First, there is a need. Michigan’s 5 law schools graduate, on average, 1,000 lawyers a year who sit for the Michigan Bar Examination. On average, 30% of those candidates will fail. With the new essay scoring scheme in place since the February 2009 Bar Examination, the essays are receiving increased focus by the graders. [If you did not know, Michigan used to admit candidates who scored a 150 or higher without grading the essays. These candidates received a 'cursory reading' to make sure they put forth some effort. This practice ended after the July 2008 Michigan Bar Examination]

Second, anyone who fails the Michigan Bar Examination does not want to take it again. Even if you feel you did not do your best, it is a lot of work and anxiety to sit again. If you have taken the Bar multiple times, it feels like you are continuing to slide down a hill with no way to stop and no end in sight. Michigan’s long-standing process of allowing review by Bar Appeal offers a failed candidate a second shot at the test.

Thirdly, I was amazed by the claims other attorneys made about their abilities and efforts on behalf of clients. Some claim to have never lost; some do not let their clients have a copy of their appeal. Some past candidates shared similar stories of poor service, questionable efforts by the attorney and terrible results despite the promises otherwise.

Lastly, I know how it feels to not pass the Michigan Bar Examination and make on a Bar Appeal. That’s right: not only amI the lead attorney for my firm, but I was its first client. When the letter from the Michigan Board of Bar Examiners arrived in early November, 1993, I felt like the trapdoor below my feet had opened. All the studying, the work and my career just shattered. A 133, two lousy points. I was heart-broken. I did not cry (at least not that day), but I was ready to quit; a bad feeling indeed. I ordered my scores out of morbid curiosity to see how I did. I could barely ready my own ‘crap’ much less the vaunted Model Answers from the Michigan Board of Law Examiners. It took my favorite professor and my sister-in-law to convince me that I had done better than I thought. They insisted that I appeal and that they would help.

My Story

To write the appeal, I had to channel my feelings of self-pity and loss into self advocacy. I had to write better than I ever wrote before. I had to objectify my work and the Model Answer AND prove that I did better that the scores I received. So every night after work, I would close the door to my office, pound some caffeine-laden products, and make legal arguments, logical analyses and prove to the Board, to the world, that I possessed the legal knowledge to practice law. Easier said than done.

I ultimately appealed 5 questions. It took me 60 hours, 3 rewrites and the support of my family and friends. Judge Megan Maher Brennan, then a pracicing attorney, held me to a very high standard. She helped me transcend the barrier between personal argument and focused advocacy. She edited my work and made me work through the details. I taught myself the technique to read Model Answers that I still use today. I learned to make my arguments quickly and succinctly. After all the rewrites and edits, I submitted my Bar Appeal according to the concise rules of the Michigan Board of Bar Examiners; Registered mail, return receipt. I would have gladly purchased a talisman, fortune cookie or any other omen of good luck to support my Bar Appeal.

Between the time I submitted the Bar Appeal and received my results, I lost my job [the day after Christmas - Ho Ho Ho]. With two little kids and my wife still attending grad school, I felt great pressure to study and work. I began my short but illustrious career driving the shuttle bus at Metro Airport – One slice of humble pie, hold the pathetic self pity. I felt good about my appeal and found studying for the Bar Examination to be difficult. Deep down, I felt somehow had vindicated myself on the Bar Appeal. Mind you, my track record for the prior two months did not support this prediction. Every time I cracked the books, I felt like I was wasting my time.

It was a freezing cold February 3, 1994 day when my results arrived. The sun shined but it was probably no warmer than 20 degrees that day. I was an hour out from finishing my shift when the radio in my van went off. The dispatcher called my name. I answered and he told me, “Dinan, call your wife at home. She says it is important.” This is the day before widespread cell phone ownership. I pulled over to a medical clinic at the Detroit Medical Center and anxiously dialed our home number. The phone rang 6 times before Julie picked it up. There was shouting and kids yelling in the background. Julie could barely tell it was me on the phone. I asked what was the problem (assuming the worse, of course) and she screamed, “You passed! Timmer, you passed!” My middle son, Michael, was having his first birthday so Julie’s excitement was picked up by the kids at the house. The best 20 cents I ever spent.

I was elated. I told anyone nearby I passed. The door guard, the nice lady cleaning the building, anyone who I saw. I almost slipped on the ice getting back to the van. One of the finest moments in my life and I was wearing a clip-on tie and a cheap white shirt.

