Here's the Law.com link. Past posts about Bar/Bri here: "What is Bar/Bri and why is it being sued" and here: "BAR/BRI settles, some in class think settlement 'sucks'".

I wonder if these suits and subsequent settlements have the adverse effect of actually raising the price at an accelerated pace for future Bar/Bri users?

The suits thus far have not really amounted to anything that will force Bar/Bri to change the way it does business other than the company having to pay money for attorneys fees and settlements. So will Bar/Bri raise the price of its program more rapidly to help cover past suits and the more probable risk of future suits as compared to if the company were never sued?

Needless to say, I'm ecstatic about dishing out $2,500 for Bar/Bri after Fall semester when I graduate this year. And besides the cost, there is another reason I'm really disappointed in my options for bar review.

I heard about the the Bar/Bri self-study program that only involves listening to podcasts of the Bar/Bri lectures on an mp3 player. Since I plan on working full-time through a lot of Bar/Bri, I figure the evening in-class lectures would take up too much of my time. Plus I'm not much of a classroom learner anyway.

So it's cheaper to just get a bunch of podcasted lectures and listen to them while not attending a class in-person, right?...

Nope. The Bar/Bri self study program is available only as an "add-on" option.

You pay the regular price that those attending the in-class lectures pay plus however much it costs for the "add-on." There is no cheapr option to not have the option of attending class even though there is a self-study option, at least in Illinois (if that makes sense).

I know Bar/Bri is good at what they do. And I'm grateful for that. They are amazing at teaching law students how to pass the bar and there is absolutely no question of that. But maybe they're too good? Especially in a state like Illinois where about 80% of those sitting for the bar exam pass.

I just wish there were less expensive, but still reliable options out there for those of us who have to pay for it on our own and/or feel like we might be motivated enough to not need such a rigorous system. Rant finished.