Improving New York’s Character and Fitness Process
SUMMARY
The Civil Rights Committee , Council on the Profession and the Lawyers Assistance Committee wrote a letter to Hon. Shirley Troutman and Hon. Troy K. Webber, Co-Chairs of the Franklin H. Williams Judicial Commission of New York State Courts to express our gratitude and support for the Williams Commission’s release of the Report on the Appellate Division Character and Fitness Committees. The letter also offers two suggestions as possible additions to the report or as components of the implementation process of the report’s recommendations: (1) given the parallels between the character and fitness interview process and how some universities use alumni interviews as a part of their admissions process, it would make sense for the report to refer to the best practices documents that many universities have created for alumni interviewers; and (2) the committees believe it would strengthen the report if it included an appendix that lists questions that interviewers should not ask, as a way of being explicit about what are not appropriate areas of inquiry.
REPORT
By Email
Hon. Shirley Troutman
Hon. Troy K. Webber
Franklin H. Williams Judicial Commission of New York State Courts
25 Beaver Street
New York, NY 10004
RE: Improving New York’s Character and Fitness Process
Dear Justice Troutman and Justice Webber:
We write to express our gratitude and support for the Williams Commission’s release of the Report on the Appellate Division Character and Fitness Committees.[1] We support the recommendations and urge their swift implementation as an important step in reducing, in the words of the report, “the prevalence and impact of bias” in the bar admission process.
We also offer two suggestions for your consideration, whether as possible additions to the report or as important components of the implementation process. First, given the parallels between the character and fitness interview process and how some universities use alumni interviews as a part of their admissions process, it would make sense for the report to refer to the best practices documents that many universities have created for alumni interviewers.[2] Second, we believe it would strengthen the report if it included an appendix that lists questions that interviewers should not ask, as a way of being explicit about what are not appropriate areas of inquiry.[3]
Thank you for sharing the report with us and for soliciting our feedback. The City Bar remains deeply committed to increasing access to the legal profession[4] and we stand ready to assist the Williams Commission and other court stakeholders as we collectively pursue this goal.
Respectfully,
Evan Henley, Co-Chair
Civil Rights Committee
Molly Thomas-Jensen, Co-Chair
Civil Rights Committee
Christopher Wilds, Co-Chair
Council on the Profession
Mary Lu Bilek, Co-Chair
Council on the Profession
Priscilla Lundin, Chair
Lawyers Assistance Program Committee
Eileen Travis, Executive Director
Lawyer Assistance Program
Cc:
Hon. Elizabeth A. Garry
Hon. Hector D. LaSalle
Hon. Dianne Renwick
Hon. Jenny Rivera
Hon. Gerald J. Whalen
Footnotes
[1] See https://www.nycourts.gov/LegacyPDFS/ip/ethnic-fairness/Character-and-Fitness-Report.pdf (All websites last accessed on March 5, 2024).
[2] See, e.g., https://aap.georgetown.edu/eligibility-requirements/interviewer-best-practices/.
[3] This letter was reviewed by several City Bar committees, and some members expressed the view that the report could do a better job of discussing implicit bias and how it can occur – or has been reported – in the character and fitness process, understanding the reasons why an applicant may decide against making a formal complaint. One idea is that the Williams Commission develop a webinar on the topic, perhaps for CLE credit. A further commenter noted that the post-interview survey idea should permit stakeholder input as part of its development to ensure that it is not overly cumbersome or creates unintended consequences.
[4] See City Bar Letter to Hon. Rowan D. Wilson re: The Future of the New York Bar Exam, Dec. 21, 2023, https://www.nycbar.org/reports/the-future-of-the-new-york-state-bar-examination/?back=1; City Bar Letter to Hon. Janet DiFiore re: Amending Question 26 of the New York Bar Application, June 1, 2021, https://www.nycbar.org/reports/amending-question-26-of-the-new-york-bar-application/?back=1; City Bar Podcast, Pathway to the Profession, A Landscape of Exclusion, November 10, 2023, https://www.nycbar.org/podcasts/pathway-to-the-profession-a-landscape-of-exclusion/?back=1.