My luck changed that day. I had just accepted a clerking job that became a lawyer’s job by passing the Bar. I was sworn in 10 days later. The sweetest part was doing it myself (albeit with a lot of help). No doubt, it was liberating and enpowering. A wall was erected when I failed; losing my job felt like barbed wire was strung along the top. Passing on a Bar Appeal felt like getting a jet pack to transcend it all.

Practice in the Area of Bar Appeals and Bar Examination Education

I did my first Bar Appeals as collaborative efforts with friends graduating from law school with me. Pay was usually a nice meal out or couple of cases of beer. Some of these efforts were successful and slowly the word got out. I gave informal advice here and there. My first professional efforts were a mixed bag – typical for new lawyers learning their trade. I did it after hours so it would not interfere with my job. I developed ideas such as using a third party editor and a fixed format during this time. I also spoke to classes and groups of students who had failed. I found myself being called here and there for advice and help. One day, someone offered me the opportunity to write their appeal for money. Wow! The idea stuck. A practice was born.

When I went into solo practice, I recognized shortcomings in the Bar education field and with attorneys who claimed expertise in this area. I have been fortunate enough to focus my efforts and find opportunities helping out candidates who did not pass. I devoted more time and effort to understand the test, know the graders and Bar Examiners and availaed myself as an instructor and tutor.

What I Try to Do

When any candidate calls my office, I try to put their achievements and position into context. Most people are fine by the time they call me. But they do need advice. I always advise my clients to order their scores and type them up. That forces them to face the test head on and form their own opinion. I then review their results against my reading of the Model Answer from the Michigan Bar Examination. My interpretation of the Model Answer is different as it my objectification of where specific points are available guides my reading of a candidate’s answer.

From there, I try to give the candidate an estimate of the chances of making it on a Bar Appeal. I always encourage anyone who calls to do their own appeal and explain my process for doing them. Ultimately, I make myself available as counsel to those who want to appeal the test and do not have the time or feel the ability to give it 100%. After an honest review of their scores, I feel like I can guide a failed candidate through this important decision. So the answer to why I do Michigan Bar Appeals: it allows me to help someone else who is in my shoes. I am passionate about the subject and I know I care more than any other lawyer about the results of my client. I value the long-term relationships I have developed and the carefully honed reputation I have earned for honest appraisals.

Uh-oh.  The little charge of guilt and fear that goes through you when you see the flashing red and blue lights behind you.   Your mind momentarily races as you pull over.  You gather your insurance, registration and driver’s license as the officer walks up to the car.  Now what did I do?

Sound familiar?  We all get pulled over at some time or another.  If you work and have to drive a lot, it is more likely to occur.  Usually this transaction leaves you charged with a violation of some sort.  Most of the time, these are moving violations or status violations.  Moving violations include speeding, failing to yield, causing an accident, running through or disregarding a traffic control device or any other number of violations while you are behind the wheel.  A status offense can include lacking proper driving credentials or improper licensure of the driver or vehicle.

What Do I Do Now?

You are responsible for addressing the ticket once it has been issued.  You can pay and incur fines, costs and points on your driving record.  These are the same points that insurance company looks at when it evaluates your driving record and adjusts your rates.  While points only count towards your driver’s license for 2 years, they stay on your insurance record for 3 or more years.  What more, insurance companies rate your violations with more points than what the Secretary of State does on your driver’s license.

Your Master Driving Record keeps convictions on your driving record for 7 years and as long as 10 years.  Imagine, the ticket you received in 2005 is still on your record.  The one you did not challenge.  the ticket that gets you labelled by some city attorneys as a ‘habitually poor’ driver precluding any negotiated settlements of a current ticket.

You can go to court and challenge the ticket in an Informal Hearing.  Your case would be heard by a Magistrate, a court official, who listens to your side, the police officer’s side and then makes a determination about your responsibility.  You do not need a lawyer to do this.  Most times, absent a rather obvious problem with the officer’s story or proofs, the magistrate will find you responsible.  There is no negotiations with the city attorney and usually not with the officer.

How to Skip Court and Protect Your Driving Record

To avoid going to court, you need to send in a denial of responsibility (or plead ‘not guilty’ if a misdemeanor). You can request a formal hearing or have your lawyer file an appearance to challenge the ticket.  In District Court, the city is represented by the City Attorney and you may represent yourself.  The city attorney usually has the ability to negotiate pleas and amend charges.  This does not mean he or she will do so.  Every court and city attorney works a little differently; make sure you know the ‘lay of the land’ when you go into court.

