Help: Plagiarism Forum

[QContinuum]

Thank you for the input. Besides the question of accepting or rejecting the plea deal, my main inquiry in this post is to figure out how to disclose what's currently on the plate to my employer that will cause minimum damage. Do you have an opinion on this?

I don't think you need to (or should) disclose an unresolved proceeding.

But, of course, if OP accepts the plea deal, then the proceeding would be resolved.

So how OP handles this with their employer turns on how OP handles the proceeding.

[Anonymous User]

Thank you for the input. Besides the question of accepting or rejecting the plea deal, my main inquiry in this post is to figure out how to disclose what's currently on the plate to my employer that will cause minimum damage. Do you have an opinion on this?

I don't think you need to (or should) disclose an unresolved proceeding.

But, of course, if OP accepts the plea deal, then the proceeding would be resolved.

So how OP handles this with their employer turns on how OP handles the proceeding.

Sorry for the lack of clarity. I meant to say how should I handle this with my employer if I accept the plea deal.

[icansortofmath]

We don’t even know jurisdiction you’re in. You need to ask what happens to the information later. Will bar tell employee proactively? Is there going to be discipline invoked that becomes public record?

And there is the question of how much your employer will care. There is almost certainly nobody here that can give you useful advice.

And oh, don’t plagiarize. Nobody cares (outside of school) if your paper is full of quotes and almost devoid of your own words if you make it flow and don’t take quotes out of context. But lifting even one sentence can haunt you forever, especially with everything being electronically submitted now.

[Clytemnestra3]

Does “reportable to the bar” mean the incident is in fact reported to the bar? That phrasing makes me think there is some discretion in whether it is reported. And if it is reported, what exactly is reported to the bar? Those are questions you should answer.

What can the bar legally do with that information? In similar past incidents, what has the bar done with that information? Those are questions that a lawyer you consult should answer.

I agree that you shouldn’t be telling your employer anything until a final decision has been reached.

[ur_hero]

Tough situation. Who knows - MAYBE there's a benefit to taking the initiative to be completely upfront about this...Maybe it's even the right thing to do. But, I'm not sure whether from a selfish standpoint it's going to be in your own personal best interest. Will your employer be formally notified somehow? Will you go on some sort of public registry? Can this be resolved just between you and your school? Definitely talk to a lawyer that seems experienced and personally invested in your scenario to get their input. I would think this is the kind of thing you just don't want out there ever if you can avoid it, let alone before you have a chance to build relationships and prove yourself.

As far as explaining the F, do most firms even look at grades again, so long as you still graduate (I would think not)? Perhaps it's not that uncommon for 3Ls with jobs lined up to generally get lazy, cut corners, or blow off their work entirely in one or more classes? I'm not in a position to say, but something to think about and explore as this appears to be a truthful, albeit vague, explanation for your situation.

Lots of tough decisions to make, and no clear right answer. GOOD LUCK!

[lavarman84]

I'm still confused by all this. If you cited when you quoted verbatim, I don't see the issue. Even if you screwed up the cites, that's not plagiarism. Unless you didn't cite for everything you quoted verbatim.

[nixy]

Using the original language, verbatim, without using quotation marks is still an issue even where you cite because it implies the wording is your own.

(Though this is sort of the issue with most plagiarism questions, it’s hard to know what the OP actually did.)

[Anonymous User]

Your situation sounds ambiguous enough that it's worth fighting. You're at a disadvantage if this is a student-run court. Those things seem to be more kangaroo-like than other honor code bodies. At my school, it's a panel of faculty AND students who have to unanimously decide you are guilty or you are otherwise innocent.

I got accused of an HC violation 1L that I was pretty clearly not guilty of so I chose to go to a hearing after the prosecutor refused to drop the charges. There was a TON of prep and evidence gathering, and it was still scary and kind've of a close call but I ultimately won and everything was dropped. All this to say that if you do fight this, you could win, but it's a challenge that you need to take very very seriously. Gather evidence, prepare your argument very thoroughly, don't just waltz in there expecting to win.

I do think, however, that it might be worth it for you to fight this, but it depends on the burden of proof on the prosecutor. At my school it was "beyond a reasonable doubt" so I was pretty comfortable. Your situation seems ambiguous enough that you may prevail here. To me, it will heavily depend on whether you change words in your statements from other authors, or whether you put exact quotes without a citation. I will say that if you have direct quotes without a citation you've got a steeper hill to climb that will be helped only if those quotes at least have footnotes.

Whatever you do, be a firm and honest advocate for yourself.

P.S. Fuck Student Prosecutors, they are universally dicks.