Colorado Law Personal Statement Prompt:

Colorado Law seeks students who demonstrate integrity, intellectual curiosity, leadership, collaboration, and commitment to service. We believe that meaningful legal education is enriched by students who bring diverse experiences, perspectives, and aspirations to our community.  

Your personal statement is an opportunity to allow the Admissions Committee to understand you beyond your academic record and résumé. Through your essay, demonstrate how your experiences, values, and goals have prepared you to contribute to the Colorado Law community and the legal profession.  

In your essay, you may respond to one or more of the following questions:  

A: Tell us about a defining experience or relationship that has shaped your understanding of justice, leadership, service, or responsibility?  Reflect on what you learned and how these experiences influenced your decision to pursue a legal education?   

B: Describe a cause or community that motivates you. Why is this issue important to you, and how do you hope to make a meaningful impact through the study and practice of law?   

C: Reflect on a time when you changed your perspective or used your values to guide a difficult decision. What did this experience teach you about yourself, and how will it shape your contributions to Colorado Law and the legal profession?   

While there is no "right" topic or approach, we encourage you to write authentically and share information that is not otherwise reflected in your application. The strongest personal statements demonstrate thoughtful reflection, clear writing, and insight into the experiences that have shaped your character, motivations, and potential as a future lawyer.  

Your essay must be your own work, double-spaced, and should not exceed 1,000 words. Supported file formats include doc, docx, htm, html, PDF, rtf, txt, wp, wpd, wps, and wpt.   

Please attach your personal statement electronically to your application.

NOTE: Documents should have password and security features removed.

This section is optional.

Optional Statement:

Is there an aspect of your background, identity, experiences, responsibilities, interests, or personal journey that is not fully reflected elsewhere in your application but is important to understanding who you are? 

Share how this experience has influenced your perspective and how it will shape your contributions to the Colorado Law community. 

This statement is optional and is not required. Your essay must be your own work, double-spaced, and should not exceed 500 words. Supported file formats include doc, docx, htm, html, PDF, rtf, txt, wp, wpd, wps, and wpt. 

Please attach your optional statement electronically to your application.

Addenda:

You may attach addenda as necessary to explain items in your application about which we may have questions. You can also use addenda to further explain any character and fitness issues you discussed earlier in the application, if necessary.

All addenda must be in your own words and double-spaced.

Please attach addenda electronically to your application.

NOTE: Documents should have password and security features removed.

Please attach a current résumé. Please show volunteer activities as well as work experience. It is also helpful to include the number of hours per week that you participated in an activity, club, or job. You do not need to include any high school activities or sports unless they are particularly relevant to your current goals.

Attach your resume electronically to your application.

NOTE: Documents should have password and security features removed.

Please answer fully and accurately the following character and fitness questions. If you have any questions as to how to answer these questions, please first refer to our web page. If you still have questions please email our Director of Admissions. Failure to fully and accurately answer these questions may result in expulsion or other disciplinary action by Colorado Law. In addition to a bar examination, there are character, fitness, and other qualifications for admission to the bar in every U.S. jurisdiction. Applicants are encouraged to determine the requirements for any jurisdiction in which they intend to seek admission by contacting the jurisdiction. Addresses for all relevant agencies are available through the National Conference of Bar Examiners. As a part of your application for admission to the bar, many states will review your answers to these questions and may require additional information during their determination of your fitness to practice law.

1. Have you ever been accused of a violation of an honor code or student conduct code, warned or advised of any misconduct, accused of and/or investigated for any misconduct, placed on scholastic or disciplinary or any other form of probation, sanctioned, suspended, requested or advised to discontinue your studies, dropped, expelled or requested to resign or otherwise subjected to discipline by any college, law school or other post-secondary institution? Include, for example, any warnings or discipline for violation of school or dormitory policies related to alcohol or controlled substances.

Required If YES, please explain fully, including providing the name of the institution, the date, the particulars of the incident, and any action taken by the institution.required

2. Regardless of whether the record has been expunged, canceled, or annulled, or whether no record was made, have you ever been accused of cheating, plagiarism, or other academic dishonesty at any college, university, law school, or post-secondary institution you attended?

Required If YES, please explain fully, including the name of the institution, the date, the particulars of the incident, and any action taken by the institution. Exclude any incidents disclosed in the previous question.required

3. Have you ever been investigated, arrested, cited for, charged with, or convicted of any alcohol or drug-related offenses? Include any traffic or other violations that involved alcohol or drugs, as well as any minor in possession or open container charges.

Include all matters that have been dismissed for any reason, subject to a diversion or a deferred prosecution program, or otherwise set aside. You do not need to disclose any incident (including a juvenile one) that ended in the sealing or expungement of the incident by a court. Expungement or sealing of a record is different than a dismissal as it is conducted by a court and results in a court order.

Required If YES, please explain fully, including the facts, date, location, all initial charges, and the outcomes, including all charges plead to or found guilty of, and any sentence or penalty.required

4. In the last five years, have you ever been investigated, arrested, cited for, charged with, or convicted of any traffic violation? Exclude violations disclosed in the previous question and any parking violations.