If you are not charged with a misdemeanor, the court rules allow your attorney to attend court in your place and go before the judge in your place.  This saves you the hassles and time in contacting the court, setting your hearing up by phone, negotiating with the city attorney, dealing with the officer and then waiting for the judge to come out.  Your attorney can bring payment for your final charges and pay on your behalf.

With a lawyer representing you, you save 7 or more hours in dealing the matter yourself.  You don’t miss work, hire a babysitter, cancel your trip or forgo other important activities to to take a 1/2 day or more to address the ticket.

How I Can Help

I have been going to court on behalf of my clients for 16 years.  I have represented thousands of clients in Michigan’s District and Circuit courts.  I am proud of treating each client’s ticket individually and representing their best interests.  My repeat clients understand the value and professionalism I bring to representing their interests.  Our firm charges fair fees based on the time and complexity of your case.  We always charge flat rate fees for traffic matters and disclose them up front prior to committing you to representation.

Call my office for a free consultation.  I will explain your ticket to you, explain how I can help you and protect your interests.

313-821-5904  Office Hours: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. monday through Friday.  You may e-mail me at any time at tim@timdinan.com.

The 2008   Michigan elections included the ballot question regarding the legalization of medical marijuana (spelled ‘marihuana’ in the Act).  The measure passed with a comfortable margin and now has been enacted into law.  Licenses for both users (known as patients) and growers (known as caregivers) are being issued at a pace that out-stripped the original projection for demand.  Because of the backlog, patients who have submitted a form which has not been rejected after three weeks are, de facto, provisionally licensed to possess up to 2.5 oz. of marijuana.  Likewise, caregivers who submit their form are given the same provisional permit to go forward and begin to cultivate plants for their patients.

The program is administered by Michigan’s Department of Community Health.  This agency distributes identification cards to caregivers and patients.  Caregivers are individuals who grow, cultivate and prepare the marijuana for consumption.  Patients may legally obtain and possess up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana.  Caregivers may cultivate 12 plants per patient under their care.  Caregivers may then process and distribute marijuana to their patients and charge a processing fee for the service and goods.

The Department of Community Health has the application forms on-line http://www.michigan.gov/mdch/0,1607,7-132-27417_51869—,00.html  Here you can obtain specific answers to your questions and concerns, application forms, access to the formal regulations and the Department’s official position on a number of issues.

What is Not Covered

What has not been answered are all the practical questions that have arisen since the law has been enacted.  There exists limited direction for patients and caregivers on practical aspects of distribution, payment, relation to other laws, taxes and local regulation, just to name a few concerns.

Can you make a business of it?  Perhaps.  The framers of the statute wanted to limit commercial activity to avoid a “California” situation.  California has had legal medical marijuana for some time and has seen a huge underground industry grow from it.  Municipalities have a mixed bag of regulations and ordinances designed to discourage, encourage, confound but usually just confuse the public.

The Reality of the Business Side

Pioneers rarely enjoy the fruits of their efforts.  The first persons into any situation usually pay a heavy price for ignorance, bad planning or circumstances beyond their control. Currently, businesses with higher public visability are in support industries (i.e. lighting, grow systems, air purifiers, etc).  Nothing inherently illegal about their activity so they generally only have the normal market risks of any business.  There are only a few retail ventures dealing with licensed marijuana known at this time.

The risks of the medical marijuana business are obvious: distribution and possession are still State and Federal crimes (though not currently a high priority for law enforcement), local police treatment varies widely and the public perception has not been tested.  You could face losing your investment and perhaps a measure of your freedom depending upon a number of factors beyond your control.  If you have no business experience, then you are in for some expensive realities regarding taxes, local and state regulations and licensing.  Then there are issues of security, pricing, inventory and distribution. 

How A Lawyer Can Help

How can a lawyer help in the process?  The lawyer you hire should be able to explain the Act to you along with the current State and Federal laws regarding criminal possession and distribution.  Your lawyer should also be sophisticated enough to understand basic business concepts and transactions such as sales contracts, leases, insurance requirements, business planning and accounting.

In short, your lawyer should lower your risk.  After all, any entreprenurial venture will have some risk.  If you plan carefully, think through your operation carefully and consider the worst case scenarios, you’ll find there is is plenty of opportunity if you are willing to work hard and seek solid guidance.  The time and cost of competent counsel will give you a better chance of success and the opportunity to minimize any risk that you anticipate.

Feel free to contact our offices at 313-821-5904 or e-mail us at tim@timdinan.com.

