Keep a one-page defence matrix mapping each tort to its available defences, and drill mixed questions where the correct answer turns on the defence rather than the tort.
Mixing up the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Penal Code when a question asks which provision governs procedure, or confusing investigation, inquiry and trial stages when asked who may do what.
Both codes are studied together and share terminology, and candidates memorise section numbers without attaching them to the correct statute or stage; the exam exploits this by asking 'under which law' and 'at which stage'.
What to do instead
Label every note with the statute in capitals (PenCr/Penal) and the stage (investigation/inquiry/trial). Draw a one-page flow chart from FIR to charge to trial to appeal, marking which authority acts at each stage, and answer procedural questions only after locating the stage on the chart.
Answering evidence questions by recalling the general rule only, and ignoring the exceptions and the distinction between relevancy, admissibility and mode of proof.
The law of evidence is exception-heavy, but candidates learn the headline rule and stop; questions are typically built on an exception, such as a dying declaration, a confession to police, or a previous statement used for contradiction.
What to do instead
For every rule you revise, write the rule, its statutory exceptions, and one example of each. Practise classifying a fact as relevant, admissible and proved as three separate questions before choosing an answer.
Treating civil procedure as a set of definitions of orders and suits, and failing to apply the sequence of jurisdiction, limitation, parties, pleadings and interim relief to the facts given.
Candidates memorise Order and Rule numbers without a procedural timeline, so they cannot see that a question is really about whether a suit is barred by limitation or whether the correct court has jurisdiction.
What to do instead
Build a chronological map of a civil suit from plaint to execution, with the Order and Rule noted at each step. Before answering any CPC question, identify the stage of the suit in the facts and check limitation and jurisdiction first.
In property and land law questions, ignoring the distinction between ownership, possession and title, and skipping registration and limitation requirements before selecting a remedy.
Land law is taught through statutes and local practice, so candidates learn terminology without the transactional chain; exam questions test whether the candidate spots a missing registration or an adverse possession issue.
What to do instead
For every transfer question, trace the chain: instrument, registration, possession, and limitation period. Keep a checklist of documents required for validity of each type of transfer and apply it mechanically to each fact pattern before choosing an option.
Answering family law questions by applying a single personal law uniformly, without first identifying the religion or community of the parties and the statute that governs them.
Candidates revise the Muslim, Hindu and Christian regimes side by side and blur them, while the exam deliberately leaves the community implicit in names or facts and expects the candidate to select the governing law first.
What to do instead
Begin every family law question by writing down the community and the applicable statute before reading the options. Maintain a comparison chart across marriage, divorce, maintenance and succession for each community, and drill questions where the community must be inferred from the facts.