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Hi there,

I was hoping you could provide insight into a question concerning the disclosure of criminal violations on law school applications. Most schools ask the applicant to disclose any crime/violation of the law. But some schools only require the disclosure of felonies or misdemeanors.

I plan to sit for the NY bar exam (a state where most law schools ask for the disclosure of violations) and the bar exam of the state in which I attend law school. Do you think I will have difficulty passing Character and Fitness in NY or any other state if I fail to disclose my violations on apps that do not require their disclosure? I have difficulty imagining failure to disclose violations I am not being asked to disclose could be construed as an example of dishonesty. What do you think?

Thanks for the insight.

It's impossible to know without you telling us the general kinds of violations. Until then, the default answer is to disclose.

theviolator wrote: Do you think I will have difficulty passing Character and Fitness in NY or any other state if I fail to disclose my violations on apps that do not require their disclosure?

No, but you have to be absolutely certain that the violations are absolutely not required. Generally speaking, it's better to disclose than to not, regardless of the requirements It's better to be as honest as possible, then hedging your bets and getting possibly screwed on C&F. Hence, the default answer is usually disclose.

They're mostly the usual undergrad alcohol-related stuff. But I'm concerned they are numerous enough to raise some adcomm eyebrows and negatively impact my application.

theviolator wrote:They're mostly the usual undergrad alcohol-related stuff. But I'm concerned they are numerous enough to raise some adcomm eyebrows and negatively impact my application.

Sorry dude. You'll have to disclose.

Why do you say that? The application only asks for misdemeanors and/or felonies. How could character and fitness find fault with my not disclosing something I was not asked to disclose? Moreover, it seems the school has gone out of its way to refrain from asking about violations, mentioning something about how state law prohibits them from asking.