legal research paper writing competition

Writing Competition

The  Harvard Law Review  is composed of second- and third-year law students who are selected via a six-day writing competition at the end of each academic year. The Review strongly encourages all students to participate in the writing competition, which consists of two parts:

• Subcite: this portion, worth 50% of the competition score, requires students to perform a technical and substantive edit of an excerpt from an unpublished article
• Case Comment : this portion, also worth 50%, requires students to describe and analyze a recent case

The competition uses a closed universe of materials provided to all competition-takers; no additional outside research of any kind is allowed or required. The use of any form of Artificial Intelligence during the competition is also strictly prohibited.

Based on the competition, fifty-four second-year students are invited to join the Review each year, including:

• Twenty selected based solely on competition scores
• Seven (one from each 1L section) selected based on an equally weighted combination of competition scores and first-year grades
• Three (from any section) selected based on an equally weighted combination of competition scores and first-year grades
• Twenty-four selected through an anonymous holistic review (see below for details)

The  Review  is committed to a diverse and inclusive membership and encourages all students to participate in the writing competition. Harvard Law School students who are interested in joining the  Review  must write the competition at the end of their first year, even if they plan to take time off during law school or are pursuing a joint degree and plan to spend time at another graduate school.

Timeline & Resources

The 2024 Competition will take place from Sunday, May 12 to Saturday, May 18 . Writing competition tips and Q&A sessions will be held in early and mid-April.

Registration will open in April 2024. We expect to invite editors to join Volume 139 over the course of several days in late July. Orientation for new editors is scheduled for the week of July 22nd and will take place remotely. Volume 139 will resume a past practice of an in-person Orientation for half a day near the start of the Fall 2024 Semester. Editors are expected to be fully available during this time. In August, editors will have Law Review assignments, but these assignments can be completed simultaneously with other commitments (internships, events, travel, etc.).

For more information about the competition, the following resources are available:

• The 2024 Application and Information Packet . The application information packet is designed to provide some specific guidance about approaching the case comment and subcite portions of the competition. Please note that the sample competition submissions included in the packet are merely representative and are by no means definitive examples.
• Tips Session and Q&A. Video of our April 1, 2024 writing competition tips session and our April 11, 2024 subcite Q & A session is available on our YouTube channel. The. This questions and answers document summarizes the Q&A portion of the April 13, 2023 session.
• Factsheet: This document responds to common questions and concerns we have heard.
• Sample Schedules: This includes a variety of writing competition schedules used by current editors.
• FAQ on Accommodations . See below for more information on disabilities and accommodations.

Competition & Membership Policies

Holistic consideration.

Applicants will have the opportunity to convey aspects of their identity which have led to the development of character qualities or unique abilities that can contribute to the Law Review , including but not limited to their racial or ethnic identity, disability status, gender identity, sexual orientation, or socioeconomic status. Applicants can do so by submitting an additional expository statement.  Statements will be considered by the Selection Committee only after grading of the competition has been completed. Statements will remain anonymous and will not be evaluated for quality of writing or editing, nor will they be assigned a numerical score.

Applicants are welcome to draft their expository statements before the competition week begins, and the prompt for the 200-word statement is as follows:

“You are strongly encouraged to use the space below to submit a typed expository statement of no more than 200 words. This statement may identify and describe aspects of your identity which have impacted your development of certain character qualities or unique abilities that can serve as an asset to the Law Review and are not fully captured by the categories on the previous page, including, but not limited to, racial or ethnic identity, socioeconomic background, disability (physical, intellectual, cognitive/ neurological, psychiatric, sensory, developmental, or other), gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, country of origin or international status, religious identity or expression, undergraduate institution(s), age, academic or career trajectory prior to law school, military status, cultural background, or parental/caretaker status. Additionally or alternatively, you may use this statement to identify and describe areas of academic or scholarly interest, career goals, or any other element of your identity that you would bring to your work on the Law Review .

Statements will be considered only after grading of the subcite and case comment sections of the competition has been completed. Statements will not be evaluated for quality of writing or editing, nor will they be assigned a numerical score. No applicant will be penalized in any way for not submitting an optional statement, and all optional statements are completely confidential.”

Deferral & Leave

Harvard Law Review will invite students to join Vol. 139 in mid-July. Students invited to join Vol. 138 who are taking a full-year leave of absence from HLS will be allowed to defer their membership in Law Review for the year. They may then join the Law Review as members of Vol. 140 in fall 2025 and serve as editors for two years. Editors typically serve for two full academic years to ensure ample time for training, acclimation to their roles on the Review , and opportunities to make collective decisions about our work.

Students invited to join Vol. 139 who are taking a fall-semester leave of absence from HLS are encouraged to still join as editors with Vol. 139. If joining with Vol. 139, editors will be expected to complete Law Review work during the fall, even though they are on leave from HLS. They will then serve as editors for two years. Alternatively, students taking a one-semester leave may wait to join until fall of the following year (fall 2025); in that case, they will have no Law Review obligations during the 2024-2025 academic year and will participate as Law Review editors for a single year.

Transfer Students

Prospective transfer students may take the competition at the same time as Harvard Law School 1Ls. Prospective transfer students are selected on the same anonymous grading basis as Harvard 1Ls and are eligible for 44 of the spots on the Review (in other words, all spots besides the 10 allotted to Harvard 1Ls for whom first-year grades play a role). Prospective transfer students may submit an anonymized, unofficial transcript when their 1L grades are released if they would like their grades to be considered in the Law Review ’s holistic review process. The Review ’s membership decisions do not affect the admissions decisions of Harvard Law School.

Recognizing that the competition schedule poses unique challenges to prospective transfer applicants, the Review also allows transfer students to take the competition at the end of their 2L year. Up to four spots are available for such students. However, no student may attempt the competition more than once, and this option is only available to transfer students who did not previously take the competition. Like prospective transfer students, rising third-year students may submit their grades, but they will not be eligible for the 10 slots that incorporate first-year grades.

Prospective 1L transfer students should email [email protected] for information about registering.

SJD Students

SJD students at Harvard Law School may serve as editors of the Law Review . To join, SJDs take the same writing competition as JD students and are eligible for 44 of the editorial positions (all spots besides those allotted to JD 1Ls for whom first-year grades play a role). SJDs should take the competition only if they are certain they have at least two years remaining in their program of study. Additionally, as with all candidates, SJDs are permitted to participate in the writing competition only once.

Disabilities & Accommodations

The Harvard Law Review is firmly committed to providing accommodations for students with disabilities and handles requests on a case-by-case basis. The Law Review is an independent entity and thus has its own accommodations system separate from Harvard Law School’s Dean of Students Office.

Accommodations requests can be submitted between Monday, March 11th and Friday, April 12th and will be processed on a rolling basis. Students are strongly encouraged to submit their accommodation requests as soon as possible even if they are not yet certain they will take the competition. Please see our answers to FAQ on accommodations to learn more about what documentation is needed.

The Law Review strives to keep information regarding disabilities and accommodations as confidential as possible. Nothing about your accommodations application or your receipt of accommodations will be part of the Competition entry that is considered in the selection process. All Competition grading is doubly anonymized. Jennifer Heath, a non-student HLR staff member manages the logistics related to our accommodations process, and accommodations recommendations to the Law Review are made by our testing consultant, Dr. Loring Brinckerhoff.

Law Student Writing Competitions: Writing Competitions

• Writing Competitions
• Other Links

Current/Upcoming Competitions

Competitions listed here are in order by submission deadline.  Click the links below for more specific details about each competition. 

• Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg "Pursuit of Justice" Legal Writing Competition Sponsor:Philadelphia Bar Association Submission Deadline: August 2, 2024 Topic: Candidates may submit a law review quality submission on any topic relating to rights, privileges, and responsibilities under federal law.
• NYSBA Business Law Section Student Writing Competition - Fall Issue Sponsor: New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) Business Law Section Submission Deadline: August 15, 2024 Topic: Articles should demonstrate relevance to the Journal’s audience (New York business lawyers) and be timely.
• 2024 Beckley Student Writing Competition Sponsor: PIABA Foundation Submission Deadline: September 15 Topic: he submission may address any aspect of Securities Law; Securities Arbitration; The Federal Arbitration Act, Title 9, US Code, Section 1-14; or FINRA Code of Arbitration, effective April 16, 2007 and any changes or proposed changes to that Code. The writing can be based in theory or practice, but should ultimately advocate a position on the topic area chosen.
• 2024 International Tax Student Writing Competition Sponsor: International Fiscal Association (USA Branch) Submission Deadline: September 30 Topic: Any topic relating to U.S. taxation of income from international activities, including taxation under U.S. tax treaties.
• Public Contract Law Journal Writing Competition Sponsor: ABA Section of Public Contract Law Submission Deadline: September 30 Topic: Papers should address a topical issue of interest to the public contract and grant law community.
• Judicature Writing Competition for Emerging Scholars Sponsor: Bolch Judicial Institute Duke Law School Submission Deadline: October 1 Topic: Must be related to judges, judging, judicial administration, or the rule of law
• American College of Consumer Financial Services Lawyers (ACCFSL) Writing Competition Sponsor: American College of Consumer Financial Services Lawyers Submission Deadline: November 1 Topic: Eligible entries must discuss some aspect of U.S. consumer financial services law. Topics that relate principally to securities regulation, bankruptcy, insurance, or the safety and soundness aspects of banking regulation are not eligible, but works on subjects within these (or other) areas will be considered if they bear directly on U.S. consumer financial services law.
• Albert S. Pergam International Law Writing Competition Sponsor: New York State Bar International Section Submission Deadline: November 3 Topic: The competition is intended to encourage students of law to write on areas of public or private international law.
• Dr. Emanuel Stein and Kenneth Stein Memorial Law Student Writing Competition Sponsor: New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) Labor and Employment Law Section Submission Deadline: November 30 Topic: Submissions should focus on any timely, compelling aspect of labor and employment law.

Past Competitions

• 2024 Past Competitions
• 2023 Competitions
• 2022 Competitions

Sponsor: The College of Workers' Compensation Lawyers Submission Deadline: January 15, 2024 Topic: The scope of permissible topics include any aspect of workers' compensation law.

Sponsor: Chicago-Kent College of Law's Institute for Law Submission Deadline: January 17, 2024 Topic: Judges will consider papers on any topic relating to the law governing the workplace, such as employment law, labor law, employee benefits, or employment discrimination.

Sponsor: Asian Pacific American Bar Association Educational Fund (AEF) Submission Deadline: January 19, 2024 Topic: Through this Writing Competition, AEF seeks to encourage legal scholarship on issues of importance to the Asian Pacific American community.

Sponsor: Ohio Bar Submission Deadline: January 26, 2024 Topic: This annual law student scholarship program focuses on recognizing outstanding writing on a litigation-related topic. The program is intended to encourage students to pursue a career in litigation and to become active in the Ohio Bar.

Sponsor: The Beverly Hills Bar Association and Bar Foundation Submission Deadline: February 1, 2024 Topic: his competition encourages law students to integrate Rule of Law concepts into their writings.

Sponsor: ABA Standing Committee on Lawyers' Professional Liability and Long & Levit, LLP Submission Deadline: February 1, 2024 Topic: This essay contest is to encourage scholarship and innovative research and writing in the area of legal malpractice law, professional liability insurance, and loss prevention.

Sponsor: Scribes — The American Society of Legal Writers Submission Deadline: February 1, 2024 Topic: The topic should be timely and interesting.

Sponsor: Center for Alcohol Policy Submission Deadline: February 1, 2024 Topic: This national academic event is intended to foster debate, analysis, and examination of state alcohol regulation in the 21st Century.

Sponsor: American Constitution Society (ACS) Submission Deadline: February 5, 2024 Topic: Submissions should be focused on American regulatory or administrative law, broadly construed. Appropriate subjects include empirical or comparative analyses of the effectiveness of specific regulatory regimes or deregulation; doctrinal investigations of the development of administrative law rules or principles by courts and administrative agencies and the effects of that development; and normative analyses of how particular regulatory or administrative regimes or deregulation advance or fail to advance values of fairness, participation, and transparency.

Sponsor: American Bar Association (ABA) Business Law Section Submission Deadline: February 9, 2024 Topic: The competition encourages and rewards law students for their outstanding writing on business law topics.

Sponsor: American Bar Association- Antitrust Law Section Submission Deadline: February 10, 2024 Topic: This project provides an opportunity to expand the role of the ABA in the area of Consumer Protection among law students, professors and practitioners by inviting students to participate in a discussion on hot topics in consumer protection.

Sponsor: American Bar Association Submission Deadline: February 23, 2024 Topic: The goal of the Competition is to encourage and reward law student writings on antitrust law and competition law subjects of general and current interest.

Sponsor: New York Intellectual Property Law Association Submission Deadline: February 25, 2024 Topic: The Honorable William Conner Writing Competition was established to recognize exceptionally written papers that are submitted by law students.

Sponsor: American Indian Law Review (AILR) Submission Deadline: February 29, 2024 Topic: Papers will be accepted on any legal issue specifically concerning American Indians or other indigenous peoples.

Sponsor: The Blanch Law Firm Submission: March 1, 2024 Topic: The goal of the competition is to find an excellent writer to contribute an outstanding article to their online publication.

Sponsor: NRA Civil Rights Defense Fund Submission Deadline: March 1, 2024 Topic: Research and write a scholarly article suitable for publication on one of two cutting edge Second Amendment issues - or you can write separately on both questions for two chances to win.

Sponsor: The Center for Legal and Court Technology Submission Deadline: March 1, 2024 Topic: Focus on at least one application of these technologies (e.g., Internet of Medical Things devices, facial recognition technology, autonomous systems, social media monitoring, etc.); Explain whether regulation of the application is needed and to what extent; and Propose means to regulate this application (proposals may range from traditional regulation to reliance on soft governance, and anything in between).

Sponsor: Notre Dame Submission Deadline: March 1, 2024 Topic: Any topic related to the intersection of church, state & society, and in particular how the law structures and governs that intersection.

Sponsor: Health Law Institute at Mitchell Hamline School of Law and the Health Care Compliance Association Submission Deadline: March 13, 2024 Topic: Students must analyze the facts presented in the Competition Problem, identify any and all regulatory/compliance concerns, and advise the recipient of the memorandum.

Sponsor: The Freedom From Religion Foundation Submission Deadline: March 15, 2024 Topic: If you could create a 28th Amendment what would it be?

Sponsor: American Bar Foundation Submission Deadline: March 15, 2024 Topic: Papers must be on topics within the field of law and social science.

Sponsor: Transnational Law and Contemporary Problems and the University of Iowa College of Law Submission Deadline: March 17, 2024 Topic: Any contemporary international business or economic concern.

Sponsor: International Insolvency Institute (III) Submission Deadline: March 31, 2024 Topic: The article or research must be on an international or comparative insolvency topic.