There are a number of reasons one loses his or her driving privileges, but mostly they come down to two basic reasons: two or more drunk driving convictions or a medical/physical disability that prevents you from safely operating your car.

Medical/Physical Disability

In order to have a Michigan Driver’s License, you must meet all the statutory requirements.  Driver’s education, passing the knowledge test and the road test is part of challenge.  You must also meet the physical requirements for vision, hearing and demonstrate the ability to safely operate your car on public roads.  Disease and injury can affect your ability to drive.  The process of aging can slowly deteriorate your driving ability, too.  Sometimes you’ll find out suddenly (after an accident or close call).  Sometimes you’ll find out at the Secretary of State’s office when you discover difficulty reading an eye chart or passing the peripheral vision test.  No matter how you learn, it is disappointing to learn that despite years of safe driving, you now can no longer drive your car.  It’s a loss of freedom and independence that makes your life more complicated.

To get your license once it has been lost, you must demostrate you no longer suffer from the medical or physical disability that has taken you off the road.  The proof will come from your doctor or specialized treater.  The Secretary of State has a specialized form that your treating physician will fill out to meet the specific concern (i.e. hearing problem or vision correction).  Once these forms have been completed, you then are re-examined by the Secretary of State by a License Examiner whose job it is to make sure you do not have any disability that has been not addressed by your treater that would endnger the driving public. 

Once you have met this requirement, the License Examiner will then give you knowledge test and a road test to make sure you are qualified to return to the road.  You can expect that you may have to regularly return to the Secretary of State when renewal time comes around and you will need the same medical documentation when you return.

If you feel that you have not been treated fairly by the Secretary of State, you may hire an attorney to assist you in presenting your proofs or, if necessary, presenting your claims in court.  Our office is experienced in dealing in matters with the Secretary of State.

2 or More convictions for Alcohol Offenses

Michigan Law revokes the driving privileges of anyone convicted of two or more alcohol-related driving offenses within 7 years or 3 offenses during a lifetime.  Regardless of the criminal consequences, the Secretary of State imposes license sanctions independant of the criminal offenses.

While there a number of technical requirements, the bottom line is that you must prove that you are sober.  This is usually evidenced by treatment records, AA attendance records, letters of support from work family and friends and testimony from you and other supporting individuals.

How An Attorney Helps

The directions to reapply for driving privileges is readily available from the Michigan Secretary of State website (www.michigan.gov/sos).  The presentation of this evidence is done before a hearing officer of the Michigan Secretary of State, an attorney who is trained as an expert in the areas of drunk driving, recovery, alcoholism and recovery.  Many hearing officers were experienced prosecutors and will focus on accountibility and public safety. 

Your lawyer should be experienced in dealing with these matters and know the standards that hearing officers are looking for.  Your lawyer should also be familiar with alcoholism, recovery groups and be able to teach you how to use the language of recovery during your hearing.  You should see the hearing as a mini-trial: the verdict will be a determination of whether you have set aside the presumption that you a habitual drinker and driver and a hazard to the driving public.

You also need to know that even if you are able to meet the Secretary of State’s standard, Michigan requires you to prove drive with an Interlock device.  The Interlock requires you to blow into a mini-B.A.C. machine before you can start your car and periodically blow into it as you drive.  The machine keeps track of your conduct and if you drink and try to start your car, it will be reported.

In addition to these requirements, there are hundreds of details and rules that you need to know.  Sometimes it is overwhelming.  Many persons who go before the DAAD (Drivers Assessment and Appeal Division) of the Michigan Secretary of State do not succeed the first time because they fail to properly prepare.  Your lawyer should be prepared to explain the process to you, prepare you and your witnesses for the hearing and give you an good idea of whether you can succeed given your unique facts.

Call our offices at 313-821-5904 and ask for Tim Dinan.  I will try to answer your questions and let you know whether you’ll be successful getting your driving privileges back.  Thanks for reading and good luck.

The District Committee

When circumstances dictate, an applicant will be called into an in-person meeting with State Bar incarnated in the form of a District Committee.  The District Committee is made up of lawyers appointed by the State Bar of Michigan’s Board of Commissioners based upon their locality.  The districts correspond to the State Bar of Michigan’s geographic regions.  The members of the committee are appointed for three years.  All members of the committee are volunteers.  It is considered an honor to be a member of the District Committee and the individual members take their work seriously.

