V.

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY POLICY

A. UB Statement of Principle on Academic Integrity The University has a responsibility to promote academic honesty and integrity and to develop procedures to deal effectively with instances of academic dishonesty. Students are responsible for the honest completion and representation of their work, for the appropriate citation of sources, and for respect for others academic endeavors. By placing their name on academic work, students certify the originality of all work not otherwise identified by appropriate acknowledgments.

B. General Policy Academic dishonesty is a serious breach of the atmosphere of mutual trust and confidence that is necessary for productive academic work. It also may cast serious doubt on the ability, character, and fitness to practice law of the individual who commits such acts. Students who have reason to believe that academic dishonesty has occurred are encouraged to report the facts promptly to the Law School Administration and/or to the course instructor. Instructors shall report to the Law School Administration any incident in which there is probable cause to believe academic dishonesty has occurred. The instructor has the obligation to make clear to students, preferably in writing, the rules and conditions under which course work will be evaluated. The student has the obligation to inform himself or herself about the rules applicable to grading or performance evaluation, and to seek clarification from the instructor or the Law School Administration in case of doubt. Basic, widely-shared premises and understandings about what constitutes dishonest conduct need not be provided in writing or orally. Absent written permission for cooperative or collaborative preparation of responses to any examination, takehome or in-class, common understanding leaves no doubt that collaboration on all examinations is strictly prohibited. It will be treated as a serious breach of academic honesty and integrity.

C. Definition It is difficult and unnecessary to provide a definition for every act of academic dishonesty. The generic term covers a multitude of wrongful acts and derives content through usage, custom, and a commonly shared understanding of integrity and responsibility. All of these sources of standards are particularly important in the profession and practice of law. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to:

PLAGIARISM: the use of source materials in a writing assignment without sufficient citation or attribution; Submitting the same, or substantially the same, written work for academic credit in more than one course without the prior unequivocal written permission of BOTH instructors; Violation of rules established by the instructor, the Law School, or the University regarding the completion of student assignments or exercises which are to be used in evaluating academic performance; Unauthorized interference in or tampering with the process of assigning and recording grades, including intentional breaches of anonymity; and Bringing unauthorized material into examinations.

D. Examples Examples of plagiarism would include:

submission of a seminar paper or brief containing extracts from law review articles or other published sources which are not identified as such by quotation marks, footnotes, or other standard indicators; appropriation and use of lines of argumentation or analysis which are taken from another source but are presented as the students own (i.e., not attributed to the source, even if presented in the students own words).

Violations of rules relating to the completion of student assignments used in evaluating academic performance would include:

use during an examination of notes or reference sources not permitted in advance by the instructor; unauthorized collaboration with another student in preparing an examination answer or written course work, and; misrepresenting work done for academic credit, such as passing off as ones own product any work that was done by another person, or assisting another student in such misleading conduct.

Unauthorized interference in the grading process would include:

theft of or tampering with copies of examinations, bluebooks, answer sheets, grade report forms, permanent record cards, computer files, or other records used in the grading process, and; revealing ones identity on an anonymously graded examination.

E. Procedures 1) Initial Complaint. If a faculty member and/or staff members or other student(s) have reason to believe that a student may have committed an act of academic dishonesty, the faculty member and/or staff members or other student(s) shall provide documentation, where applicable, of the suspected or alleged act of academic dishonesty to the Vice Dean for Student Affairs for investigation. 2) Notice. The Vice Dean for Student Affairs shall notify the student or students suspected of the alleged act of academic dishonesty. Such notice shall include copies of any applicable documentation (e.g. a copy of the paper with the allegedly plagiarized sections highlights along with a copy of the source material with the applicable sections highlighted). Copies of such notice shall also be provided to the Vice Dean for Academic Affairs and the professor and/or instructor. Where a grade is due to be entered, the Vice Dean for Student Affairs shall provide a copy of the notice to the Registrar with the direction to enter a grade of Incomplete (I) until the matter is resolved. Any such notice is confidential and shall be kept separate from the students other Law School records. 3) Investigation. The Vice Dean for Student Affairs will consult with the student within a reasonable period of time but as close as possible to the report and notice of the suspected act. As part of the investigation, the Vice Dean for Student Affairs may consult with the professors or instructor, and/or students who may have some knowledge of the alleged act of academic dishonesty. The Vice Dean for Student Affairs shall consult with and report to the Vice Dean for Academic Affairs on the results of the investigation. 4) Informal Resolution Meeting. During the investigation, the Vice Dean for Student Affairs shall offer the opportunity for the student and the faculty member to meet with the Vice Dean for Student Affairs and the Vice Dean for Academic Affairs in an attempt to resolve the matter. Neither the faculty member nor the student shall be represented or accompanied by an attorney or any other advisor, and no record of this informal meeting need be preserved. As a result of this meeting, the professor and/or instructor has the authority to impose and the student may consent to the following sanctions:

Admonition An oral statement to the student that he or she has violated a University standard of academic honesty. Revision of Work Requiring the student to replace or revise the work in which dishonesty occurred. (A grade of Incomplete will be entered pending replacement or revision of the work.) Reduction in Grade With respect to the particular assignment/exam or the course. Mandatory Resignation To be indicated on the transcript by an R. Failure for Reason of Academic Dishonesty To be indicated on the transcript by an F.

Despite these sanctions, no official finding of academic dishonesty will be placed in the students file or entered on the students permanent record card unless the student admits to the act of academic dishonesty. 5) Determination and Recommended Sanction. If no informal resolution is agreed to, the Vice Dean for Student Affairs will provide a written report of the investigation with findings to the Vice Dean for Academic Affairs. The Vice Dean for Academic Affairs shall review this report and shall advise the student of the sanctions that will be recommended to the Dean. 6) Appeal. The student may appeal the recommended sanctions to an adjudication committee composed of three professors chosen by the Dean. The adjudication committee shall give the student reasonable advance notice (not less than 72 hours) of the hearing. The faculty member shall provide the committee with a written statement of the evidence against the student and the names of potential witnesses. The adjudication committee shall convey this information to the student prior to the hearing, and shall indicate the possible sanctions that can be imposed if the student is found guilty. 7) Adjudication Hearing. At the hearing, the student shall be entitled to present evidence in his or her own behalf, examine all evidence against him or her, and cross-examine all witnesses against him or her. Neither party may be represented by an attorney or anyone else, but the student may be accompanied by an advisor of his or her choice, who may advise but not represent him or her during the proceedings. The technical and formal rules of evidence applicable in a court of law are not controlling, and the adjudication committee may hear all relevant material and reliable evidence, which will contribute to an informed result. The chair of the committee may exclude irrelevant or unduly repetitious evidence or cross-examination. 8) Determination of Guilt and Recommended Sanctions. If a majority of the adjudication committees members present are convinced the student committed an act of academic dishonesty, the adjudication committee has the power to impose one or more of the following sanctions to which a majority of its members agree:

Any of the Sanctions that the Instructor could have imposed. Such other reasonable and appropriate sanctions as may be determined by the Committee with the exception of those listed in points i, ii, and iii below. In addition, the adjudication committee shall have the power to recommend to the Dean imposition of any of the following sanctions:

i. Suspension For a definite term upon stated conditions. ii. Expulsion For reason of academic dishonesty should be noted on the transcript. iii. Mandatory Resignation from or Failure in the Course For reason of academic dishonesty should be noted on the transcript. If a student is found guilty of academic dishonesty, a statement shall be placed in the students academic record along with a description of the act of dishonesty. Such statement shall be disclosed to the Character and Fitness Committee or like body of any jurisdiction for which the student seeks admission to the bar. 9) Finding of Not Guilty. If a majority of the adjudication committees members present are convinced the student has not committed an act of academic dishonesty, the matter shall be deemed closed and all copies of documentation outside of a confidential file maintained separately by the Vice Dean for Student Affairs shall be destroyed.

10) Notice of Decision. The student shall be notified of the decision by letter, a copy of which shall become part of the confidential file maintained separately by the Vice Dean for Student Affairs If the student has been found guilty, the letter shall advise the student of the sanction(s) imposed or recommended to the Dean. 11) Appeal. Neither the student nor the faculty member shall have a right of formal appeal.

F. Penalties Except for highly unusual extenuating circumstances, the minimum penalty for an act of academic dishonesty is the recording of a grade of F for the course in question and the placement of a letter in the violators file setting forth the facts of the incident. If a different grade for the course has already been recorded, the grade may be changed to an administrative F without review by the full faculty. Subject to applicable laws, t he letter in the violators file or its content normally would be disclosed to a state bar committee inquiring into the character, fitness, or academic standing of the student seeking admission to the bar. The maximum penalty for an act of academic dishonesty is expulsion from the Law School.