Sponsor: Berkeley Technology Law Journal University of California Submission Deadline: April 2, 2024 Topic: Submission will be accepted on a wide variety of topics at the intersection of law and technology, including but not limited to: technology and the public interest, privacy, internet law, intellectual property, antitrust, First Amendment issues, entertainment and news media, telecommunications, biotechnology, and cybercrime.

Sponsor: Law Student Division of the American Bar Association Submission Deadline: April 5, 2024 Topic: Original essays on any aspect of family law.

Sponsor: Notre Dame Law School Submission Deadline: April 15, 2024 Topic: Entries should concern any issue within the general category of legal ethics.

Sponsor: Smith, Born, Leventis, Taylor & Vega LLC Injury Lawyers Submission Deadline: April 29, 2024 Topic: Submit a creative thoughtful, and well-written response regarding the pros and cons of undocumented employees being entitled to workers’ compensation benefits despite their immigration status.

Sponsor: Tort Trial and Insurance Practice Section of the American Bar Association Submission Deadline: April 30, 2024 Topic: Submit a 20-page paper addressing a recent development in admiralty and maritime law.

Sponsor: American University Washington College of Law Submission Deadline: May 5, 2024 Topic: This competition is designed to encourage law students to write scholarly papers on current topics of interest relevant to health law and/or food and drug law.

Sponsor: Epstein, Becker, & Green Submission Deadline: May 17, 2024 Topic: The competition is designed to encourage JD and LLM students in the preparation of scholarly papers on current topics of interest relating to health law.

Sponsor: NYSBA Submission Deadline: May 30, 2024 Topic: Eligible papers may address any topic of general interest to the to antitrust law community, including topics relating to civil and criminal antitrust law, competition policy, consumer protection and international competition law.

Sponsor: American Bar Association Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources Submission Deadline: May 31, 2024 Topic: Entries for the Competition should demonstrate original thought on a question of legal and/or policy significance relating to one of the following topics: (1) Air, Water, and Food, (2) Biodiversity, (3) Energy Law, (4) Indigenous Law, (5) Recycling.

Sponsor: American Bar Association (ABA) Environment, Energy, and Resources Section Deadline Submission: May 31, 2024 Topic: Entries should relate to one of the following topics: (1) Air, Water, and Food, (2) Biodiversity, (3) Energy Law, (4) Indigenous Law, (5) Recycling.

Sponsor: Brown Sims Submission Deadline: May 31, 2024 Topic: There is no restriction on the topic except that the writing must be on a legal subject.

Sponsor: American Bar Association (ABA) Real Property, Trust & Estate (RPTE) Section Submission Deadline: May 31, 2024 Topic: Law Student Writing Competition The goal of the Section of Real Property, Trust and Estate Law student writing contest is to encourage and reward law student writing on the subjects of real property or trust and estate law.

Sponsor: American Bar Association (ABA) Environment, Energy, and Resources Section Submission Deadline: May 31, 2024 Topic: Entries for the Competition should demonstrate original thought on a question of legal and/or policy significance relating to one of the following topics: (1) Air, Water, and Food, (2) Biodiversity, (3) Energy Law, (4) Indigenous Law, (5) Recycling.

Sponsor: Everytown Law Submission Deadline: May 31, 2024 Topic: This competition asks law students to consider how to advance gun violence prevention and gun safety through litigation in the civil and criminal justice systems. Though we encourage applicants to be creative, submission topics can range from reducing gun violence through representing survivors to emerging topics in Second Amendment jurisprudence.

Sponsor: Brown Sims Submission Deadline: May 31, 2024 Topic: open

Sponsor: The American College of Employee Benefits Counsel, Inc. Submission Deadline: June 1, 2024 Topic: Papers may be on any legal topic in the employee benefits field and may be up to 40 pages (including footnotes)

Sponsor: Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) Submission Deadline: June 1, 2024 Topic: More and more conservative public officials, candidates and preachers are insisting that the United States is a “Christian nation,” that certain Christian views are privileged and that our laws must reflect their doctrines. Which statements and legislative actions concern you the most or present the greatest threats to our secular democracy? How dangerous is Christian nationalism and how does it adversely affect you and the country? Use examples. Be sure to define Christian nationalism and explain why you oppose it.

Sponsor: California Supreme Court Historical Society Submission Deadline: June 1, 2024 Topic: We encourage all those working on California legal history (NOT just the history of California courts) to apply. Papers may include elements of digital humanities and may also be co-authored.

Sponsor: Georgetown Law Institute for Technology Law & Policy Submission Deadline: June 3, 2024 Topic: Entries should explore ways in which emerging technologies and services interact with or challenge existing civil rights and consumer protection laws.

Sponsor: Food and Drug Law Institute (FDLI) Submission Deadline: June 3, 2024 Topic: This Writing Competition is intended to encourage law students interested in the areas of law affecting FDA-regulated industries: food, drugs, medical devices, biologics, dietary supplements, cosmetics, veterinary, cannabis, or tobacco and nicotine products.

Sponsor: ABA Dispute Resolution Section Submission Deadline: June 7, 2024 Topic: The essay may address any aspect of dispute resolution practice, theory, or research that the contestant chooses

Sponsor: ABA Labor and Employment Law Section Submission Deadline: June 15, 2024 Topic: Current and relevant topics of labor and employment law.

Sponsor: ABA Administrative Law & Regulatory Practice Section Submission Deadline: June 30, 2024 Topic: The entry must discuss any topic relating to administrative law.

Sponsor: The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC) Foundation Submission Deadline: June 30, 2024 Topic: The ACTEC Foundation is proud to support this annual legal writing competition to encourage law students to create scholarly works in the area of trusts and estates.

Sponsor: American Inns of Court Submission Deadline: July 2, 2024 Topic: Please submit an original, unpublished, essay of 10,000 to 20,000 words on a topic of your choice addressing issues of professionalism, ethics, civility, and excellence.

Sponsor: ABA Criminal Justice Section Submission Deadline: July 1, 2024 Topic: Submissions should address the following: How does the use of AI-generated information implicate constitutional safeguards on the reasonableness of searches and seizures?

Sponsor: The Theodore Tannenwald, Jr. Foundation for Excellence in Tax and The American College of Tax Counsel Submission Deadline: July 10, 2024 Topic: Papers on any federal or state tax-related topic may be submitted.

Sponsor: The Criminal Law Section of the California Lawyers Association Submission Deadline: April 30, 2023 Topic: The paper must pertain to criminal law and/or to criminal procedure, with a particular focus on contemporary issues of concern in the State of California.This is a nationwide competition; while the focus is on California law, past winners have included students attending schools from coast to coast.

Sponsor: American University Submission Deadline: May 7, 2023 Topic:This competition is designed to encourage law students to write scholarly papers on current topics of interest relevant to health law and/or food and drug law.

Sponsor: ABA Section of Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Submission Deadline: May 31, 2023 Topic: Submissions must be on a current topic dealing with real property, trust, and estate law.

Sponsor: ABA Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources (SEER) Submission Deadline: May 31, 2023 Topic: SEER sponsors up to eight law student writing competitions each year. Topics vary.

Sponsor: Brown Sims Submission Deadline: May 31, 2023 Topic: The Award honors excellence in legal writing in American law schools.

Sponsor: Freedom from Religion Foundation Submission Deadline: June 1, 2023 Topic: In short, the essay should seek to answer the question of whether secularism is the "savior" of American democracy.

Sponsor: The American College of Employee Benefits Counsel Submission Deadline: June 1, 2023 Topic: Papers may be on any legal topic in the employee benefits field.

Sponsor: American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolution Submission Deadline: June 9, 2023 Topic: The essay may address any aspect of dispute resolution practice, theory, or research that the contestant chooses.

