Where should I apply for Early Decision? 164/3.76 URM Forum

[abarrios]

164/3.76 Mexican-American URM. I would love to go to any school in the T-14. Which T-14 school should I apply for early decision?

Any comments or suggestions are appreciated.

Edit: I also have two past arrests for theft on my record. Both class B misdemeanors. I completed probation successfully for both charges and have not been in trouble with the law for over two years.

[bk1]

I would say one of CCN.

[CanadianWolf]

I think that you need to include any adverse background information in your post so that other posters can offer advice based on full disclosure. Based on your prior posts, you may want to apply to all Top 14 except Yale, Harvard & Stanford. Because of the recency of your prior arrests & convictions for theft, I think that you should apply to as many Top 50 (Tier One) law schools as you can reasonably afford, but be prepared for many unfavorable decisions especially if you were over the age of 18 for each of the offenses.
P.S. I hope that you share your results as many posters inquire about past convictions and their chances of being admitted to law schools.

[bk1]

After seeing post history you of course should send apps to all of the T14 outside of HYS (could possibly include H for a small small small small chance).

I don't think the arrests factor into where you ED in the T14. It's not like MVP are going to be less forgiving about it than CCN. If it dings you it dings you, if it doesn't it doesn't. It will be a personal choice by the AdComm and you cannot predict how they will react. Maybe NYU won't care as much and UVa will, it is impossible to predict.

[CanadianWolf]

Since you want to practice in the Houston area, consider contacting a Texas attorney who specializes in bar disciplinary matters to get a better understanding of what future hurdles you may face with the bar. A reasonable recommendation to increase your chances of admission to the bar after law school might be to attend drug & alcohol counseling throughout law school since these are factors that you claim were relevant to your past behavior.

[Jack Smirks]

If it dings you it dings you, if it doesn't it doesn't.

This

you cannot predict how they will react.

and this. Apply just as you would without the arrests because the simple fact is you have no idea what weight a particular school is going to give to that issue. Write an addendum and then ignore it for any other application purposes.

[Knock]

I would say one of CCN.

This. Whichever one of CCN you prefer. I would ED NYU personally, but its up to you.

[CanadianWolf]

Apply, but make sure that you fully disclose the two convictions & the two citations as required by each school. Without knowing more facts, I would suggest applying to a wide range of law schools outside of the Top 20 as well as to your target law schools.
It may make a substantial difference to some state bars how you handled each charge. You really need to speak with an experienced attorney who specializes in state bar disciplinary matters before investing three years & a lot of money in law school. I understand that you are feeling good after doing well on the LSAT & receiving multiple fee waivers, but the fee waivers only considered your GPA, LSAT & URM status & are unaware of these other factors.
My honest opinion, to be blunt, is that you may be wasting your resources applying to any Top 20 law school that does not grant you a fee waiver.

[ArchRoark]

Since you want to practice in the Houston area, consider contacting a Texas attorney who specializes in bar disciplinary matters to get a better understanding of what future hurdles you may face with the bar.

Texas I know forbids you from studying law for 5 years after the completion of any felony level probation/conviction.

[abarrios]

Thanks for all the comments everyone.

Since you want to practice in the Houston area, consider contacting a Texas attorney who specializes in bar disciplinary matters to get a better understanding of what future hurdles you may face with the bar.

Texas I know forbids you from studying law for 5 years after the completion of any felony level probation/conviction.

It was not a felony so I should be alright. They were both class B misdemeanors

.

Since you want to practice in the Houston area, consider contacting a Texas attorney who specializes in bar disciplinary matters to get a better understanding of what future hurdles you may face with the bar. A reasonable recommendation to increase your chances of admission to the bar after law school might be to attend drug & alcohol counseling throughout law school since these are factors that you claim were relevant to your past behavior.

I have been in contact with one of my fathers company attorneys who used to specialize in the bar. He is claiming that I should be fine when I am facing the bar as it will have been over 5 years since the incidents. Also, he will be checking my addendum when I finish writing it.

I will keep everyone posted with the results of my cycle. There seems to be a dearth of information on this site about applying to law school with past crimes of moral turpitude.

[CanadianWolf]

Not sure if this advice is accurate since many statutes measure from time of completion of sentence & not from date of offense or conviction.
P.S. The dearth of information may be due in large part to the fact that each state has its own bar rules & statutes & each bar applicant's situation varies.

[BruceWayne]

Since you want to work in Houston I would go the route of EDing to Columbia or Chicago. Out of the 2 I would lean towards Chicago since they don't seem to get as many Mexican applicants and they became very URM friendly in their admissions last year (especially towards Blacks and Mexicans). Good luck!