Also known as: character & fitness review · character and fitness · fitness review · C&F review · moral character review
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A screening process conducted by bar admissions authorities to evaluate an applicant's moral character and fitness to practice law. The process requires full and accurate responses to questionnaires about education, employment, discipline, and other conduct bearing on honesty and integrity. Dishonesty during the process itself constitutes independent evidence of unfitness.
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Colin Chambers submitted a bar application listing an incorrect law school graduation date and an address where he never resided. He also described himself as a former police officer despite holding no such position. The character and fitness committee discovered the inaccuracies during its investigation and denied certification on the ground that the misrepresentations demonstrated a lack of truthfulness.
Cade Carpenter received a bar questionnaire asking whether he had ever received counseling or treatment for any mental, emotional, or nervous condition. He answered the question but later challenged its scope. A federal court held that the sweeping inquiry violated the Americans with Disabilities Act because it was not limited to current impairments or specific conduct affecting fitness.
Yes. An applicant must take reasonable steps to correct a material misapprehension that the admissions authority has developed during the review process. This duty applies even after the initial application is filed and even when the information is contained in a confidential internal document.
Yes. A false statement about prior professional discipline or other material facts during the character and fitness process is itself grounds for later professional discipline. The duty of candor applies to applicants and extends to past conduct in any licensed profession.
Yes. An applicant must respond to a lawful demand for information concerning fitness unless a recognized confidentiality rule or constitutional privilege is properly invoked. Failure to respond constitutes independent misconduct even if the underlying conduct under investigation is not itself disqualifying.
Yes. A lawyer responding to a bar admissions inquiry must not knowingly make a false statement of material fact about an applicant's integrity or disciplinary history. Knowledge of contradictory information from the applicant's employer makes an affirmative denial sanctionable.