It is considered an ‘informal’ meeting according to the Rules on Admission to the State Bar.  The roles and duties of Committee members are dictated by the State Bar rules regarding character & fitness.  The conduct of the district committee meetings are dictated by the same rules.  All the meetings are taped though the contents of the meeting are not transcribed nor are the tapes available to the applicant.  The District Committee will meet, review the applicant’s application, meet with and interview the candidate and make a decision about the candidate’s fitness.  They will then issue an opinion which is reviewed by the Standing Committee on Character & Fitness who can either accept the District’s recommendation and pass the approved application to the Board of Law Examiners for their approval, accept the recommendation but still want to meet with the candidate or reject the applicant giving the applicant the opportunity to appear before a standing committee to make the case for an applicant’s requisite character & fitness.  The candidate may bring a lawyer to the meeting as well as other supporting materials that might affect the committee’s decision.

A candidate who will have to meet with the District Committee will receive a letter and a referral sheet from the State Bar of Michigan’s Character & Fitness department.  The meeting will then be scheduled through the District Committee chairman’s office.  The Chairman will then find three to five members of the District Committee who will agree to sit on the applicant’s panel.  The panelists will have the application and the referral sheet of the applicant.  The committee’s readiness is dictated by the amount of time they have had to prepare for the meeting.  Most issues are straight-forward enough, but some issues do contain subtleties.

Bringing an attorney to a District Committee meeting is a matter of comfort and preference.  Most issues do not require a lawyer but rather thorough preparation and honest responses.  The advantage to having a lawyer and consulting with a lawyer prior to the meeting is to reduce the ’surprise’ factor and to properly prepare you to honestly answer the questions you will get.  The attorney will also prepare you to meet the burden of proof for the hearing: you are responsible to prove by clear and convincing evidence that you possess the requisite character & fitness to practice law.  It is not presumed.

Now, if you have an issue which will not resolve at a District Committee meeting, your lawyer can help you deal with the District Committee meeting with an eye for preparing you for the Standing Committee meeting.  The opinion set forth by the District Committee could very well dictate the tone of the Standing Committee hearing.

The Bottom Line

The most difficult part of a District Committee meeting is having to open up yourself and your past to complete strangers who will ask you the hard questions about the issues you present.  These hard questions will be asked, sometimes multiple times and in slightly different forms, to see how you feel about the issue.  The real measure of character is how you deal with them.  I compare going to a District Committee meeting much like falling into quicksand: if you struggle and squirm, you will pull yourself deeper into the morass.  But, if you keep your cool and answer the committee’s questions directly, you’ll get through the ‘hard parts’ quicker and resolve the committee’s  concerns more readily.  In other words, the key to your success in a District Committee meeting is in your hands. 

Feel free to contact my office for more information regarding district committees, standing committee hearings and hearings before the Board of Law Examiners.

1.     First Look at the Forms.  The application and supporting forms are lengthy and require massive detail.  Everywhere you have lived, all of your previous employment, all of your schooling and just about all other aspects of your life are addressed by the forms.  You will see that if you need more room to complete the application, you will have to supplement it with the additional forms.  It would be a good idea to simply review a printed out copy and make a list of what you will need.

2.     Dig Up Your Past.  All of your movements, any change of address, change of employment, enrollment or disenrollment from school, lawsuits, firings, arrests, etc . . . .   Every instance where your life was in flux involved some paperwork.  Before you answer any questions, get all of that paperwork together.  Your memory of the incident might not jive with the ‘official’ record and why do you want to create a question of fact.  You would be surprised to see what official reports, landlord references, employment files and your credit reports really say about you.  I am not sugesting that you parrot their contents, but at least you have to acknowledge their existance in your answers.

3.     Start Early.  If you lived out of state or out of country, you will have to do some scrambling to chase down all the different criminal clearances, driver’s records, addresses where you lived and worked and anything else that is pertinent.  This takes some time (Remember the old saw: an emergency on your part does not necessarily create an emergency on my part).  I always recommend 2 1/2 months prior to the day you want to turn in your application.

4.     Be Open and Honest.  Why people want to hide all of their business is perfectly understandable.  After all, we are an image-conscious society that promotes positive images.  No matter, you need to be open with your licensing board.  You are seeking one of the most powerful and potentially lucrative business licenses available.  It gives wide discretion to act on behalf of yourself and your clients.  So, the Board of Law Examiners (BLE) and the State Bar of Michigan (SBM) wants to know as much as they can.  The basic information you provide in your application is not only taken at face value, but is used to develop its own independant information.  So, if you do have any advere information about yourself in the public record, you can be sure it will be discovered.  Better you do it and explain it fully rather than have the SBM invetigator find it and flag your file.  Failing to disclose known information is a big sin in the eyes of the SBM and The BLE.

