Boys State Bar Exam Test with Verified Answers
1. What is the "supreme law of the land?: This Constitution, and the Laws of the
United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof ... shall be the supreme
Law of the Land...
no law made by any state, or even by the Congress of the United States, can
contradict the Constitution.
2. What are the three branches of government?: Executive, (President and about
5,000,000 workers) Legislative (Senate and House of Representatives) and Judicial
(Supreme Court and lower Courts)
3. Is it possible to amend the U.S. Constitution by plebiscite?: An amendment
can only be passed with the approval of both houses of Congress, the Senate, and
the House of Representatives
4. How many amendments have been added to the U.S. Constitution?: amend-
ments to the constitution mean everything added since its ratification, so it's tech-
nically correct to say 27, but most people cluster the first 10 amendments into the
constitution itself, counting only the 17 times since as the actual ratifications
5. When and how did California become a state?: September 9, 1850
In 1848, the United States and Mexico signed the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo,
ending a war. At that time, California had 7,500 residents. The Mexican government
was likely unaware of what was held within the state or of the population growth it
was about to see.
California became a state in a very different way than most states in the westward
expansion of the United States. To petition for statehood, it required 60,000 residents.
Most states first became territories and then, over time, built the population required
for application for statehood. In California, the discovery of gold, just nine days before
Mexico signed the treaty, began history's largest gold rush. Rumors of gold nuggets,
the size of a man's fist, lying on the ground quickly made their way east, leading to
a massive influx of "forty-niners" looking for a fortune. The area met the population
requirement by 1849, and because of its need for civil government, petitioned for
statehood
6. When was the present California Constitution adopted?: May 7, 1879
7. How many amendments have been added to the California Constitution?: -
Over 500 times
8. What is an "ex post facto" law?: a law that retroactively changes the legal
consequences (or status) of actions that were committed, or relationships that
existed, before the enactment of the law
9. Which state official represents the state in court: State Attorney
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1. What is the "supreme law of the land?: This Constitution, and the Laws of the
United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof ... shall be the supreme
Law of the Land...
no law made by any state, or even by the Congress of the United States, can
contradict the Constitution.
2. What are the three branches of government?: Executive, (President and about
5,000,000 workers) Legislative (Senate and House of Representatives) and Judicial
(Supreme Court and lower Courts)
3. Is it possible to amend the U.S. Constitution by plebiscite?: An amendment
can only be passed with the approval of both houses of Congress, the Senate, and
the House of Representatives
4. How many amendments have been added to the U.S. Constitution?: amend-
ments to the constitution mean everything added since its ratification, so it's tech-
nically correct to say 27, but most people cluster the first 10 amendments into the
constitution itself, counting only the 17 times since as the actual ratifications
5. When and how did California become a state?: September 9, 1850
In 1848, the United States and Mexico signed the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo,
ending a war. At that time, California had 7,500 residents. The Mexican government
was likely unaware of what was held within the state or of the population growth it
was about to see.
California became a state in a very different way than most states in the westward
expansion of the United States. To petition for statehood, it required 60,000 residents.
Most states first became territories and then, over time, built the population required
for application for statehood. In California, the discovery of gold, just nine days before
Mexico signed the treaty, began history's largest gold rush. Rumors of gold nuggets,
the size of a man's fist, lying on the ground quickly made their way east, leading to
a massive influx of "forty-niners" looking for a fortune. The area met the population
requirement by 1849, and because of its need for civil government, petitioned for
statehood
6. When was the present California Constitution adopted?: May 7, 1879
7. How many amendments have been added to the California Constitution?: -
Over 500 times
8. What is an "ex post facto" law?: a law that retroactively changes the legal
consequences (or status) of actions that were committed, or relationships that
existed, before the enactment of the law
9. Which state official represents the state in court: State Attorney
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