How to Answer Character and Fitness Questions on Law School Applications
Anyone who enters a legal career is required to possess strength of character and be fit to practice law. We’re not talking physical fitness or endurance – though that might help you survive the first year of law school! – but fitness within the context of ethical decision-making. This is why law school applications include a section of questions titled “Character and Fitness.”
Why Are These Traits So Important to Law School Adcoms?
Law schools ask character and fitness (C&F) questions to determine whether an applicant’s personality and integrity are suitable for a career in law. Considering the weight that will be given to these answers, this section can cause confusion and distress for applicants. You must pay careful attention to the specific wording of the questions. Once you understand the questions as they are written (often in legalese by the law school’s general counsel), you can successfully address them and offer compelling answers – even if you have a few transgressions on your record.
Character and fitness questions are different for each school and are primarily driven by the bar requirements of the state in which the law school is located. Thus, Massachusetts schools will have different requirements than California schools and therefore their C&F prompts will be phrased differently.
Keep in mind that your law school application will be included as part of your bar application, so your answers will be reviewed carefully in both instances. This is not to say that you must attend a school in the state where you ultimately wish to practice; it is just standard for law schools to use their state as a guideline. Be sure to read the questions carefully – on each application – and answer them truthfully to the best of your recollection.
Roughly speaking, C&F prompts fall into two categories: problems you may have had with law enforcement and conduct problems you may have had during college (and for some law schools, even high school or earlier). If you have a C&F issue, be truthful. Don’t try to downplay it, but also don’t self-flagellate.
Mistakes Happen
Before you panic, just remember that having a C&F issue doesn’t mean you have a C&F problem; it just means you have to write a C&F addendum that explains clearly and succinctly what happened. In particular, it’s important to convey that you have learned from any mistakes you might have made and have not established patterns of negative behavior that could ultimately call into question your character and fitness to practice law.
For instance, if your college dorm has a strict “no candle” policy, and you do light a candle and get written up by your RA, don’t freak out. Answer the character and fitness question appropriately, admit you were wrong, and share what you learned from the incident (i.e., that following rules is important). Such an episode is unlikely to keep you out of law school.
Honesty Matters
If you are concerned about a behavioral incident from your past that is a bit more serious than lighting a candle in your dorm room, don’t try to hide this information or answer “no” to a question to which you should be answering “yes.” Although the law school won’t always Google your name for records (but they might), the bar examiners will do a much more thorough search. It would be a shame to invest time and money in a legal education only to have bar examiners question your character and fitness for the profession later.
Applicants who don’t disclose problematic incidents on their application might encounter difficulties down the road. If you have questions about whether to disclose something, call the admissions office directly and ask for their opinion. If questions remain or you feel your case needs a closer look, seek legal advice. I recommend that when in doubt, applicants disclose any behavioral issues, as it is better to over-disclose than to appear to be covering up.
Take a Straightforward Approach to C&F Mishaps
If you are submitting a character and fitness addendum, make no excuses, admit the transgression, and detail the steps you have taken to make amends and seek rehabilitation – bearing in mind the severity of your transgression. For one “beer in the dorm” violation, I’d focus more on the facts and express regret but keep it simple. If you have a pattern of drinking violations, you will need to do more to convince admissions committees that your youthful over-drinking is behind you.
Ideally, these transgressions will have happened a few years ago, and you can speak to a clean record since that time.
For moderately or very serious academic violations such as cheating or being placed on probation, the addendum will require more attention and care. If you had a rough semester because of difficulties outside of school and were placed on academic probation, speak to the challenges you encountered, the counseling/resources that you employed, and your subsequent academic achievements to demonstrate that the semester was an anomaly.
Accusations of academic dishonesty are typically taken seriously by admissions committees, but their context does matter. I’ve seen students still admitted when the context around the events was handled well. Facts matter, and exhibiting lessons learned matters.
However, any action that truly shows bad judgment – such as violence, DUIs, and other serious charges – is particularly hard to deal with. In such cases, give context without making excuses or blaming others.
Overall, be clear and concise, and ditch the long, drawn-out stories and excuses. Get to the point without offering too much information.
Bottom Line: Be Truthful
The mistakes of your past need not haunt your law school application. Answer the character and fitness questions truthfully, and when in doubt, ask for clarification and advice.
Brigitte spent 15 years traversing the globe in an international human rights law career before starting a consulting business that included evaluating more than 2,500 applications to the University of Virginia School of Law. She developed a clear sense of how to create a strong application that connects the applicant to the admissions officers and that frames the applicant’s story, strengths, and weaknesses in the most authentic and constructive light. She holds a BA from an interdisciplinary honors program at UT Austin and a JD from UVA Law. Alongside her admissions work, she consults with foundations and nonprofits on human rights law–related programs and research, covering issues such as justice reform, LGBTQ advocacy, and antislavery initiatives.
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