Why Do We Have To Write An Addendum For Traffic Offenses? Forum

[MURPH]

Once something is expunged or sealed, the court cannot release those records or documents to anyone but the defendant and his lawyer. It's stupid not to disclose, I agree, but I don't understand – legally – how to bar can have access to these things without your notarized consent.

They will ask for you to sign your notarized consent and you will or they won't let you be a lawyer. Easy

[Vincent Vega]

When I filled out my applications in October, I didn't yet have the infinite wisdom of TLS at my disposal and assumed the speeding ticket I got when I was 16 for going 52 in a 35 wouldn't matter to law schools. While I should have disclosed, I don't think the bar is going to DQ me for not telling law schools about it.

[chango]

What fracken busy-bodies. If they're worried about minor infractions, it makes me wonder what campus security there must be like.

...but I chose to pretend like they couldn't possibly want to know about an infraction that happened 15 years ago that didn't even appear on my insurance because I went to traffic school.

They may think they're testing for honesty by asking the question, but what they're really testing for is anal retentiveness.

I won't call you buddy this time, but I honestly suggest you take a long, hard look at your motivations for law school. Just what, exactly, do you think the law is? The profession you have chosen for yourself revolves around these minute details you're currently shrugging off as meaningless. Your future clients will depend on your "anal retentiveness".

It's ridiculous exchanges like the one I'm having with you that's indeed making me take a long, hard look at law school. Thanks for the painful reminder about why lawyers have a reputation for being insufferable.

[ScaredWorkedBored]

Bar examiners do not tend to believe that laziness is the real explanation for not disclosing negative information. Not that laziness on details and following direction goes to having fitness to practice law in the first place.

[roundabout]

Yeah, it was not fun explaining the two incidents where I have driven into inanimate objects . . . both no longer on my record as are over five years ago, but definitely worthwhile to err on the side of more disclosure.

can we get an explanation on those incidents? how does that happen twice? my apologies in advance if they were legit accidents.

I got the lowest score within the pass range on my driving test, and it's been downhill since then. I just hope I'll be better at studying and practicing law than I am at driving. Don't worry, I will warn everyone when I know where I'm going so you can keep an eye out for my charmingly erratic lane changes.

[kalvano]

I have a ton of tickets.

I disclosed them all, that I could remember.

I did not write an addendum for them. There's nothing to write. I can't do 55. If that's enough to stop me from being a lawyer, then I'm fucked.

It has not seemed to matter one bit.

[Norwood]

Do some schools specifically ask you to disclose speeding tickets? All the schools I've applied to only state to address convictions, felonies, and misdemeanors. I know that in some states speeding may be considered misdemeanors but to my understanding speeding isn't a misdemeanor in California. So I didn't address my one speeding ticket...Should I have?

[Lonagan]

Minnesota and Lewis & Clark required traffic violations.

Those two schools have all encompassing language along the lines of 'any violation of law including felonies, misdmeanors, minor traffic tickets, etc.'

There is really no wiggle room for not disclosing if you have a traffic ticket.

[wakefield]

"Have you ever, either as an adult or a juvenile, been cited, arrested, taken into custody, charged with, indicted, convicted or tried for, or pleaded guilty to, the commission of any felony or misdemeanor or the violation of any law, except minor parking or traffic violations, or been the subject of any juvenile delinquency or youthful offender proceeding?"


So the consensus is that those should be disclosed, anyway?

[roundabout]

"Have you ever, either as an adult or a juvenile, been cited, arrested, taken into custody, charged with, indicted, convicted or tried for, or pleaded guilty to, the commission of any felony or misdemeanor or the violation of any law, except minor parking or traffic violations, or been the subject of any juvenile delinquency or youthful offender proceeding?"


So the consensus is that those should be disclosed, anyway?

I don't think so. I didn't disclose with questions like this that clearly state you should not disclose. What most people are talking about here, I think, are schools that explicitly ask you to include minor traffic violations- the only one I applied to that had a question like this was George Washington (they said "including but not limited to speeding tickets" so I think they were really looking for that stuff. When schools explicitly state that you do NOT need to disclose traffic tickets, there's no reason to do so.

[mb88]

No, wakefield. The schools we're talking about are those that, against the grain, require you to disclose traffic violations along with any criminal record. The vast majority of schools specifically exclue traffic violations from requested data, and in those cases you don't need to go round up all your traffic tickets, because they're not asked for.

All that's been said in this thread is that if a school does ask, you better disclose it, even if it seems silly.

[wakefield]

No, wakefield. The schools we're talking about are those that, against the grain, require you to disclose traffic violations along with any criminal record. The vast majority of schools specifically exclue traffic violations from requested data, and in those cases you don't need to go round up all your traffic tickets, because they're not asked for.