Sponsor: Mercer University School of Law and the American Bar Association Commission on Disability Rights Submission Deadline: June 9, 2023 Topic: The submission may address any aspect of disability law, theory, or practice the contestant chooses. Other permissible topics include issues arising under any of the following statutes: Civil Rights Act of 1964; Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972; Age Discrimination in Employment Act; Family and Medical Leave Act; or any state statutes or municipal ordinances prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

Sponsor: Food and Drug Law Institute (FDLI) Submission Deadline: June 12, 2023 Topic: Papers should focus on the areas of law affecting FDA-regulated industries: food, drugs, medical devices, biologics, dietary supplements, cosmetics, veterinary, cannabis, or tobacco and nicotine products.

Sponsor: ABA Section of Labor and Employment Law and The College of Labor and Employment Lawyers Submission Deadline: June 15, 2023 Topic: Papers should be written on current and relevant topics of labor and employment law.

Sponsor: American Bar Association Infrastructure and Regulated Industries Section Submission Deadline: June 30, 2023 Topic: The section seeks entries for its writing competition from all law students who are enrolled in ABA-approved law schools and are members of the ABA Law Student Division.

Sponsor: The ACTEC Foundation Submission Deadline: June 30, 2023 Topic: The paper must relate to the area of trusts and estates, broadly defined

Sponsor: The American Inns of Court Submission Deadline: July 1, 2023 Topic: This writing competition is designed to promote scholarship in the areas of professionalism, ethics, civility, and excellence.

Sponsor: ABA Criminal Justice Section Submission Deadline: July 1, 2023 Topic: By reversing Roe v. Wade (1973), the Supreme Court of the United States in Dobbs v. Jackson (2022) opened the door for states to initiate criminal investigations and prosecutions relating to women obtaining abortions. What role do federal Constitution rights, such as the Fourth Amendment, as well as parallel state constitutional protections, play in protecting access to potential evidence?

Sponsor: Federal Circuit Bar Association Submission Deadline: July 1, 2023 Topic: Papers must deal with a topic that lies within the substance, procedure, or scope of the specialized jurisdiction of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Sponsor: Zimmerman Law Firm Submission Deadline: August 1st, 2023 Topic: Describe why you chose to pursue law and what do plan to do with your law degree once you graduate.

Sponsor: Philadelphia Bar Association Deadline: August 1, 2023 Topic: Candidates may submit a law review quality submission on any topic relating to rights, privileges, and responsibilities under federal law.

Sponsor: NYSBA Business Law Section Deadline: August 15, 2023 Topic: The topic of submitted articles should be relevant to the Journal's audience (New York business lawyers), should be timely, original, clear, and concise.

Sponsor: American Bar Association Tort Trial and Insurance Practice Section Deadline: September 8, 2023 Topic: Submissions should address a recent development in any area of aviation or space law or discuss an area of aviation or space law where a controversy or disagreement exists. Entrants are encouraged to write on subjects of national interest, rather than state-specific issues.

Sponsor: Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association Deadline: September 15, 2023 Topic: Any aspect of Securities Law; Securities Arbitration; The Federal Arbitration Act, Title 9, US Code, Section 1-14; or FINRA Code of Arbitration

Sponsor: The International Fiscal Association (USA Branch) Deadline: September 30, 2023 Topic: Any topic relating to U.S. taxation of income from international activities, including taxation under U.S. tax treaties.

Sponsor: American Bar Association (ABA) Public Contract Law (PCL) Section Submission Deadline: September 30, 2023 Topic: Papers should address a topical issue of interest to the public contract and grant law community.

Sponsor: American Agricultural Law Association Submission Deadline: October 13 Topic: The entry must discuss a modern and relevant topic related to agricultural law.

Sponsor: Center for Reproductive Rights, and the Center on Reproductive Rights and Justice Submission Deadline: October 16 Topic: The suggested theme for this year is “A Different World Is Possible: Repro Health, Rights, and Justice Post-Dobbs.” With the constitutional protection for abortion overturned by the Supreme Court, we encourage students to envision creative and expansive approaches to securing reproductive health, rights, and justice for all people. Submissions might explore topics that intersect with If/When/How’s strategic initiatives, such as removing barriers to abortion access and supporting those who seek reproductive care outside the clinical setting, combatting criminalization, strategies for securing reproductive rights at the state or local level, and public funding of reproductive health care through an intersectional, reproductive justice lens. All submissions on other reproductive rights and justice topics are welcomed.

Sponsor: New York Bar Association Deadline: November 3, 2023 Topic: Any area of public or private international law or practice

Sponsor: ABA Submission Deadline: November 10, 2023, Topic: Entries for the Writing Contest must focus on the military’s application of criminal law—also known as military justice. Submissions may advocate a position, educate the reader, or analyze one or more cases.

Sponsor: ABA Taxation Section Submission Deadlines: September 1, 2023: J.D. and LL.M. problems released November 1, 2023: Work products submission deadline, due by or before 5pm ET Topic: An alternative to traditional moot court competitions, the Law Student Tax Challenge (LSTC) is organized by the Section’s Young Lawyers Form. The LSTC asks two-person teams of students to solve a complex business problem that might arise in everyday tax practice.

Sponsor: American College of Consumer Financial Services Lawyers Submission Deadline: November 1, 2023 Topic: Eligible entries must discuss some aspect of U.S. consumer financial services law. Topics that relate principally to securities regulation, bankruptcy, insurance, or the safety and soundness aspects of banking regulation are not eligible, but works on subjects within these (or other) areas will be considered if they bear directly on U.S. consumer financial services law.

The Blanch Law Firm Scholarship Award Sponsor: The Blanch Law Firm Submission: Rolling Deadline; Submission are due within 14 days of receipt of assignment. Topic: The goal of the competition is to find an excellent writer to contribute an outstanding article to their online publication.

Sponsor: New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) Labor and Employment Law Section Submission Deadline: November 30 Topic: Submissions should focus on any timely, compelling aspect of labor and employment law.

Sponsor: Video Game Bar Association Submission Deadline: December 1, 2023 Topic: Applicants will submit an original paper on a legal issue in the video game industry.

Sponsor: American Journal of Mediation Submission Deadline: December 15, 2023 Topic: Subject matter focus for entries can embrace the full range of the alternative dispute resolution field– consensus-based dispute resolution (e.g., negotiation, mediation), adjudicative processes (e.g., early neutral evaluation, binding or non-binding arbitration and private judging), or mixed processes (e.g., arb-med, med-arb, high low arbitration, baseball arbitration). Papers can also focus on ADR process design, practice techniques, specific case studies, related legislation, and ethical dilemmas and standards for dispute resolution professionals.

Sponsor: Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law Submission Deadline: December 18, 2023 Topic: TThe Dukeminier Awards annually recognize the best law review note written by a student in the field of sexual orientation and gender identity law.

Sponsor: Armstrong, Lee & Baker LLP Deadline: December 31, 2023 Topic: In your essay submission, we want to hear about: What compelled you to become a lawyer? Are there any meaningful reasons that you wanted to enter the legal field that you feel are unique? Are there any special areas of law that you would like to target? What are the goals through your first years as an attorney that you would like to accomplish?

Sponsor: New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) Business Law Section Submission Deadline: August 15, 2022 Topic: The competition is open to all students who are candidates for the JD or LLM degree at an accredited law school during the year in which the article is submitted. All articles submitted will be judged on relevance to the Journal's audience (New York business lawyers), timeliness of the topic, originality, quality of research and writing, and clarity and conciseness.

