Top Law Schools

Hi everyone!

I'm new to the forum - just signed up today. Glad to be a part of the TLS community!

So, I have a question about seat deposits. This has probably already been addressed on the forum - I apologize if this thread is repetitive.

I've applied to 6 schools, and have been accepted to 3. I've been accepted to Mercer University, UGA, and Emory. Still waiting to hear from Vanderbilt, Duke, and UVA. My question is, does anyone who has experience dealing with these particular schools know what their policies are regarding paying deposits to multiple schools? I'm concerned that I may not hear about admission decisions and scholarship decisions from Vandy/Duke/UVA before the seat deposit deadlines at UGA (Apr 15) and Emory (Apr 17), and I don't want to do anything to harm or void my chances of acceptance/scholarships to any of these schools. But I won't be able to make a final decision until I have decisions from the other 3 (I'm not going to commit to $20k/yr at UGA and tie myself to the Georgia market forever if there's a chance I could go to Duke for $35k/yr).

Any help/information on this matter is greatly appreciated!

It's okay to deposit somewhere and ride waitlists and eventually not withdraw where you deposited if you change your mind/get off a waitlist. You'd just lose your deposits.

You usually have to choose only one school to which you've been accepted, deposit there, and withdraw all other acceptances. You can still forfeit that deposit later if you get off a waitlist. However, if you deposit at multiple schools, they will likely find out and revoke your acceptances.

For example, Duke's deposit agreement says:
"I ACCEPT and intend to enroll in the 2017 entering class at Duke Law School. I certify that I have withdrawn from all other law schools to which I have been admitted."

If a school has multiple deposits (some schools have a 1st and 2nd deposit deadline), you can usually deposit at more than one school like that, since you haven't put down the "full" deposit at that point. There's usually a certain date by which you will need to only be deposited at one school (I think its in May), at which point in time schools can see where else you've put down deposits.

That being said, I wouldn't recommend depositing at more than one school, unless you have a really good reason (like negotiating scholarships). If you're in a situation where you're still considering multiple schools where you've been accepted, it might be a safer route to request an extension on the seat deposit deadline, especially if your acceptance came in relatively late (like late March/early April)

Depositing doesn't prevent you from being on a waitlist, and depositing in and of itself isn't binding.

goldenbear2020 wrote:You usually have to choose only one school to which you've been accepted, deposit there, and withdraw all other acceptances. You can still forfeit that deposit later if you get off a waitlist. However, if you deposit at multiple schools, they will likely find out and revoke your acceptances.

For example, Duke's deposit agreement says:
"I ACCEPT and intend to enroll in the 2017 entering class at Duke Law School. I certify that I have withdrawn from all other law schools to which I have been admitted."

This is an important point. Make sure you read the form that comes with the deposit, because some of them only leave you with the option of riding out waitlists, not keeping multiple acceptances as open offers.

cavalier1138 wrote:

goldenbear2020 wrote:You usually have to choose only one school to which you've been accepted, deposit there, and withdraw all other acceptances. You can still forfeit that deposit later if you get off a waitlist. However, if you deposit at multiple schools, they will likely find out and revoke your acceptances.

For example, Duke's deposit agreement says:
"I ACCEPT and intend to enroll in the 2017 entering class at Duke Law School. I certify that I have withdrawn from all other law schools to which I have been admitted."

This is an important point. Make sure you read the form that comes with the deposit, because some of them only leave you with the option of riding out waitlists, not keeping multiple acceptances as open offers.

This. Like almost all questions on TLS regarding acceptances, etc. the first course of action should be to contact the schools directly. Only they can tell you exactly what their policy (or practice since many might not have an actual written policy) is. Schools sometimes change them from year to year or they vary by ED/RD/Scholarship recipients, which people who answer the question might always realize.

The best etiquette is to not hold a seat that you know you're not going to take. You have to balance for yourself where you are on the spectrum between "Screw everyone else, I'm looking out for #1 and holding all the seats until August in case I need scholarship leverage" and "I am blessed with riches by adcoms and keep only what I need in hopes that all may one day unite in karmic harmony as members of the bar."

But you're right, this question gets asked a million times a cycle because everyone will have decisions that won't be back before deposit deadlines. It's just part of the process, and you'll have to make a decision when the time comes with the information you have. Use the search function to find all the other threads. (Although just what you have here represents like 90% of the right answer.)

Stephen M. Perez
Prof. & Fmr. Admissions Dean