College of Law > Academics > Bar Passage Program > Character & Fitness

Character & Fitness

Each jurisdiction sets its own requirements for admission to its jurisdiction's bar. In addition to a bar examination, there are character, fitness and other qualifications for admission to the bar in every United States (US) jurisdiction. Admission to DePaul is independent of, and does not guarantee, admission to any jurisdiction's bar. Applicants are encouraged to determine the requirements for any jurisdiction in which they intend to seek admission by contacting the jurisdiction. Links to and addresses for each jurisdiction’s bar admission agency are available on the NCBE website and in the NCBE’s Comprehensive Guide to Bar Admissions Requirements.

Most jurisdiction's boards of admission to the bar require a certification from the law school dean verifying receipt of the Juris Doctorate (JD) degree and date of graduation. Once the JD is posted on a student’s transcript, the Office of Law Student Affairs will automatically send a “Certification of Juris Doctorate” to the Illinois Board of Admissions to the Bar, which verifies receipt of the degree and date of graduation.

For jurisdictions other than Illinois, students may submit the dean’s certification form to the College of Law by mail, in person or by email. Forms and requests submitted in person should be dropped off in the wooden drop box directly across from the elevators on the 9th floor of the College of Law. Forms and requests submitted by email should be sent to the Assistant Dean of Student Affairs in the Office of Student Affairs. Some jurisdictions require that the form be submitted to the College of Law with an original signature. Forms and requests can be mailed to:

Maria Vertuno
Assistant Dean of Student Affairs
Office of Student Affairs
DePaul University College of Law
25 E. Jackson Blvd, Chicago, IL 60604

Please note that some jurisdictions do not have a specific form and simply require a letter verifying that the student is a graduate of DePaul College of Law. If so, the student must submit a written request for such a letter to the Assistant Dean of Student Affairs. The request should indicate what specific information must be included in the letter and to where the letter should be sent.

Certification requests should be submitted allowing sufficient time for the Office of Student Affairs to prepare and submit the form in advance of the jurisdiction’s deadline. It is the student’s responsibility to check with the jurisdiction's board of admission to confirm that the certification was received prior to the deadline.

If the jurisdiction requires an official copy of the student’s law school transcript, the student must order the transcript online from the university.

In addition to certifying receipt of the JD degree and date of graduation, Illinois and other jurisdictions require that the College of Law provide information regarding students’ general conduct, honesty and integrity. Some jurisdictions, like Illinois, require that we provide copies of students’ law school applications.

It is critical that all information (including all character & fitness incidents) disclosed on the bar registration application be consistent with the information provided and incidents disclosed on the application for admission to DePaul College of Law. Please note that the bar registration application asks for a considerable amount of information not asked on DePaul’s Application for Admission. Students are responsible for ensuring that the answers provided on both applications are consistent.

If a student needs to provide the College of Law with additional information that was requested, but not disclosed, on the law school application, the student must submit a written request to the Assistant Dean of Student Affairs to amend the application. The letter must include the following:

  • Request to amend the law school application;
  • Disclosure of each the incident not disclosed in the law school application;
  • Full description the facts surrounding each incident;
  • Explanation of why information was not disclosed on the law school application; and
  • The student’s signature, name, ID number, mailing address, phone number, email address, law school starting date and law school graduation date.

If the student has access to a scanner, the signed letter can be submitted by email. If the student has already applied for admission to the bar and the processor has instructed the student to amend the application, a copy of that correspondence and the name of the processor should be included.