5.     Anticipate and Address Adverse Information Early and Often.  OK, maybe you shop-lifted some stuff when you were a kid or got caught with marijuana (aka marihuana in MI statute) in high school.  You may have done something more severe such as a felony or a serious misdemeanor.  Cheating, lying or misrepresenting yourself are matters that bring your character into question.  There a number of lawyers who have done such things before they were licensed.  Today, even something like poorly managed finances will get your file flagged.  If you know you have problems (or think you might have problems), you not only need to fully and properly disclose them, you need to have your plan of action/reconciliation/penance/reformation on hand to show the SBM that whatever transgression occurred in the past, it will not occur again because a), b), c) . . . .  This is critical.  It is indicative of you current character & fitness.  If you have not really addressed the issue that may be adverse to a determination of your character & fitness, you can start something today (like the Lawyers & Judges Assistance Program [sponsored by SBM for lawyers and law students alike] for addictive behaviors) and include that in your application or simply delay your application until you got your problem/issue under management and then submit it.

      You need to be honest with yourself.  If in doubt, check it out.  Maybe you are paranoid.  maybe you are in denial that a problem exists.  Either way, a bit of introspection and some sound legal advice will probably confirm your gut feeling on how your problem is perceived and how it will affect your chances to be admitted.

6.     Supplement Your Answers.  You need to supplement your application whenever there is a change.  Good, bad or otherwise, you must supplement your form until you are cleared by the BLE and sworn into the courts.  Michigan law licenses are not conditional.  Once issued, you are vested in a valuable property right.  That’s one reason why our process is so strict.  By doing so, you are upholding your written promise found in the form.

      The Take Away for You- A law license is a valuable commodity.  Practicing law is a privilege.  The SBM guards its monopoly and the BLE will act just as carefully.  This means you need to be just as meticulous and careful.  If you are thorough and detailed in your preparation, you will not have a problem being licensed.  Even if you have adverse information in your application, your open, honest answers (and proposed solutions) will be given more credence compared to someone else’s slapdash application.

1. Order Your Results: No matter how bad you did, get the results and get some feedback.

2. See if You Have Some Other Options: Maybe you can appeal. Maybe you’re held up by Character & Fitness. Look at your letter close and see what the Bar’s hang-up is.

3. Plan to Take The Bar Again: You have far too much invested in school and in your future. If need be, take the Exam again. If you do, make sure what ever you are doing is going to work.

Easy? . . . . No . . . Necessary? . . . . Yes. Call our office for a read through of your test, your preparation for the test or other issues on your mind.

A good part of my practice focuses on counseling legal professionals in transition.  This includes teaching bar examination prep classes, tutoring students, counseling applicants delayed in their application process because of Character & Fitness issues and helping young lawyers make the adjustment from law student to lawyer.  I am writing a book to help law students prepare for the examination and am getting ready to write another book on how to open a solo practice.  My own experience becoming a lawyer pointed up the lack of assistance during this transaction and the great need for guidance and advice.  Over the years, I have encountered so many people who needed advice about Character & Fitness, how to reapply for the Bar Examination or simply finding the motivation to retake the Exam.

At first, I began to offer advice to these new lawyers informally.  I mentored as I was mentored.  Generally speaking, this has been how the practice has been taught and handed down – a combination of mumbled advice and presumed osmosis from which we are supposed to base our career.  It was not very satisfying nor helpful.  As our practice grows, there are fewer of the familiar relationships in place that promote open dialogue and sharing.  Toughen up and put your shoulder into it.  Everyone else is fine . . . what is your hang up?  Ah, but I digress.

The thing is that the transition from law student to lawyer is difficult.  The dizzying mix of personal and professional demands is, at best, challenging and causes no small measure of stress that can cause other problems.  Even worse, some people discover that the practice of law is not like the brochures or Boston Legal.  Again, I digress.

No matter what, if you have taken the Michigan Bar Examination and not passed, you may be looking for help and advice.  I fully understand that feeling.  Back in November 1993, I waited for my bar results anxiously as my new job (and my government career) depended upon them.  On November 2, 1993, the carpet was pulled out from under me.  I missed by two points (actually 1.667 points but the Board of Law Examiners rounds up).  No, that was not the news I expected.  I worked hard on studying, sacrificed my summer and put all my chips on the fact I would pass.