All that's been said in this thread is that if a school does ask, you better disclose it, even if it seems silly.

Thanks for clearing that up - I got really nervous!

[Lonagan]

"Have you ever, either as an adult or a juvenile, been cited, arrested, taken into custody, charged with, indicted, convicted or tried for, or pleaded guilty to, the commission of any felony or misdemeanor or the violation of any law, except minor parking or traffic violations, or been the subject of any juvenile delinquency or youthful offender proceeding?"


So the consensus is that those should be disclosed, anyway?

A. Have you ever in your entire life been charged with, or arrested for, the violation of any law including traffic laws,
misdemeanors, gross misdemeanors, felonies, or the equivalent?

That's Minnesota's. So, I disclosed traffic tickets to them, didn't on apps like the one you quoted.

[smiley]

um, does that include parking tickets?

[Lonagan]

I didn't even think to disclose parking tickets. I doubt they are an issue. I hope they are not because I have no idea how to track those down.

[84Sunbird2000]

What about equipment violation warnings (light out)? I've had two of those, though I didn't pay a fine on either one. I completely forgot about them when filling out my speeding ticket addendum. I also had an expired registration ticket, but it was never entered in to record, and I didn't pay a fine - they just asked me to renew my registration. They said specifically that it wasn't expunged or sealed, but never entered in. I just forgot about these, since I never paid a fine for any of them.

[Applicant123]

I just got a traffic ticket last week for crossing the median. I also just barely passed my driving test, for being a little too aggressive. Going to court in early February. Hopefully I can get it reduced to an equipment violation, parking ticket or dropped completely if I can bullshit with the ADA. Will this affect my chances Law School?

Oh I also have alot of other traffic tickets, have been charged with a felony and misdemeanors, convicted of one misdemeanor (not crimes of moral turpitude) and also have had disciplinary probation from a weed situation in the dorm freshman yr. Am I gonna get in anywhere, if I can finish my apps? 3.3 / 156

[monkeyboy]

um, does that include parking tickets?

No need to disclose parking tickets.

[Norwood]

I'm gonna throw in an application to Lewis & Clark. I just need to address a one and only speeding ticket I had awhile back. Problem is, I don't know the exact date, speed or any of those sort of details. Is it okay just to be very general? Or are they looking for specifics like citation# and all that good stuff?

[kumba84]

I'm gonna throw in an application to Lewis & Clark. I just need to address a one and only speeding ticket I had awhile back. Problem is, I don't know the exact date, speed or any of those sort of details. Is it okay just to be very general? Or are they looking for specifics like citation# and all that good stuff?

I got my speeding tickets in high school, so I don't remember anything about them. I wrote in my addenda for GWU and Minnesota something like "I got two speeding tickets between 2001 and 2003. I do not remember the details." Got into both schools and they didn't ask for more info.

[ApexChaser]

When I filled out my applications in October, I didn't yet have the infinite wisdom of TLS at my disposal and assumed the speeding ticket I got when I was 16 for going 52 in a 35 wouldn't matter to law schools. While I should have disclosed, I don't think the bar is going to DQ me for not telling law schools about it.

Each school's application is different. GWU asks, "Two or more moving traffic violations (including, but not limited to, speeding tickets, driving on a suspended license, lacking proof of insurance, etc.), not involving alcohol, drugs, and/ or harm to persons or property?"

Each state is different, but usual V.C.s for cites for speeding in CA only qualify as infractions. Still, this thread has me going through all my applications right now to check on the specific wording.

[cubswin]

Indiana-Bloomington, I think, went as far as to ask for something like "Can you think of anything else in your history that might reasonably be considered to reflect poorly on your character?" That's not the exact wording, but it seemed like they wanted to make sure you disclosed everything possible.

[ApexChaser]

I just went through some apps. Minnesota and Indiana require disclosure of traffic infractions. Guess I am writing addendum and apologies for missing those two. I just blew through the personal history section after the first few submissions. =( At least the damage of having my file pulled out of review to be updated is slight. Good thing I'm on TLS to read this.

So here's the list of apps I've looked at and their stance:
BC – no minor parking or traffic
BU – no minor parking or traffic
UCLA – misdemeanor or felony traffic only
Cornell – no minor parking or traffic
Duke – anything except minor traffic
Fordham – no minor traffic
GWU – 2 or more traffic violations
UIUC – no minor traffic
Indiana – YES, traffic violations are required
Iowa – no minor traffic
Minnesota - YES, anything
Notre Dame – only if convicted of a crime
USC – no minor traffic
UTA – no minor traffic
Vandy – no mention at all of crimes
WUSTL – only if convicted of a crime