Include all matters that have been dismissed for any reason, subject to a diversion or a deferred prosecution program, or otherwise set aside. You do not need to disclose any incident (including a juvenile one) that ended in the sealing or expungement of the incident by a court. Expungement or sealing of a record is different than a dismissal as it is conducted by a court and results in a court order.

Required If YES, please explain fully, including the facts, date, location, all initial charges, and the outcomes, including all charges plead to or found guilty of, and any sentence or penalty.required

5. Have you ever been investigated, arrested, cited for, charged with, convicted, imprisoned, or placed on probation or parole for any offense against the law? Exclude violations disclosed in the previous two questions.

Include all matters that have been dismissed for any reason, subject to a diversion or a deferred prosecution program, or otherwise set aside. You do not need to disclose any incident (including a juvenile one) that ended in the sealing or expungement of the incident by a court. Expungement or sealing of a record is different than a dismissal as it is conducted by a court and results in a court order.

Required If YES, please explain fully, including the facts, date, location, all initial charges, and the outcomes, including all charges plead to or found guilty of, and any sentence or penalty.required

Thank you for applying to Colorado Law's Juris Doctor program. Please answer all questions completely and accurately. Applications to the JD program must be submitted by midnight MT on April 1, 2027. All other documents necessary to complete your application should be received by the Colorado Law School Office of Admissions by the above date to ensure timely consideration. We review completed applications on a rolling basis, meaning that you are encouraged to get your materials in during the fall of 2026 for enrollment in the fall of 2027.

• Applications will only be accepted electronically through the Law School Admission Council (LSAC) at LSAC.org. You must pay our nonrefundable $65 application fee through LSAC to submit your application to us.
• All applicants must register for the LSAC Credential Assembly Service (CAS) and must take the Law School Admission Test (LSAT), which includes at least one writing sample of the LSAT. Colorado Law only accepts the LSAT as a standardized test. LSAT scores are good for five years, plus the current application cycle.
• Transcripts of all previous college and/or university work, including those for graduate study and for coursework that did not lead to a degree, must be submitted through the CAS. If you matriculate at Colorado Law, the Admissions Office will need to receive an original of each of your transcripts by October 15 of the fall semester in which you first enroll. Failure to provide those transcripts will prevent your ability to register for classes for the second semester.
• Attach a current résumé or CV to your application (use electronic attachment). Your resume should include paid and volunteer experience, as well as duration of the involvement and specific tasks completed.
• Attach your personal essay to your application as an electronic attachment. The essay should be no longer than 1,000 words, typed, and double-spaced. The essay topic appears in the application. The optional essay should be no longer than 500 words, typed, and double-spaced. The optional essay topic also appears in the application (use electronic attachment). You may submit addenda electronically to explain any additional matters.
• Two letters of recommendation are required. Recommendation letters must be sent directly to LSAC. Choose recommenders who can attest to your skills and ability to do our law program, who can also speak to your character and integrity.
• If you have attended any other law school, you will need to submit an official transcript and a letter of good standing from the dean of the school(s), directly to the University of Colorado Law School, Office of Admissions, 403 UCB, Boulder, Colorado 80309.
• If you have earned a degree outside the United States, you must have the degree verified using the LSAC Credential Assembly Service (see LSAC.org for information).
• TOEFL is required for students whose native language is not English. Please see our website for score requirements.
• The default residency classification in Colorado is out-of-state until proof of residency is provided. If you believe you qualify for in-state tuition status in Colorado, complete the In-state Tuition Classification Application, which is part of this application. Please submit the JD application BEFORE submitting the Classification Application.
• International students who have been admitted to the Law School and have a temporary visa will have additional requirements and will be contacted by the University of Colorado International Admissions Office. Note: Students who have established permanent residency in the United States and have alien registration numbers are not considered international students.
• In addition to a bar examination, there are character, fitness, and other qualifications for admission to the bar in every U.S. jurisdiction. Applicants are encouraged to determine what those requirements are in the jurisdiction in which they intend to practice by contacting the jurisdiction. Addresses for all relevant agencies are available through the National Conference of Bar Examiners.
• Social Security Number: SSNs are used for record keeping and identification purposes only but we need your SSN to enter your information into our university system if you are admitted to our JD program. Use of SSN is protected under federal and state privacy laws. You will also need to provide us with your SSN if you plan to apply for student loans from the federal government, such as the Unsubsidized Direct Loan. You will be assigned a unique student identification number when you enroll at Colorado Law.
• The Law School will communicate with you via e-mail. Please configure your email account to accept e-mail from addresses ending in "colorado.edu."
• If your contact information or mailing address change any time after you submit your application, please contact the Office of Admissions immediately at the e-mail below to update this information.

Questions? Please contact the Office of Admissions by e-mail at law.admissions@colorado.edu. More information is available on our website at www.colorado.edu/law.