I was stunned.  I did not know what to do.  I did not know who to tell.  I did tell my boss who was, at first, kind and understanding, but then told me the position held for me had to be filled by someone else.  I told my family and friends.  I heard all my friends passed and were making arrangements for get sworn in.  I felt like a total loser whose winter months were going to be devoted to studying for the Bar Examination once again.

I spoke to my professors and my sister-in-law who told me to appeal my score.  Appeal?  Appeal what?  I did not even know that was an option.  I assumed it was a test and a test is a test.  Well, it’s right in the Michigan Court Rules and tersely explained in the ‘failure packet’.  OK, now what?  How do I do it?  Can I do my own?  Pen or pencil?  does neatness count?

Thank God for the good advice I received.  With the help of Megan and Prof. Jack, I put my nose to the grindstone and knocked out my own bar appeal.  To say I obsessed over it would be an understatement.  I analyzed, reviewed, read and reread the materials:  my answer, the Model Answer, the directions from the Michigan Board of Law Examiners.  Draft upon draft until I had it just right.  Conservatively, I spent about 70 hours on the whole project.  I developed the basics for the same approach that I use today in writing appeals.  Of course I did not believe I was going to ever do it again.  I thought I would succeed, but after failing the Bar Exam and losing my job, betting against the house did not seem real smart.

The good news came to me two months into my new job driving a cab at the airport.  On a clear February 3, 1994, I received a call from my dispatcher telling me to call home.  As it was the day before cell phone prominence, I pulled over and called from a nearby medical clinic.  My wife answered with the kids screaming in the back ground, “Honey, you passed!”"  I told all the strangers in the lobby who smiled and wished me well; a great moment on a great day.  Another bonus was that my new clerking job became an associate’s position that same week.  Not only did I get enough points to pass, I actually received three points more.  I guess I would have preferred to have passed in the first place, but I savored the win.

I shared this little victory with a few others and helped some buddies write their appeals.  My first fee was two cases of Labatt’s Blue beer.  Ah, the sweet taste of success!  About six months later, I was hired to write a Bar Appeal for real money.  I was paid and won it.  A practice was born.

I have to admit that winning feels good.   I wish I could win all of my cases but I simply cannot (nor does any honest lawyer).  Writing Bar Appeals gave me an opportunity to employ and hone my writing skills.  It let me relive the experience of winning again.  Over the years, I learned how to better analyze results and the model answers to tell my potential clients whether they have a chance or not.  More times than not, people who want an appeal will not qualify for a number of reasons.  It is important to know what chances you have going into the process before investing your time and/or money on a bar appeal.  I am just as proud of the fact I can make that call as a trusted resource as I am of the fact I can effectively write Bar Appeals.

Ever since I began looking at bar results, I have never charged for a review.  That’s my way of paying back all of those people who helped me.  It is my recognition of your hard work to enter our trade.  It’s my way of helping people genuinely in crisis (or at least having a bad hair day). 

The reason I write Appeals of the Michigan Bar Examination?  Simple.  I sympathize and empathize.  I have a narrow expertise to share and have helped hundreds make the important decision to write or not write an appeal.  I have written over 100 appeals with success on many of them.  I feel good as a person and a lawyer to combine my passion with my success.  It is rare and wonderful to combine the two.  I am at my best doing what I love doing: helping my fellow lawyer get to where he or she wants to be.

All of your jobs must be listed: dishwasher, parking attendant, part-time or full-time; jobs you quit, jobs that were seasonsal, jobs you were fired from.  There is a lot of disclosure required for your finances.  Any contact with law enforcement – must be disclosed.  (Check out the form at www.michbar.org)

Maybe there are some things you forgot to disclose on your law school application.  Perhaps you were too embarrassed or worried how it would reflect on your appearance to the school or the general public.

Whatever the case is, you must bare all on your Application to the State Bar of Michigan.  Full and honest disclosure is needed to avoid unnecessary delays in your clearance.  This process is a confidential one, but requires you to be open and frank about all the skeletons in your closet.  It is quite explicit in the directions, but becomes even more clear when you go through the process.  Here are some pointers to keep in mind:

1.  You Are Not the Only (Fill in the Blank) to Apply:  Your character and fitness is not based on your past but on your current character.  How you disclose your past and accept your shortcomings says more about your current character than a whitewash of what may cause you some distress upon reflection.  Current lawyers have all been through the same process as you.  There are lawyers convicted of crimes, suffering from addictions, fired from jobs, having been through bankruptcies, etc . . . .    In short, all the human frailties from which you may suffer are the same ones lawyers have.  Where these facts are not usually the things you admit in public or on a job application, a lawyer’s license requires your full disclosure.  Full, honest disclosure is the best way to lay out your answers.  You do not have to editorialize or comment on the issue being disclosed, just provide the facts as best as you can utilizing all resources available.

