Character & Fitness Questions

[FOBsoFLY]

Hello,
I had a question about how to disclose ones; juvenile record when it is sealed? I know I have two charges, however I was never convicted and ultimately paid a fine for a traffic violation to get it expunged from my record. I have no other details on these incidents, like the exact dates, what the charges were, and any other specifics. I recently sent in a request for this information to my jurisdiction and they informed me that my record is sealed and can only be accessed with a court order.

My question is: do I need to disclose this information on my law school applications? And if so, how do I go about doing that when I don't have any of the specifics? Any feedback or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Jessica

[Dave Killoran]

Hi Jessica,

Thanks for the question. Fitness questions like this one can be difficult. My basic policy with these is that if you know of an incident, and it meets the guidelines of what they want disclosed, then you should disclose it. Why? Because if you don't, and then the Bar finds out about it, you probably won't get passed by them and then you can't practice law. The way it works is that your applications to law school are retained, so anything you conceal can be discovered.

One piece of advice that I do think is important here is to carefully note the language that the law school uses in asking these questions. Some will say just "arrested," others will say "charged," some say "convicted." You are under no obligation to disclose anything more than just what they ask for, so carefully review the request they make.

One piece of advice you often hear in these situations is to call the law school and talk to them. I certainly suggest that you do that, although in almost all situations they will err on the side of caution and tell you disclose it. I still would advise that you call them and confirm your bet course of action here.

Last, the fact that a number of the details are unknown here makes this a trickier-than-normal situation (and it's always tricky to begin with!). If you choose to disclose this information, you are going to have to do a really strong job of explaining why you wouldn't know a lot of this information. My fear is that if you leave it all uncertain, it's going to look like you are covering up something, which would obviously be a bad impression to make.

This isn't an easy one, but I hope I've been able to help just a bit. Thanks!

[FOBsoFLY]

Hi Dave,
Thank you for your advice! I will definitely call the schools I am applying to and explain my situation and hope they can further clarify the situation.

Thanks again,
Jessica

[Dave Killoran]

Ok, that sounds like a plan. Good luck!