<p>I am currently a sophomore at a top Public University (international affairs major) who was arrested for charges related to distributing fraudulent ID's (the actual incident allegedly happened the first semester my freshman year and I have changed a lot since the alleged incident happened; the campus police decided to arrest me a year later). I was suspended for one semester (spring 2013) and it is my first time ever getting in trouble with the law (not even a parking ticket). I will probably not be charged with anything, and if I am it will be expunged before I apply to law school. My question is how will a suspension and arrest affect my admission to a top 30 law school. I will graduate with a 3.4 to 3.6 gpa and practice lsats are all above a 170. I am also set on extracurriculars, involved in a lot of community service, and will have a minimum of two summer of internships under my belt (and possibly a semester of study abroad) by the time I graduate. Are ivy leagues still a reasonable goal? What about a top 30 law school? top 50? My number one is NYU, im also working towards an internship with a center affiliated with nyu for the summer.</p>
<p>You will have to disclose the arrest and the suspension on your law school applications and when you apply for the bar. No one can tell you definitively how this will play out.</p>
<p>It might hurt you at schools like UVA, with a strong honour code, more so than at other schools. </p>
<p>I imagine that an arrest will be one thing, but being charged and convicted of a crime is different.</p>
<p>sybbie is correct: no one knows.</p>
<p>But you should know that a 3.4/170 is likely too low for the “Ivy league” and other to law schools. (It is the 3.4 that is really low for top schools, without work experience or incredible ECs.) All you can do at this point is study as much as you can, and earn A’s. Personally, given your situation, I would encourage you to seek a post-bacc job, like AmericaCorps, so you can put some time between your transgression while at the same time maturing.</p>
<p>The lsat were above 170: 176 and 177 on practice</p>
<p>I too suggest taking some time off between college and law school …and staying out of trouble. It may help if you put some time between you and your transgression. </p>
<p>One thing you need to understand. Getting into law school does not mean you will be admitted to the bar. In most states, you can’t apply for an advisory opinion as to whether you will be admitted. You must actually take and pass the bar and then the committee on character and fitness will decide whether to admit you. </p>
<p>I have posted the story before of one of my classmates–so admittedly a long time ago–who took and passed 3 bar exams. He was court martialed while he was in the navy and received a dishonorable discharge. 2 of the 3 states in which he took the bar exam refused to admit him. The third admitted him. </p>
<p>You should also realize that even if you are admitted to the bar, it is probable that will never be able to work for any government agency, at least if the IDs you forged were government documents. </p>
<p>Personally, I’d suggest that you consider another career. If you won’t, then at least take some time off between college and law school.</p>
<p>Even if I’m not convicted? And the id’s were allegedly used by minors to get into bars.</p>
<p>Weston,</p>
<p>I’m not an expert and don’t claim to be. However, that said, is that any doubt that you did what you were charged with? You’re being suspended from your college for a semester. That will be reported. The reason for your suspension will be reported. The arrest will be reported. Now, as I understand it, if you want to go directly to law school, you’ll be applying less than 2 years after you return to college. </p>
<p>Again, I think that it would help to take some time off and to stay out of trouble during that time off. I think that’s more important when you are applying for bar admission than law school. </p>
<p>Could I be wrong? Certainly.</p>
<p>“I have posted the story before of one of my classmates–so admittedly a long time ago–who took and passed 3 bar exams. He was court martialed while he was in the navy and received a dishonorable discharge. 2 of the 3 states in which he took the bar exam refused to admit him. The third admitted him.”</p>
<p>May I throw a thought out there? I’ve taken and passed multiple bar exams, and am here to tell you that the bar will do a number on your psyche, job, bank account, and relationships. </p>
<p>Yes, you could probably find a state that would admit you to practice, and you might be able to find a state that would do character & fitness before the bar exam. But bar exams are expensive - $250 for NY, but another $375 (IIRC) for C&F afterward, ranging to upwards of $1,000 in other states (e.g. PA, MA). Bar review courses are expensive (a couple thousand dollars each). Bar study is expensive (it’s hard to work full-time while studying, and impossible to work lawyer’s hours). And the psychological and emotional toll? Ugh. </p>