Sponsor: Ohio State Bar Association Corporate Counsel Section Submission Deadline: September 6, 2022 Topic: The goal of the competition is to explore relevant and innovative scholarly work from Ohio's law students in one specific area of corporate governance challenges, specifically the pandemic's accelerated transformation to a remote workforce in almost every industry and profession.

Sponsor: Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association (PIABA) Submission Deadline: September 16, 2022 Topic: The submission may address any aspect of Securities law; Securities arbitration; The Federal Arbitration Act, Title 9, US Code, Section 1-14; or FINRA Code of Arbitration, effective April 16, 2007 and any changes or proposed changes to that Code. The writing can be based in theory or practice, but should ultimately advocate a position on the topic area chosen.

Sponsor: International Fiscal Association (USA Branch) Submission Deadline: September 30, 2022 Topic: Submissions will be accepted on any topic relating to U.S. taxation of income from international activities, including taxation under U.S. tax treaties.

Sponsor: American Bar Association (ABA) Public Contract Law (PCL) Section Submission Deadline: September 30, 2022 Topic: Papers should address a topical issue of interest to the public contract and grant law community.

Sponsor: New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) International Law Section Submission Deadline: November 5, 2022 Topic: Submissions must concern one area of public or private international law or practice.

Sponsor: Brooks Kushman Submission Deadline: November 16, 2022 Competition Date: November 19, 2022 Topic: Brooks Kushman will present an award, based on excellence, to a law student who drafts claims consistent with the instructions given during the competition.

Sponsor: ABA Submission Deadline: November 11, 2022 Topic: Entries for the Writing Contest must focus on the military’s application of criminal law—also known as military justice. Submissions may advocate a position, educate the reader, or analyze one or more cases.

Sponsor: ABA Taxation Section Submission Deadline: November 7, 2022 Topic: An alternative to traditional moot court competitions, the Law Student Tax Challenge (LSTC) is organized by the Section’s Young Lawyers Form. The LSTC asks two-person teams of students to solve a complex business problem that might arise in everyday tax practice.

Sponsor: American College of Consumer Financial Services Lawyers Submission Deadline: December 1, 2022 Topic: Eligible entries must discuss some aspect of U.S. consumer financial services law. Topics that relate principally to securities regulation, bankruptcy, insurance, or the safety and soundness aspects of banking regulation are not eligible, but works on subjects within these (or other) areas will be considered if they bear directly on U.S. consumer financial services law.

Sponsor: Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law Submission Deadline: December 18, 2022 Topic: Student Writing Competition annually recognizes the best law review note written by a student in the field of sexual orientation and gender identity law.

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Publishing in Law Reviews and Journals

Publishing in law reviews and journals-home, deciding where to publish, article submission services, author rights, sharing and depositing your papers, conferences and symposia, books, articles and other resources, writing competitions, videos of classes and presentations, tutorial and quiz, getting help.

Have you thought about trying to publish in a law review or journal?  This guide contains a variety of resources to help you in that process.  

Submit to DASH, Harvard University's open access repository

If you are a current HLS student, deposit your work in  DASH  (Digital Access to Scholarship at Harvard).

This guide is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License .

You may reproduce any part of it for noncommercial purposes as long as credit is included and it is shared in the same manner. 

Comparing Law Journal Impact Factor/Prestige

Over the years, many ranking systems for law journals have evolved, incorporating a variety of methodologies and factors, including frequency of citation, prominence of author, etc..  Although such rankings can be useful for getting an idea of the prestige or "impact factor" of a journal, they should be taken with a grain of salt and in consideration of other factors that might be important to you.  Ranking of journals is frequently a subject of articles and blog postings.  Play close attention to how the data was compiled---e.g. through database searches, opinions of experts in the field, etc..

Law Journal Submissions and Ranking The Washington & Lee Law School Library produces this site that lists law journals by subject, country and other factors, and allows users to rank journals by impact factor or immediacy index. (Both are based on citation counts more or less, see ranking methodology ). Provides contact and submission information.

Allen Rostron & Nancy Levit,   I nformation for Submitting Articles to Law Reviews & Journals .

Bridget J. Crawford,  Information for Submitting to Online Law Review Companions .

Michael Goodyear,  Information for Submitting Articles to Specialty & Non-Flagship Law Journals .

Nancy Levit et al,  Submission of Law Student Articles for Publication .

Clarivate Journal Citation Reports (Harvard ID and PIN required) Ranks journals in a wide range of disciplines including about 100 law journals. Rankings are based on citation counts in thousands of journals in the sciences and social sciences. From the home page, click Categories , then click  Social Sciences, General.  From the expanded menu, click  Law.

Most Cited Journals on HeinOnline This top 100 list is based on HeinOnline's citator feature called ScholarCheck. You can also use ScholarCheck to create your own metric. They also have a collection of most-cited law journals .

Eigenfactor This system ranks journals as Google ranks websites (mapping relationship structures). The coverage of law is not comprehensive, but it is useful for looking at journals in the context of the social sciences generally.

Google Scholar Metrics Google Scholar provides five-year h-index and h-median numbers for ranking purposes.

Bryce Clayton Newell, Law Journal Meta-Ranking 2023 Edition

Measuring Quality - Writing for and Publishing in Law Reviews (Choosing Where to Submit and Publish)   A great guide compiled by the Gallagher Library at the University of Washington Law School, explaining the most common ranking factors, including important an extensive selection of articles and surveys.

Brian T. Detweiler, May It Please the Court: A Longitudinal Study of Judicial Citation to Academic Legal Periodicals

Accessibility of the Content

Is the journal available in places where scholars will find, and hopefully cite to, its contents? Some considerations include:

Is it open access or freely available? Do you encounter a paywall when trying to read an article's full-text? Check the journal's website for contents and the journal's policy. You can also check the  Directory of Open Access Journals , but the coverage for law is not extensive. 

Is it in Westlaw, Lexis, and other subscription databases? 

Is it indexed by Legaltrac (a.k.a Legal Resource Index)? See title list  (downloads as an Excel file).

Is it indexed by Index to Legal Periodicals and Books? See title list .

Is it included in Tables of Contents Services, such as Current Index to Legal Periodicals? See title list  on HeinOnline (Harvard Key required).

Selected Directories of Law Journals

In addition to Washington and Lee's Law Review Submissions and Ranking website , there are several directories that can be used to find out more information about law journals that are currently being published.

• Ulrich's Periodicals Not specific to law, Ulrich's describes periodicals in all disciplines, worldwide. Most comprehensive source for finding law-related serial publications. Includes newspapers, bar journals, and trades. Usually provides a description, contact information, circulation figures, abstracting and indexing services, and links to publishers' sites. Use Advanced Search to find appropriate journals. At minimum, you may want to limit Country of Publication to United States, Subject to law, Status to Active, and Serial Type to Academic/Scholarly.
• Directory for Successful Publishing in Legal Periodicals Call Number: Reference K 36.J69 1997x A bit out of date but still useful. Covers about 500 major law journals. Describes the journal's particular focus, preferred manuscript style; acceptance rates, details about the review process, and occasionally explains factors in manuscript rejections.

Short-Form Publishing

Many law reviews now have blogs and websites that accept shorter submissions. See Information for Submitting to Online Law Review Companions by Bridget J. Crawford . Washington & Lee also lists selected ones on its   Law Journals: Submissions and Ranking website .

Scholastica

Hls student scholastica funding.

The Harvard Law School subsidizes Scholastica journal submissions for current students with publishable academic work. 

Eligibility

To access this support, you must receive sign-off from your faculty supervisor that your work is ready for submission to law reviews and journals.