2.  The Cover-up is Always Worse than the Crime:  Martha Stewart, Watergate and the recent mayoral scandals in Detroit are all examples of how an attempted cover-up only served to amplify the crime.  The same holds true on your bar application.  Failure to disclose or fully disclose a matter will always lead to an investigation by the State Bar.  This usually arises when an applicant estimates a number or feels something is not important enough to look into fully.  To the State Bar investigators, this looks like a cover-up no matter what your intent was.  Go through the trouble to pull the records; call, research or do whatever is called for to make a complete and accurate records.  This not an application to join a country club; it is a license to practice law – an application to be an officer of the court.  What you represent in the application is taken quite seriously.  What you leave out is taken even more seriously.

3. There is No Rule You Have to Do it Alone: Questions may arise when you are filling out the form.  Call the State Bar.  You will find the investigators to be helpful and not adverse to your application.  A good rapport with the investigators will save you a lot of anxiety and hassle.  Our office answers application questions all the time.  Other lawyers have been through it, too.  They know how important it is.  The only dumb question is one not asked.

4. Some Things Will Demand Further Investigation: Face it, some things demand further accounting on your part.  You cannot escape review because of your disclosures.  Don’t let the fear of a District Committee meeting or a Standing Committee Hearing be a reason to misrepresent yourself.  A recent arrest or financial problems may require further examination.  You know that if you were in the position of having to trust a doctor or other trained professional, you would want someone who had your issues first in mind; someone you can trust.  Lawyers, above all, must be trusted.  You handle client affairs, client funds and secure their confidences.  No one wants to take authorship of admitting a lawyer who was not properly vetted at the time it could have been done.  Without a doubt, a delayed application causes personal hardships.  The best way to manage it is with a strong, honest application.  Don’t leave anything out and do not skimp on the research.

5. Make Sure Your Law School Application is Equally Open and Honest:  The law schools certify you to the State Bar and not only for academics.  They also report on your character and fitness while attending school.  Your law school application becomes part of the investigation package of documents.  If items are missing on your law school application that should have been disclosed, then you will be asked why you left those items out by the State Bar investigators.  You can certainly amend your application with a letter of explanation but you still could be asked to explain why the disclosures were not made earlier.

So, honesty is the best policy.  Trite perhaps, but proven true.  No one expects you to be a saint – - What the State Bar of Michigan and your fellow lawyers expect is that you will be open about any past problems, that you have addressed them and nothing from your personal past will interfere with your ethical representation of clients.  When in doubt, spell it out.

The Multistate Bar Examination

The Multistate Bar questions are graded by the National Board of Law Examiners. That part of your exam is automatically graded and available to the Board soon after the Bar Exam is administered.

The Michigan Essay Examination

The Michigan Board of Law Examiners is made up of 5 members.  Each member is responsible for 3 of the 15 essay questions.  To assist in the grading, the Board member hires three graders to assist in the grading. Each grader is responsible to grade one question.  The Bar Examination blue books go between each grader where the initial grades are assigned.

After the initial grades are assigned, these scores are paired with the MBE scores to determine who passed and who did not. If the score falls between 130-134, those papers are re-graded by different graders to see if any more points will be awarded. After the regrading process is complete, the Board of Law Examiners ‘curves’ the test according to an unpublished formula.  In the February 2009 Bar Examination, this added, on average, 5.66 points.  Once the adjusted scores are recorded, the official letters are sent out to the bar candidates.

How The Answers Are Graded

As to grading individual answers, the graders are looking for answers that are 1) responsive to the question asked, 2) citing the correct law, 3) analytical as to key facts and 4) come to the right conclusion.  As the grader reads over 1000 versions of the answer, they usually spend no more than 60-90 seconds to grade the answer.  They’re looking for terms of art applicable to the question, organization comporting with the Call of the question and readability.  The graders do not use the Model Answer as a grading rubric, but a ‘checklist’ or ‘tally sheet’ published in-house to speed the process.  In as much as the grader reads the same question over and over, they are quite familiar with what should be present in the answer.

No one claims to get it right each time.  Subjectivity, fatigue and misreading an answer are all possibilities why an answer may not get the credit it deserves or gets greater credit than would be warranted.  The graders are trying to find the credit you deserve but more importantly they are upholding the integrity of the test.