APPLICATION FOR ADMISSION TO PRACTICE AS AN ATTORNEY AND COUNSELOR-AT-LAW IN THE STATE OF NEW YORK NEW YORK SUPREME COURT APPELLATE DIVISION GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS Please read these General Instructions carefully and retain them for future reference. The application for admission forms are uniform among the four Appellate Division Departments in New York State and are to be used by both applicants who have passed the New York State Bar examination and applicants applying for admission on motion without examination. Strict compliance with these instructions is required. Incomplete, defective or carelessly prepared application papers will occasion delay and may result in the rejection of the application. This paragraph is applicable only to applicants who have taken the New York State Bar examination. In the Second, Third and Fourth Judicial Departments, the application papers required by these instructions may be filed at any time after you have taken the Bar examination, regardless of whether or not the results of the Bar examination have been issued. In the First Judicial Department, the application papers may be filed only after you have received notification that you have passed the examination and have been certified to the First Judicial Department. The application and any further materials in connection therewith required by the Appellate Division and its Committees on Character and Fitness must be filed by you within three years from the date of the letter sent by the New York State Board of Law Examiners notifying you that you have passed the Bar examination (see 22 NYCRR 520.12). This paragraph is applicable only to applicants for admission on motion without examination (see 22 NYCRR 520.10). The application papers required by these instructions should be filed only after you have been informed by the Appellate Division that you qualify for admission on motion. In addition to the sanctions provided in article 210 of the Penal Law of the State of New York, any false statement contained in your papers, or any failure to disclose any material fact, may result in the denial of your application for admission; or, if you shall have been admitted before the discovery thereof, in the revocation of your license to practice law. You must answer all questions fully, truthfully, accurately, and legibly. If the space provided is insufficient for a complete answer, the answer may be given on a rider which should be signed by you, specifying by its number the question to which it relates. Please avoid the use of riders, if possible. Only fully completed applications will be accepted for filing. You will be furnished the following official forms to complete an application: an application for admission questionnaire, good moral character affidavits, employment affidavits, and law school certificates. When you file your application for admission, it should include the following and be arranged in the following order: (1) copy of the letter or notice of certification from the State Board of Law Examiners (further explained below); (2) application for admission questionnaire; (3) two affidavits of good moral character; (4) employment affidavits or letters (see application for admission questionnaire question number 7); (5) certificates of good standing and grievance letters from jurisdictions in which you have been admitted to practice (see application for admission questionnaire question number 10); and (6) any other papers you desire to submit. Revised: August 17, 2010 American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com 2 A complete application will also include a form certificate from your law school(s); however, this form is mailed by you to the law school and then mailed directly by the law school to the appropriate Appellate Division filing office listed on the form (see application for admission questionnaire question number 5). The Appellate Division and its Committees on Character and Fitness reserve the right to request additional information and documentation from you, other than that listed in these instructions or specifically requested in the questionnaire. NOTE: You should especially have available and be prepared to submit or exhibit any or all of the following: birth certificate; certified copy of court order changing name; naturalization papers; visa and other immigration papers; copy of military honorable discharge (for example, United States form DD-214); copies of police and court records regarding any criminal matter you disclose; copies of relevant court pleadings, orders and judgments, including those pertaining to divorce and domestic relations matters; copies of bankruptcy petitions and discharges; and records concerning denials or revocations of licenses the procurement of which required proof of good character (other than Bar applications). Letter or notice of certification from the State Board of Law Examiners. Every applicant for admission on examination must file a copy of the letter or notice from the State Board of Law Examiners certifying the applicant for admission to one of the four Appellate Division Departments. Applicants seeking admission in the First Judicial Department shall file a copy of the letter or notice with the questionnaire. Applicants seeking admission in the Second, Third and Fourth Judicial Departments shall file the letter or notice with the questionnaire unless the questionnaire is filed prior to the applicant's receipt of such letter or notice, in which event the letter or notice shall be filed promptly after the applicant's receipt thereof. The letter or notice is proof of the applicant's passage of the written Bar examination and of the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination. Every application for admission on motion without examination must include the letter from the New York State Board of Law Examiners certifying that the applicant possesses the legal education necessary for admission on motion without examination. The requisite copy of this letter is normally provided directly to the appropriate Appellate Division Department by the State Board of Law Examiners. Inability to comply with any of the foregoing requirements for admission must be set forth in an affidavit by you indicating any omission and stating fully the efforts made by you to fulfill the requirement. You will be informed by letter, in a timely fashion, if documents are missing or additional information is required. You may download the blank application forms from the website maintained by the State Board of Law Examiners at www.nybarexam.org. Blank forms may be photocopied. After completion, only originals will be accepted for filing. You may not file completed forms electronically. Please do not submit a copy of these instructions with your application. FILING OFFICES Applications for admission should be filed with and all inquiries concerning admission procedures should be directed to the appropriate filing office (indicated below) of the Appellate Division Department to which you have been certified or are eligible for certification by the State Board of Law Examiners. Please make sure all mailed envelopes contain a return address. Revised: August 17, 2010 American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com 3 FIRST JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT: Committee on Character and Fitness, Appellate Division, First Department, 41 Madison Avenue, 26th Floor, New York, New York 10010 SECOND JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT: Executive Secretary, Committees on Character and Fitness, Appellate Division, Second Department, 335 Adams Street, Room 2404, Brooklyn, New York 11201; Telephone: (718) 923-6360. THIRD JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT: Admissions Office, Appellate Division, Third Department, P.O. Box 7350, Capitol Station, Albany, New York 12224; Express mail address: Admissions Office, Appellate Division, Third Department, Robert Abrams Building for Law and Justice, State St., Fifth Floor, Room 511, Albany, NY 12223; Telephone: (518) 471-4778. FOURTH JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT: Admissions Office, Appellate Division, Fourth Department, Suite 200, 50 East Avenue, Rochester, New York 14604. CHANGES OF ADDRESS 1. If since the time of making application to the State Board of Law Examiners for admission to the Bar examination (or for certification of your legal education for admission on motion without examination) and prior to your certification by the State Board of Law Examiners to an Appellate Division Department you change your address, you should promptly notify the Board and advise them of such change in writing (State Board of Law Examiners, Corporate Plaza, Building 3, 254 Washington Avenue Extension, Albany, NY 12203). 2. If you change your address after certification by the State Board of Law Examiners but before you are admitted, you should promptly notify the appropriate Appellate Division Department of such change by letter. The change of address should be sent to the filing office of the Appellate Division to which you are certified and/or where your application is filed. 3. After you are admitted, changes of address should be sent to the Attorney Registration Unit, 25 Beaver Street, 8th Floor, General Post Office, P.O. Box 29327, New York, New York 10087-9327. TRANSFERS OF APPLICATIONS (SEE CPLR 9403) If, after certification by the State Board of Law Examiners but before you are admitted, you obtain a residence in another Appellate Division Department, you may request a transfer of your application to the new Department; also, if you do not reside in New York State and obtain full time employment in the State, you may request a transfer to the Department of such full time employment. You may also request a transfer on undue hardship grounds. A transfer request should be made in writing to the Appellate Division Department to which you have been certified. INTERVIEWS All applicants are required to undergo an interview by a member or members of the Appellate Division Committees on Character and Fitness prior to admission. You will be informed, in a timely fashion, of the date and place of your interview. REGISTRATION Before admission to the Bar, you must register with the Office of Court Administration as an attorney by filing a form registration statement and paying the $375 biennial registration fee (see Judiciary Law § 468-a; 22 NYCRR Part 118). You will be provided the necessary forms during the admission process. Revised: August 17, 2010 American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com