Before we activate your account, we ask you to complete a tutorial and quiz about submission strategy. You may also want to set up an appointment with a librarian to discuss strategy and how to select journals for submission. We encourage you to review the  Law Library’s Guide to Publishing in Law Reviews and Journals.

How to Participate

Send a request using your Harvard email to [email protected] . Include or separately forward the approval from your faculty supervisor. Your name must be in the body of the email from your faculty supervisor. 

How it Works

When you contact us, we will send you a link to an online tutorial and quiz. Once you have completed the quiz, and we receive your request and faculty approval,  Library staff will add you to our Scholastica account. Once you acknowledge our invitation, you will be free to begin your submissions. Your account will remain active until you reach your maximum number of submissions or expiration after 10 months past your graduation date, whichever comes first.

Submission Levels

• SJD– up to 50 submissions per academic year during your time at HLS. Unused submissions will roll over to the next year. 
• LLMs – up to 50 submissions  total during your year at HLS.
• JDs – up to 50 submissions total during your three years at HLS.
• Submissions may be used up to 10 months after graduation.

Note:  Please keep track of your journal submissions and notify us when you reach 50, as Scholastica does not limit them automatically. 

JOURNAL POLICIES FOR SUBMISSION

Sherpa Services  is a searchable database of publisher's general policies regarding copyright and the self-archiving of journal articles on the web and in Open Access repositories.  Each entry provides a summary of the publisher's policy, including what version of an article can be deposited, where it can be deposited, and any conditions that are attached to that deposit. 

How You Can Submit an Article

Journals have different policies for receiving submissions.  Your best starting place is to check the journal's website, which usually provides details about its policy.  We have collected on this page some potential resources that you can use for submitting an article.

Learn about Author Rights

If you do get an acceptance for publication, you might be asked to sign an author agreement/contract with the publisher.  Some standard agreements require things such as transferring copyright or prohibiting what you can do with your own work.  See Benjamin J. Keele,  Advising Faculty on Law Journal Publication Agreements  for a brief basic review of terms to consider.

SPARC Author Rights

• Author Rights and the SPARC Author Addendum

Scholar's Copyright Addendum Engine

Hosted by Science Commons, you can enter the article information and choose the rights you want to retain and generate a standard addendum on pdf  to provide for the publisher's consideration.  http://scholars.sciencecommons.org/  

Keep Your Copyrights

Developed by the Kernochan Center for Law, Media, and the Arts and the Program on Law & Technology at Columbia Law School, this website provides a good introduction to author rights and sample publication agreements categorized by level of creator-friendliness.

• https://kernochan.law.columbia.edu/content/keep-your-copyrights

Creative Commons Licenses

Creative Commons (CC)  provides creators with standardized licenses that describe, in plain language, what actions are and are not allowed with their content.

• Read more about the various licenses on the CC website .
• The CC License Chooser tool can help you pick a license that's right for you and your work.

Resources to Learn about Journal Copyright and Self-Archiving Policies

Journal publication agreements vary widely, but there are some resources that help authors get an idea of what a journal's standard policy has typically been.  While the journal publication agreement itself must always be reviewed, looking at these resources at the time of submission can be helpful, particularly if it is important for you to retain certain rights in your work.  Regardless of what a publisher's standard agreement states, you can always try to negotiate different terms. If the publisher is unwilling to budge from its position, you then need to decide how important it is to you to publish in that particular journal.

• Sherpa Services This website lists contains summaries of permissions that are normally given as part of each publisher's agreement.
• Benjamin Keele, Copyright Provisions in Law Journal Publication Agreements
• Dan Hunter, Walled Gardens
• Brian Frye, Christopher Ryan, Franklin Runge, An Empirical Study of Law Journal Copyright Practices

Working papers and self-archiving

Regardless of your plans for formal publication of your work, you are encouraged to deposit your student papers with the university's open access repository, DASH . Doing so will enable you to share your work with other members of the Harvard community, as well as the world at large.  If you are concerned about making your content available open on the Internet, you also have the option of submitting only the metadata (e.g. title, your name). See HLS Student Papers Series in DASH for details.

You might also want to deposit your paper (or its metadata) in SSRN or another working paper repository to associate yourself with the work and make it available for feedback from others in the field.  Scholars frequently make their "working papers" or drafts available for early feedback and reaction from colleagues.

The SSRN Legal Scholarship Network hosts research paper series for academic and other research organizations such as the  Harvard Law School, Public Law & Legal Theory Research Paper Series .  Scholars can publish their work in a large number of law-related e-journals within SSRN's Legal Scholarship Network's four areas including Law  & Economics, Public Law & Legal Theory, Legal Studies and Law Research Center Papers. 

Author Identification

Giving the proper author credit for research is the goal of Open Researcher and Contributor ID ( ORCID ) iDs. ORCID is a non-profit, community-driven, Open Access effort to create a registry of unique researcher identifiers.

“ORCID provides a persistent digital identifier that distinguishes you from every other researcher and, through integration in key research workflows such as manuscript and grant submission, supports automated linkages between you and your professional activities ensuring that your work is recognized.”

You can create a new ORCID or link your existing ORCID using Harvard ORCID Connect , HarvardKey required.

Research Profile Services

• Scholars@Harvard
• Google Scholar Citations
• Academia.edu

Conference Alerts

• Conference Alerts This resource tracks academic conferences worldwide, including ones concerning law. E-mail alerts are available.
• All Conference Alert Lists conferences for a variety of disciplines, including law. Can filter conference list by location and month.

Selected books

Other Guides

• Writing for and Publishing in Law Reviews (Gallagher Law Library, University of Washington School of Law) This very extensive guide covers various aspects of publishing.
• Brian D. Galle, The Law Review Submission Process: A Guide for (and by) the Perplexed
• Scholastica Resources Run by the submission service Scholastica, there are various resources/tips (written from the perspective of a service provider) including their blogs .

Blogs/Current Awareness

• Brian Leiter Law School Reports
• PrawfsBlawg
• Faculty Lounge

HLS also offers many prizes for its students papers generally. See Harvard Law School Writing Prizes for more information.

The American Bar Association (ABA) offers a number of writing competitions for young lawyers and law students, view the full list on their website . 

See also the American University Pence Law Library guide to writing competitions for further resources. 

• Tutorial and quiz to obtain Scholastica account (HarvardKey required)

Contact Us!

  Ask Us!  Submit a question or search our knowledge base.

Chat with us!  Chat   with a librarian (HLS only)

Email: [email protected]

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Hours  Library Hours

Classes  View  Training Calendar  or  Request an Insta-Class

 Text  Ask a Librarian, 617-702-2728

 Call  Reference & Research Services, 617-495-4516

• Last Updated: Jul 19, 2024 4:36 PM
• URL: https://guides.library.harvard.edu/gettingpublished

Harvard University Digital Accessibility Policy

Writing Competitions for Law Students: Intellectual Property Law

• Writing Resources
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• Additional: Awards for Excellence in Legal Writing
• Additional: Opportunities for Law Students to Present Scholarly Work

Sponsors/facilitators of student writing competitions provide more detailed instructions and rules at their websites.  Students need to review the information and rules available at these websites.  

