Top Reasons Why Law Schools Revoke Offers

Having your law school admission offer revoked is a nightmare for almost any applicant. While rare, revoked admission offers can happen. Understanding why law schools revoke offers can help you avoid the situation altogether.

Gabriel Kuris, founder of Top Law Coach and contributor at US News, recently highlighted some of the top reasons why law schools revoke admission offers—and how you as an applicant can avoid finding yourself in such a predicament.

APPLICATION MISCONDUCT

One of the reasons why a law school may revoke your offer is if they find that you provided inaccurate information on your application. Law schools and applicants are expected to follow the Law School Admission Council’s standard of conducts, which includes examples of misconduct such as altered transcripts to falsification of records.

“While these standards are not legally binding, a violation could cause an admissions office to revoke an admission offer,” Kuris says. “After all, law is a profession that imposes very strict rules and standards of conduct on its members and takes malpractice seriously. Law schools value integrity and are averse to accepting students who may be judged inadmissible to the bar due to issues of character and fitness.”

VIOLATING A BINDING AGREEMENT

If you back out of a binding agreement (such as early decision or deferral commitments), law schools may choose to revoke your admission offer. Additionally, some scholarship offers also require you to withdraw other applications so be sure to read the binding terms carefully.

“Note, however, that honoring your word does not necessitate that you act in the interest of law school admissions offices,” Kuris says. “For example, law admissions offices dislike it when applicants make multiple seat deposits. But this would not be grounds for revocation without some sort of binding commitment or prohibition on doing so.”

CHARACTER AND FITNESS

Unprofessional behavior is a common reason why law schools revoke admission offers. Applicants who demonstrate unprofessional behavior, even if they abide by other standards, risk getting their acceptance revoked.

“If you treat admissions staff or other members of the school community with disrespect, if you write rude or angry posts on law school admissions forums, or if your social media presence makes you seem like a risk on campus, then don’t be surprised if a school has second thoughts about letting you in,” Kuris says.

Sources: US News, LSAC

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