<p>Compare that against taking time off between college and law school. Build up a good reputation with colleagues, stay out of trouble, and decide whether or not you want the responsibilities of being a lawyer.</p>
<p>How much time would you recommend taking? Would 1 year suffice?</p>
<p>Personally I don’t think one year does anything. I decided to take one year off after college… and then two months later was completely stressed out about taking the LSAT. Then after studying like mad, I had to focus on narrowing my school list, because working and life after college had changed my opinion on where to go to law school. Then came trying to figure out my personal statement.</p>
<p>In November I realized I hadn’t actually taken any time off at all, since applying to schools is so much stress and effort. Personally, I think two years actually gives you a shot at having a normal year of life and work before all of that sets in.</p>
<p>in today’s market - and Chicago is in the tank – I would guess that several of the T14, such Penn, UVA, Duke, Boalt and perhaps even NYU, would not be of much help in that region. At the very least, one would have to hustle/network a whole lot more to get to get back to ChiTown.</p>
<p>I don’t think one year is long enough, but…</p>
<p>I’d suggest going to see the pre-law adviser at your university when you go back to school. (S)he can probably give you some advice, especially as (s)he will know what will appear on your transcript and what is likely to be on the "dean’s certification,’ if one is required by the law schools you apply to. </p>
<p>You should understand that expungement means a lot less for law school/bar apps than it does in other contexts. You are going to have to disclose the arrest to most, but not all law schools. My understanding is that there are a few law schools which only ask about convictions, and you might want to find out which law schools do/do not ask about arrests. </p>
<p>You will probably be asked to explain the circumstances. While employers are often prohibited from asking about arrests that didn’t result in convictions, law schools and bar examiners are not. When you are asked to explain the circumstances of the arrest, you can’t plead the Fifth Amendment. If you did it, you’re going to have to admit it…in writing. </p>
<p>There are facts that will have some impact on the decision which you have not–and should not–discuss on this board. Did you make a couple of phony ids for friends or did you make hundreds of them and generate a lot of money by doing so? Did you stop before you were caught…or was getting caught the only thing that made you stop? </p>
<p>Of course, your college will disclose the event too. As noted above, what it says about the event will matter too. </p>
<p>You might also want to consult an attorney who specializes in attorney disciplinary hearings and related matters in the jurisdiction in which you’re most likely to want to practice before you shell out the $ for law school. It might be worth it to get some advice as to what you should say on your apps now so the disclosure will hurt you as little as possible when you do apply for bar admission.</p>
<p>“Again, I think that it would help to take some time off and to stay out of trouble during that time off. I think that’s more important when you are applying for bar admission than law school.”</p>
<p>I agree 100% with all of jonri’s advice.</p>
<p>“How much time would you recommend taking? Would 1 year suffice?”</p>
<p>Let’s start at the end: even lawyers who are not litigators are called upon to make assertions before a court: to certify that the notice of probate has reached all heirs and devisees; all prior art is listed on a patent form; the last deed of record is the one to which you refer in the current sale; to your knowledge, all income has been reported on the tax return; all of a debtor’s assets have been listed for a bankruptcy. Et cetera. </p>
<p>It is your job to demonstrate, by clear and convincing evidence, that you have the character to practice law - to make those assertions on legal documents and enable the legal system to function the way it should. Driving drunk and high on cocaine to solicit a prostitute is one thing; forgery and/or embezzlement will give the bar examiners a lot more pause. </p>
<p>Knowing what I know now, if I were in your position, I would take several years off and get into a professional position in which you can demonstrate responsibility and good judgement. Also remember that the bar examiners are usually middle-aged attorneys, to whom four or five years (i.e. between your suspension and your bar application) are but a short time in the grand scheme of things.</p>