2024 Honorable Frederick E. McKelvey Writing Competition

• Sponsor: American Association of Patent Judges (AAPJ)
• Topic in 2024 Competition was: "Candidates shall submit essays concerning any subject relating to U.S. patent law."
• Format requirements in 2024 Competition included: " The essays must be original works of scholarship, but candidates are welcome to submit essays prepared initially in the context of course work or other academic activities.  Submissions that the AAPJ determines to include content generated by artificial intelligence (AI) will not be considered for any award."  "In terms of suitability for publication in JPTOS, the winning essay must be, in the sole discretion of JPTOS, substantially not duplicative of recent or upcoming articles, as well as fit within JPTOS’s normal subject matter areas of publication.  Further, the winning essay must comply with JPTOS’s publication quality standards including, but not limited to, being an original work.  Terms and conditions of JPTOS’s article publication can be found at  www.jptos.org ."
• Eligibility requirements in 2024 Competition included: " The  McKelvey  Competition is open to any student pursuing study in law, policy, management, or any related field, that impacts technology.  In order to be eligible, candidates must be enrolled in a graduate degree program for at least one term during the 2023-24 academic year."
• Prizes in 2024 Competition were: " The first-place essay will be published in the  Journal of the Patent and Trademark Office Society  (JPTOS) (subject to editorial discretion and review, as explained below) and the author will receive an award and $1,000. The author of the runner-up essay will receive an award and $500."
• Deadline for submission in 2024 Competition was: July 1, 2024.

Honorable William C. Conner Writing Competition (annual)

• Sponsor: New York Intellectual Property Law Association
• Topic in 2024 Competition was: " An entry must be directed to any of the following subject areas of intellectual property, i.e., patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, and unfair trade practices, as well as antitrust and data security/privacy issues to the extent they relate to intellectual property."
• Format in 2024 Competition was: "There is a twenty (20) page maximum limit for all entries, including footnotes, but excluding the cover page or table of contents."
• Eligibility requirements in 2024 Competition included: "All entrants must be law school students currently enrolled in a J.D. or LL.M. program (day or evening) in an accredited law school in the United States with an expected graduation date after March 3, 2024."
• Prizes in 2024 Competition were: " The winner will receive a cash award of $2,500.00 and a plaque at the NYIPLA Annual Meeting and Dinner to be held in New York City on May 8, 2024 at the Union League Club in New York City. The runner-up will receive a cash award of $1,500.00 and a plaque at the Annual Meeting and Dinner. The winning paper will be considered for publication by the NYIPLA. The winner and runner-up are invited and encouraged to attend the Annual Meeting and Dinner."  "All contestants who provide entries that meet the requirements and rules above and which exceed 15 pages (excluding any cover page and table of contents) will be provided a complimentary one-year student membership to the NYIPLA, commencing on May 1, 2024."
• Deadline for submission in 2024 Competition was: March 3, 2024.

2024 George Hutchinson Writing Competition (annual)

• Sponsor: Federal Circuit Bar Association
• Topic in 2024 Competition was: "Papers must deal with a topic that lies within the substance, procedure, or scope of the specialized jurisdiction of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit."  See: United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit: Court Jurisdiction .   (This Court's jurisdiction includes these subject areas: patents and trademarks.) 
• Format requirements in 2024 Competition included: "Papers are typically about 20-30 pages in length. Papers shall not exceed 50 pages, including footnotes."
• Eligibility requirements in 2024 Competition included : "Students enrolled for the 2023/2024 school year in any law school accredited by the American Bar Association are eligible to enter.  Pre-registration is not necessary.  Submission of a paper in accordance with these rules constitutes registration."  "Submission of a paper grants the FCBA the right to consider publication of the paper in the Federal Circuit Bar Journal . Previously published submissions will not be accepted. The FCBA reserves the right to publish the paper first, at which point the author may proceed with publication elsewhere.  Failure of the student to preserve this grant may result in disqualification."
• Prizes in 2024 Competition were : "A cash prize of at least three thousand dollars ($3,000.00) will be awarded for the entry deemed by the judges to be the best entry that merits the award.  Second and third place cash prizes may also be awarded at the judges' discretion.  Winners will be publicly announced at the FCBA’s November 2024 Annual Dinner in Washington, D.C. The prize-winning paper may be considered for publication in the Federal Circuit Bar Journal ."
• Deadlines for submission in 2024 Competition was: July 1, 2024.

Ladas Memorial Award Competition (annual) [trademark law]

• Sponsor: International Trademark Association (INTA)
• Topic: "[A] paper on trademark law or a matter that directly relates to or affects trademarks."
• Eligibility requirements in 2023 Competition included: " Categories: Student: Eligible students must be enrolled as either full- or part-time law or graduate students.   For students outside of the United States, university enrollment is acceptable."
• Prizes in the student category of the 2023 Competition (closed) were : "Two student winners will each receive U.S. $1,250 and a complimentary registration to the 2023 Annual Meeting....The winning papers will be considered for publication in The Trademark Reporter , INTA’s legal journal."
• Deadline: "2024 Ladas Memorial Award: We’re currently finalizing the details for this year’s highly anticipated event...."  Feb. 23, 2024: Sent email request to join mailing list for notification about competition launch and important dates.

Law Student Intellectual Property Legal Research and Brief Writing Competition (Litigation Focused)

• Sponsor: Brooks Kushman
• Topic of, and Eligibility requirements in, 2024 Competition were: "A competition open to any law student interested in intellectual property litigation, in good standing and currently enrolled in an ABA-accredited law school, and who is a citizen or legal permanent resident of the United States."
• Format in 2024 Competition was: To declare an intent to participate, a prospective entrant needed to email their resume to [email protected] by 11 PM Eastern, Thursday, February 15, 2024.  At 11 AM Eastern, Saturday, February 17, 2024, Brooks Kushman emailed information about the Competition tasks and instructions to the email address identified in the entrant’s resume.  Access to tools such as LexisNexis or Westlaw was necessary for a part of the Competition.  By 11 AM Eastern, Sunday, February 18, 2024, the entrant needed to email to [email protected] documents containing the results of their legal research and their legal briefs.
• Prize(s) in 2024 Competition were: Guidelines and Criteria for the Feb. 17, 2024 competition (closed) stated: "Law Student Winners: First Place: The first-place award is a $2,500 honorarium, and an interview with the Brooks Kushman hiring team.  Runner(s)-Up: Runners-up may be named at the discretion of Brooks Kushman and may be interviewed by the Brooks Kushman hiring team."
• Deadline to declare an intent to participate in this competition was: February 15, 2024.

Law Student Patent Claims Drafting Competition (Patent Prosecution Focused)

• Topic of, and Eligibility requirements in, 2024 Competition were: "[A] claim drafting competition open to any law student in good standing and currently enrolled in an ABA-accredited law school, who is eligible to sit for (or has already passed) the Patent Bar, and is a citizen or legal permanent resident of the United States."
• Format in 2024 Competition was: To declare an intent to participate, a prospective entrant needed to email their resume to [email protected] by 11 PM Eastern, Thursday, February 22nd, 2024.  At 11 AM Eastern, Saturday, February 24th, 2024, Brooks Kushman emailed information about a hypothetical invention, related prior art, and corresponding instructions to the email address identified in the entrant’s resume.  By 3:30 PM Eastern, Saturday, February 24th, 2024, the entrant needed to email to [email protected] a pdf document containing their claim set drafted in accordance with the hypothetical invention, related prior art, and corresponding instructions.  (The competition lasted 4.5 hours.) 
• Note: Brooks Kushman stated in the 2024 Guidelines and Criteria : "So that entrants having different technical backgrounds can all compete, the hypothetical invention and related prior art will represent relatively simple mechanical technology that should not require any specialized background to grasp."
• Prize(s) in 2024 Competition were: "First Place: The first-place award is a $2,500 honorarium, and an interview with the Brooks Kushman hiring team.  Runner(s)-Up: Runners-up may be named at the discretion of Brooks Kushman and may be interviewed by the Brooks Kushman hiring team."
• Deadline to declare an intent to participate in this competition was: February 22, 2024.

