Applicant and Accepted Student Code of Conduct

Effective August 1, 2020

As future members of the William & Mary Law School community, newly accepted students are expected to maintain a high standard of conduct. The Accepted Student Code of Conduct applies to applicants and accepted students until they matriculate on the first day of classes at William & Mary Law School.

Pursuant to William & Mary’s Student Code of Conduct, future and present students are expected to behave in a manner that upholds the ideals and objectives of the Law School.

Specifically, applicants and accepted students are expected to:

  1. Continue to provide a complete, factual disclosure of the following matters, regardless of whether they are in the past, present, or are pending:
    • charges for all criminal matters except for non-moving vehicular citations;
    • any arrests or detentions;
    • academic violations;
    • disciplinary actions that occurred in an academic, professional and/or personal setting.
  2. Refrain from conduct that is contrary to the values of William & Mary. Those values are belonging, curiosity, excellence, flourishing, integrity, respect, and service (https://www.wm.edu/about/administration/vision-mission-values/index.php).

Further, William & Mary Law School fully expects that by submitting a seat deposit and accepting an offer of admission you have thoroughly vetted your choices and concluded that William & Mary best fulfills your goals and objectives as you pursue your Juris Doctor degree. To that end, deposited students are expected to:

  1. Refrain from submitting seat deposits to multiple law schools.
  2. Withdraw candidacy from other law schools currently under consideration.

Following a report of conduct inconsistent with the policy, the Associate Dean for Admissions will communicate with the affected candidate; subsequent actions will depend on the circumstances and are subject to the discretion of the Associate Dean and the relevant regulations and William & Mary policies.

Consistent with university policy, confirmed violations of this policy will potentially subject students to actions including, but not limited to, the following:

• Denial of admission

• Revocation of the offer of acceptance

• Probation

• Deferred Admission

Revocation Procedure

The decision to revoke admission pursuant to this policy is an administrative determination that resides with the William & Mary Law School. Academic and non-academic misconduct by an applicant or an admitted student occurring prior to matriculation (the commencement of classes) may also be subject to the William & Mary Code of Conduct.

  1. The Dean of the Law School will be notified of the reported policy violation.
  2. If the reported information implicates a basis for revocation, the Dean (or his or her designee) will take immediate steps to verify the reported information to the extent reasonably possible. If no basis for revocation is substantiated, the matter is concluded for the purposes of this policy.
  3.  If the Dean determines that the report is credible, the Dean (or his or her designee) will provide the admitted applicant with written notification of all the information the Law School has received regarding the alleged misconduct and allow the admitted applicant an opportunity to respond in writing within a reasonable timeframe.
  4. After reviewing the applicant’s response, the Dean will make a final determination regarding whether to revoke the offer of admission.