Mail? Like, with stamps?

In the ongoing saga of “where oh where is the imbroglio going to get a job!?”: I've had a fairly positive response from someone in the new Montana Public Defender's Office. It was basically “you look good, we're not hiring yet, but we will be soon, so if you don't hear from me in two months then check back.” That's a far cry from “you're hired,” but it's also a lot better than the handful of letters I've received saying “thanks, we're not hiring, we'll keep your resume on file.”

Therefore it seems wise to be at least prepared to take the Montana bar exam. I've known for some time that the deadline to apply for the exam was March 1, so over the weekend I sat down to finally download and complete the application. Except when I went to the cartel Montana Bar website I found this:

To obtain the application packet, please send a written request and a $15 check or money order to:

State Bar of Montana
P.O. Box 577
Helena MT 59624

Or contact Jan Weber (406) 447-2202 or at jweber@montanabar.org with your Visa or Mastercard number.

Requests are usually processed within 3 working days.

Yeah, you read that right: You have to pay for the application and they mail it to you! As in the U.S. Postal service, snail mail, you know, with stamps and everything. Can you believe that? I mean, hello, what century is this?

Needless to say, this did not make me happy. I mean, I know it was totally irresponsible and stupid of me to wait to such a late date to finally sit down to apply, but I have already collected most of the info I think I'll need so I figured it wouldn't take me more than a couple of hours to complete the application, I could drop it in the mail today via overnight, and it would be there by Wednesday, easy. I never dreamed I'd have to pay just to get the application and also wait to have it physically sent to me. Honestly it makes me mad because it's so stupid. How easy would it be to post a PDF version of the application online for applicants to download? So easy. And how much would it cost? Virtually nothing. So why does the Montana Bar operate largely as if the internet doesn't exist with regard to applying for their bar exam? I think they just want to hassle me and make me mad. Well, can you think of a better explanation?

My complaining aside, I called Ms. Weber today and found her to be incredibly helpful. She's overnighting me an application (at my expense, of course, but thankfully no three-day wait) and she explained that as long as it's postmarked by March 1 then I'm fine. So I should still be able to make the deadline even if I do have to pay $45 for the privilege (the charge for the application plus overnight shipping).

So does anyone have any suggestions for how I can complete a fingerprint card in a big hurry tomorrow afternoon or early Wednesday morning?

Posted February 27, 2006 10:20 PM | 3L