c&f disclosure - traffic violation in another country?

[lizclaire]

Hi! I'm planning on applying this fall and I've been looking through some application materials/questions.

I know the applications for this fall are not open yet, but looking at the c&f questions for last year, it seems that some schools ask for violation of ANY law except minor parking violation. My issue is that I've been pulled over by a cop for traffic violation (moving violation to be exact) a couple years ago and had to pay a fine.

Should I disclose this when it happened in another country? The laws there are different and I cannot get access to an English translation of my record. I think it's considered as an infraction since there weren't any court appearance, but I honestly don't clearly remember the exact details of the incident and I really don't know how to translate this incident into English.

Thank you!

[Dave Killoran]

Hi! I'm planning on applying this fall and I've been looking through some application materials/questions.

I know the applications for this fall are not open yet, but looking at the c&f questions for last year, it seems that some schools ask for violation of ANY law except minor parking violation. My issue is that I've been pulled over by a cop for traffic violation (moving violation to be exact) a couple years ago and had to pay a fine.

Should I disclose this when it happened in another country? The laws there are different and I cannot get access to an English translation of my record. I think it's considered as an infraction since there weren't any court appearance, but I honestly don't clearly remember the exact details of the incident and I really don't know how to translate this incident into English.

Thank you!

Hi Liz,

Good question! Each school has different text in their disclosure questions, and so you will want to craft your replies to meet the standard of each different request. Some will be very broad, and others very narrow.

If you are uncertain about whether to disclose based on the wording of the application, then disclose it. Better safe than sorry! The best news though: no law school cares at all about a traffic violation. As in, they won't even think for a second about it because every person has one.

So, no matter which way you go, this will be a non-issue as far as your apps

Thanks!