Emily Simpson Says "It Was Devastating" for Husband Shane to Not Pass the Bar Exam

Emily Simpson confirmed reports that her husband Shane Simpson did not pass the bar exam he had been studying for this season of The Real Housewives of Orange County during an interview with The Daily Dish in New York City on Tuesday, October 1.

"I mean, it was devastating to not pass. I took the bar exam in 2005, and then I passed the first time, so I don't even know what that must have felt like for him. I've said before, I feel badly, but I give him a lot of credit for doing what he did, and he did it with millions of people watching," Emily shared. "I mean, when I took the bar exam in '05, it was like, just my family knew I was taking it. And for him to go through that and to take it and for millions of people to judge and have opinions about it, I mean, I think that was a pretty brave thing to do."

Emily, who currently practices as a copyright lawyer in California, praised Shane for his ability to take comments from fans in stride. "He handles social media really well. I have to give him credit for that. Honestly, it doesn't bother him at all. Like, at all," she said. "Me, I'm like, 'Oh my god, look at this article!' And he's like, 'I don't care.' So I have to give him props for that."

She also noted to The Daily Dish that Shane isn't the only one who has been hit hard by the results of his bar exam. "It was a huge thing in our family that was like everybody sacrificing so Shane could take the bar exam. So it's like, I'm taking care of the kids, his parents are helping, his sister's helping, it was like the whole Simpson family was all running around doing all these things so he could take the bar exam," she said. "And then for him not to pass, it was pretty devastating."

Shane previously worked as a practicing lawyer in Utah before moving to California. The California Bar Exam is one of the most difficult to pass in the country with only 28.4 percent of repeat applicants passing the February 2019 test, according to statistics reported by The State Bar of California.

"I feel like some people are good test takers and other people aren't. Like, I'm a good test taker. I can nail anything. I could probably pass any bar exam. Well, maybe not now, in my 20s," Emily told The Daily Dish. "But I don't know, he's very smart and he's very quick and he's very witty, but he just doesn't do well on tests. He stresses out. I never stress out, and I think that's probably a big factor as to why he has a hard time. He just gets really stressed. I mean, he gets very overwhelmed, and when you get that overwhelming feeling, it's difficult to do your best."

Shane and his family are now awaiting the results of the bar exam he took in July. "So I had the kids all summer, and he was studying for the bar exam," Emily said. "But we get the results in November. I'm not sure of the date. He probably knows. He's not gonna tell me [laughs]."

Emily said she hasn't really been able to get a gauge from Shane on how this latest test went. "I don't know. I mean, honestly, I don't ask him about it. He obviously doesn't want to talk about it if we all go back to [earlier this season] where I was trying to ask him about the bar exam, and he had no desire to talk about it at all," she said. "I did ask him, 'Well, what happens if you didn't pass? Do you have a plan?' He's like, 'I don't know. I'll probably take it again.' And I'm like, 'Oh my god, OK.'"

Emily said she knows how important it is to her husband and his career to pass the California Bar. "He's working full-time right now for a law firm, and he really enjoys it, but he wants to be able to be licensed so he can practice," she explained. "So he'll probably keep taking it 'til he does."

If Shane does, unfortunately, have to take the bar again, Emily said the couple needs to work out a better arrangement of how they're going to juggle all of their responsibilities as he prepares for the next exam. "I just feel like if he takes it again, there just has to be a different system in place. It can't be he's just gone all day studying and all the brunt of taking care of the kids is on me," she said. "He just has to figure out he still has to be around, and then he has to study a couple hours after work or something. I don't know, like a different system."

See more of Emily and Shane from Season 14 of RHOC, below.

Emily Simpson Is Tired of Being the Butt of Her Husband's Jokes