everything you need to know about the 2015 write-on competition april 15, 2015
TRANSCRIPT
Everything You Need to Know About the 2015 Write-On Competition
April 15, 2015
Who We Are Melanie Crouch — Houston Law Review
[email protected] Lee Banta — Houston Law Review
[email protected] Jordan Mandell— Houston Journal of
International Law [email protected]
Matt Halpin— Houston Journal of Health Law & Policy [email protected]
Drew Barber — Houston Business & Tax Law Journal [email protected]
Meeting Objectives
(1) You will know the eligibility requirements to participate in the Write-On Competition.
(2) You will know the “what, where, when and how” for the Write-On Competition.
(3) You will leave totally calm and not overwhelmed at all (or at least have all your questions answered).
What is the Write-On Competition?
Law journals collaborate on an entry competition by which eligible students may gain membership.
Each participant anonymously submits a 20–30 page casenote analyzing an assigned court decision.
Eligibility
Eligibility requirements vary by journal.
All journals require that members Have completed their first two semesters, and Have at least two full years remaining in law
school.
Houston Law Review
Melanie Crouch ([email protected]) & Lee Banta ([email protected])
Grade-On: Top 10% of class or section
Write-On: Top 30% of class or section
Houston Journal of International Law
Jordan Mandell ([email protected])
Grade-On: Top 20% of class or section
Apply-On: Top 35% of class or section, OR an A or A- in at least one semester of LSS
Write-On: Top 50% of class or section
Houston Journal of Health Law & Policy
Matt Halpin ([email protected])
Grade-On: Top 33% of class or section, OR an A or A- in at least one semester of LSS
Apply-On: Top 50% of class or section or LLMs
Write-On: All students who have completed two semesters in good standing
Houston Business & Tax Law Journal
Drew Barber ( [email protected])
Grade-On: Top 20% of class or section
Apply-On: Top 40% of class or section OR A or A- in at least one semester of LSS
Write-On: Top 50% of class or section
What if you’re interested in more than one journal?
You can submit the same paper for all four journals.
You must submit a separate copy of your paper for each journal you are interested in.
Make sure to have all copies made and turned in to Student Services by 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, July 2th!
The Identification Form to be turned in with your paper contains a space for you to rank the journals you are applying for in order of preference.
Competition Dates
Saturday, June 6, 2015, at 8:00 am. Assigned case will be posted on the Competition
Website. http://www.houstonlawreview.org/about/write-on-competition
Thursday, July 2, 2015, at 5:00 pm. Papers due to Student Services Office, with
identification form. All copies must be made and the identification
form filled out no later than 5:00 p.m. Late submissions will be refused! If you’re out of town, your casenote must be
postmarked by this date (send to Student Services, not individual journals).
Notification
Monday, July 13, 2015 Invitations extended to selected students. This gives you time to update your resume before
OCI.
Selected students must respond to the journal of their choosing by Friday, July 17, 2015, at 5:00 p.m.
Anonymity
Your submission is identified only by your PeopleSoft number. You will also submit an identification form with your paper, which Student Services will retain until the journals have made their selections.
Do not put your name on your paper or otherwise indicate your identity!
The names of selected candidates are only revealed when their papers are chosen. If your paper is not selected, your identity will never be revealed to the journals.
Honor Code Rules
All work must be your own.
You cannot discuss research, legal theories, citation form, grammar, word choice, or any other aspect of your paper with anyone.
No one can proofread your paper.
It’s a violation of the honor code if this rule is not strictly followed.
THE ONLY EXCEPTION: You can use the Lexis/Westlaw aides (through the website) and the UHLC Reference Librarians, for “how do I find this” questions.
This does NOT mean you can’t get help before the competition starts.
Questions?
Getting Ready: Refer to EUGENE VOLOKH, VOLOKH’S
ACADEMIC LEGAL WRITING: LAW REVIEW ARTICLES, STUDENT NOTES, SEMINAR PAPERS, AND GETTING ON LAW REVIEW (4th ed. 2010).
Get a copy of the Texas Manual on Usage and Style (just Google it).
Attend Professor Tabor’s Casenote Writing Workshop on Saturday, May 30st (more details to follow).
Find and read examples of casenotes online. There are some available on the HLR website, as well as on the websites of many leading law schools.
Parts of a Casenote:
• Introduction• Case Recitation• Analysis• Conclusion
Writing the Casenote:
Read the case carefully (and each opinion).
Research related case law (embedded cases are a good place to start).
Start focusing your thoughts on one aspect of the case or tie in various aspects to support one unified idea.
Ex: case law the court relied on, legislative history, related opinions, patterns in the law, dissenting opinions
Continue researching the issue—use cases, statutes, books, and scholarly articles (Googling can’t hurt, either).
Analyze and evaluate the court’s approach to the issue and the types of arguments the court is making.
Consider what might happen if the rule from the case is applied to various hypotheticals.
Formatting Requirements
20-30 pages.
Double-spaced (text & footnotes).
Times New Roman 12-point font for both text & footnotes.
1” margins (top, bottom, left, right).
No tricks on word spacing, etc!
~50/50 text to footnote ratio (use Word Count to check).
Every fact must have a footnote. Make sure to properly use signals and parentheticals.
Tips for Writing the Best Casenote
Follow all formatting requirements.
Figure out your point of view, state it clearly, and argue it persuasively and efficiently throughout.
Keep your legal theories simple – don’t try to overcomplicate the subject.
Research as thoroughly as you can and use a variety of sources in your paper (we want to see that you can find and cite many different types of sources).
Cite everything in proper Bluebook form and use parentheticals explaining your authority.
Citation, citation, citation! (every time there is a fact, you have to verify that fact is true/can be inferred from another source)
Strategies for Success
MAKE SURE you update your access to Westlaw or Lexis for the summer! Do it now!
Start early, plan accordingly.
Outline your thoughts early and often.
Organization is key.
Check Bluebook form.
Proofread.
50% of your text is below the line, so that’s where 50% of your time and attention should be allocated.
For more detailed instruction on casenotes
Attend Professor Tabor’s Casenote Writing Workshop on May 30st! A video of the presentation from 2010 is
posted on the websiteProfessor Tabor’s slides will be posted
on the website
A packet of useful handouts on Bluebooking and casenote formatting is available on the website.
Why should I bother?
It’s not as bad as it sounds!
Participating on a journal has lots of benefits.
The more you write, the better you get at writing (and editing, citing, etc.).
Feeling Like This About the Write-On?
Take a Deep Breath...
It is totally doable (even if you are working and taking a class).
You could grade on.
You could apply on.
The Journal of Consumer & Commercial Law offers students a chance to get the benefits of being on a journal without having to go through the Write-On Competition to join.
Questions?
Who We Are Melanie Crouch— Houston Law Review
[email protected] Lee Banta— Houston Law Review
[email protected] Jordan Kindred— Houston Journal of International
Li Yi – Houston Journal of International Law [email protected]
Matt Halpin— Houston Journal of Health Law & Policy [email protected]
Drew Barber — Houston Business & Tax Law Journal [email protected]