Lawyer letter works!!!

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SMW

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I am thrilled. 😀 😀 😀 😀

My lawyer faxed and e-mailed a letter to AMCAS threatening to sue for breach of contract due to the long delay in processing my app (submitted 7/25) and the preferential treatment August and September submitters were getting by being processed ahead of me. He gave them a deadline of 10/15 to verify my app and get it to my designated schools.
This was late Monday (10/8) afternoon, possibly even after their offices were closed. Today (10/11) I got the red X's and my lawyer got a call from Nancy Tillinghas saying they'd be sending my verified app to schools ASAP (schools set up to receive electronic transmissions, right away -- schools that are not, with the weekly batch of paper apps they're sending out). She also gave info on when Aug. MCAT scores will be out and when they will be transmitted to schools, which I will post in another new thread so people not interested in legal maneuvers can see it.

I'm so happy I'm beside myself!! 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
 
That is awesome! I wish they did that for all early submitters.
 
I am really glad it worked for you as well. It looks like our letters took them about the same time frame to respond to our demands. So when will MCAT info be out? I assume in the next few days. Come on 42!!!!!!
 
did you have to pay your lawyer to write this letter? i need a letter like this!
 
Make sure to keep us updated on the time between red X's, blue slashes and a date processed. 🙂
 
Originally posted by DNALadder2002:
•did you have to pay your lawyer to write this letter? i need a letter like this!•
Click to expand...

My dad's a lawyer, so no. 😳 But really, considering what we've all already paid, I don't think what a lawyer would charge to write you a letter would seem all that expensive, especially if you pretty much write it yourself, and then just let him/her put it into legal jargon for you.
Go for it!
 
Originally posted by Amy Beth:
•I am really glad it worked for you as well. It looks like our letters took them about the same time frame to respond to our demands. So when will MCAT info be out? I assume in the next few days. Come on 42!!!!!!•
Click to expand...

You were my inspiration, Amy Beth!! 😀 It was great to see your pic on "Pictures of us." Wish they hadn't moved that thread. 🙁

See my post on "Aug MCAT scores received by AMCAS" for the answer to your MCAT question.
 
Congrats SMW! Is there a special type of lawyer that needs to be sought out? Can you give some advice or direction for those of us still invesetigating this option? Thanks. 🙂
 
Originally posted by none:
•Make sure to keep us updated on the time between red X's, blue slashes and a date processed. 🙂•
Click to expand...

I just checked my app, and I already have the blue slashes and X's, and a date processed!!! AMCAS moving at the speed of light is a sight to behold!!!!!!!!!!! 😀 😀 😀 😀 😀

One question for folks who've been verified for a while. Why does every course that I took for Cr/NC or Pass/Fail have a blue X by it? That's supposed to mean verified with a correction. But I can't see that they made any corrections. 😕
 
Originally posted by praying4MD:
•Congrats SMW! Is there a special type of lawyer that needs to be sought out? Can you give some advice or direction for those of us still invesetigating this option? Thanks. 🙂•
Click to expand...

I think any lawyer can write your standard threatening "shape up or we'll sue" letter. I'd call around and find out who'd do it the cheapest. Good luck!!! This is so crazy that we need to be doing this in order to just get processed!!!!
 
Hey SMW,
who did you address the letter to?
Thanks,
Shannon
 
Shannon, my lawyer faxed and e-mailed his letter to Jordan Cohen, President of AAMC, but Nancy Tillinghas (either Director or Asst. Director of AMCAS, I'm not sure which) responded. Jordan Cohen's address is in the thread entitled "Letter to the President of AMCAs." We used fax and e-mail (rather than FedEx or snail mail) for the fastest and cheapest method of delivery. Good luck!
 
Thanks for the info, and the inspiration, SMW....I thought I was just going to be patient, but I submitted before you, and not a trace of action from AMCAS (which is everyone's story, I know.) If this is what it takes to get action, hey, so be it.
Good Luck to you too.
Shannon
 
SMW- trust me here, i'm definitely not trying to rag on you- but you're saying that the lucky few that can afford to get a lawyer's letter drafted can be verified within a day, but the rest of us don't? Now how is that anymore fair than a scenario where some people are verified whereas others aren't? It's not. So for many, myself included, this is NOT a viable method of getting your app. verified, and i wish most here would stop making it sound like it is. --Trek
 
Some people have had luck with sternly worded
letters they've sent themselves. Others have had luck with frequent phone calls demanding to be put on the priority list. I didn't have luck with either of those methods. I think you would be surprised at how little it would cost you to get a legal letter drafted compared to the cost of applying to a typical list of schools or flying around the country for interviews. I think it's a shame that people are having to resort to this, but
I broke my neck applying early while preparing for the MCAT, so that my apps would be complete when the schools got my scores, and I wasn't going to sit around any longer waiting to win the AMCAS lottery.
 
or...if you college/university has a law school, you could probably get one of the profs there to write you a letter. i'd start with the secretaries or students and ask them which prof would be most likely to help you out. your school may also have student legal services (normally utilized by those with lease problems or run-ins with the law). if so, they can probably either write a letter for you or direct you to someone who will do it at little cost. remember, it's not like you need a big name, hot shot attorney on your side--what you're looking for is letterhead and legalese.
i guess my question is if you're really going to sue them if not verified in X number of days. it'd be interesting if the folks at AMCAS called your (or my or anyone's) bluff. just a few thoughts. peace.
 
you don't need a lawyer to write you a letter. please see a previous thread about letters. i wrote one to jordan cohen, then received a call from nancy t. the director of amcas. over the course of a few weeks, my application was verified because of it. there were some errors because of the rush verification, but eventually i got them all fixed with some persistence.
 
If anyone wants to write a "lawyer" letter, there's no reason you need a lawyer to do it. Just engineer some letterhead for a fictitious law firm, and write your own letter, being sure to sign it "John Smith, Attorney at Law. The letter will need to be written in a style that reflects contemporary legal culture, so surf the net for some guidelines on writing legal letters--or perhaps SMW would be good enough to post the letter composed by his/her attorney to serve as a model. My sweet old grandmother used to do this sort of thing all the time, with impressive results. There's no need to worry about being caught up short if SCAMCAS calls your. You can always hire a real lawyer if you need to, and the change in official correspondence won't appear fishy. People change lawyers all the time.
 
1. "
2. bluff

Oops.
 
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