National Patent Application Drafting Competition (annual) + announcement: 2025 National Patent Application Drafting Competition

• Sponsor: United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)
• Topic: "The competition introduces students to issues arising in U.S. patent law and develops their patent application drafting skills."
• 2025 National Patent Application Drafting Competition  states: "The Competition provides participants an opportunity to develop patent prosecution skills by applying legal principles to a hypothetical invention scenario.  Each team will complete a search pertaining to the Invention Statement, draft a utility patent application, and defend their decisions before a panel of judges comprising United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) executives/personnel, patent practitioners, academicians, and/or special guest judges from the IP community.  Successful teams will demonstrate an ability to draft a patent specification and claims that are both patentable over the prior art and valuable, in terms of breadth of the claims and other considerations relating to post-issuance enforcement of the patent.  The Competition consists of five Regional Rounds to be held virtually in early 2025 and a National Finals Round to be held in-person at USPTO headquarters in Alexandria, Virginia.  Regional Rounds include up to 75 teams divided among five regions.  The winner from each region will be invited to compete in the National Finals before a panel of senior USPTO officials and other esteemed judges."
• Note about 2024 Competition process stated: "[T]he team's coach must register individually and include the school's name.  Once they complete their registration, the team is assigned a specific team registration link that is emailed to the coach.  The team's coach must then provide that team's registration link to the student competitors in order to complete the registration for the entire team.  Each competitor and coach will have a unique login to the competition webpage." 
• Format in 2024 Competition was: "The Competition is open to teams comprised of two to four law school students and one coach."  " A law school is normally represented by one team, defined as the first team to submit a complete application for registration."
• a. the student has not been admitted or licensed to practice law in the United States; b. the student, if a registered patent practitioner (i.e., a patent agent), has a patent registration number issued on or after January 1, 2021; c. the student is enrolled at the institution during the 2023-2024 academic year; and d. the student is not currently an employee of the USPTO."
• Tentative deadlines for 2025 Competition : Team Registration opens on September 2, 2024 and closes on October 12, 2024.   "There is no entry fee for the Competition."

Robert C. Watson Award (annual)

• Sponsor: American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA)
• Topic in 2024 was: " [Law] [s]tudents are encouraged to submit articles on a subject relating to the protection of intellectual property."
• Format requirements in 2024 included: "Papers should be approximately the equivalent of 10 law review pages, including footnotes (30 - 40 pages typed copy)."
• Eligibility requirements in 2024 stated: "To be eligible for consideration, the article must have been written solely by a student or students either in full-time attendance at a law school (day or evening) or prepared in connection with a law school course." "Judges consider the merit of the article as a contribution to the knowledge respecting intellectual property and the extent to which it displays original and creative thought or information not previously written or published by an author."
• Prize in 2024 was: "The winner will receive reasonable expense reimbursement to attend the AIPLA Annual Meeting, October 24 – 26, 2024 in Washington DC, to receive their award."
• Deadline for submission in 2024 was: June 30, 2024.

Sterne Kessler IP Law Writing Competition

• Sponsor: Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox
• Topic in 2023 Competition was: Intellectual property law.
• Format in 2023 Competition was: " Students should prepare an original two-part essay: Part I (less than 300 words): Prepare a short personal statement, including at least one motivating factor for you in choosing to pursue a career in intellectual property law.  Part II (400-800 words): Choose a recent U.S. Federal Circuit decision (within the last two years) and discuss its immediate and/or potential impact on intellectual property law."
• Fall 2023 semester law school transcript (unofficial copies accepted)
• Original two-part essay"
• Prizes in 2023 Competition were: "We will announce three winners and prizes include $10,000 to 1st place, $5,000 to 2nd place, and $2,500 to 3rd place.  All three winners will receive guaranteed interviews for a Summer Associate or other appropriate position."
• Deadline for 2023 Competition was: January 31, 2024.
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• Last Updated: Jul 16, 2024 4:57 AM
• URL: https://guides.brooklaw.edu/writing_competitions

Legal Writing Competitions: By Due Date

• By Due Date
• Additional Resources

Legal Writing Competitions

Legal writing competitions are a great way to earn recognition, get your work published, and even earn cash! The Legal Research Center has compiled a list of legal writing competitions, which you can browse by topic or by deadline month.

Some competitions require you to compose a new paper, while others call for the submission of a recently published paper, such as a law review article. Need help developing a topic? See our guides on  Developing a Topic for Research Papers and  Law Review Resources for more information.

This list is updated as new information is received, but note that deadlines and writing topics often change from year to year. Make sure to check each link for the most up-to-date information.

Writing Competitions: By Due Date

• Grammy Entertainment Law Initiative Student Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $10,000 tuition-based scholarship, tickets to GRAMMY Awards Topic: Legal issues facing the music industry
• Harvard Journal of Law & Technology (JOLT) Student Note Competition Deadline: June 9, 2023 Prize: $1700 Topic: Topics may include, but are not limited to, cybercrime, biotechnology, space law, entertainment and news media, comparative legal approaches to intellectual property, the law of the Internet, and technology in the public interest.
• Asian Pacific American Bar Association Educational Fund Robert T. Matsui Annual Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 ; contact [email protected] Prize: $5,000 Topic: Submissions should address a legal topic of importance to the Asian Pacific American community. Eligibility: The Competition is open to all law students and anyone who graduated from law school within the last five years (i.e., 2018 or later) in the United States.
• NYIPLA Honorable William Conner Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $1,500 Topic: An entry must be directed to any of the following subject areas related to intellectual property, i.e., patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, unfair trade practices, antitrust, and data security/privacy issues. Eligibility: All entrants must be law school students currently enrolled in a J.D. or LL.M. program (day or evening) in an accredited law school in the United States.
• International Refugee Law Student Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $100 Topic: Papers may address any topic related to international law and refugees, stateless persons, internally-displaced persons (IDPs), and/or forced migrants. Eligibility: Student authors must be enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate degree program at an accredited university at the time of submission.
• University of Pennsylvania Law Review Dorothy E. Roberts Public Interest Essay Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $1,000 cash prize; $5,000 grant to support public interest work or the work of a non-profit organization or pro bono clinic Topic: Submissions must focus on a specific legal issue within the realm of public interest law, including any issue relating to social justice or advancing the general welfare and good of the public. In addition, the author must include a brief grant proposal for $5,000 to support public interest work related to the essay topic. Topics can be local, state, national, or international in breadth or impact. Eligibility: The competition is open to all current law students (Classes of 2023, 2024, and 2025) from any ABA-accredited American law school as well as recent graduates of such institutions from the classes of 2015 – 2022. Submissions are limited to one per person and must be an original, unpublished academic essay.
• Brooks Kushman Law Student Intellectual Property Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $5,000 Topic: Trademark or patent law Eligibility: Open to any law student in good standing and currently enrolled in an ABA-accredited law school, and who is a citizen or legal permanent resident of the United States.
• ABA Business Law Section Mendes Hershman Writing Contest Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $1,000 Topic: "Business Law" is a broad category. Without attempting to define the area precisely, the subject is intended to include matters within law school curricula in courses entitled: Eligibility: Author of the paper must be a student enrolled in an ABA-accredited law school’s J.D. program, in good standing, at the time of submission more... less... Agency; Bankruptcy; Business Law; Business Organizations; Commercial Law; Consumer Law Contracts; Corporate Finance; Corporate Governance; Corporations; Creditors Rights; Employment Law; Financial Institutions; Insurance Law; Oil and Gas Law; Professional Responsibility; Remedies; Secured Transactions; Securities Regulations; Uniform Commercial Code
• Academy on Human Rights and Humanitarian Law Human Rights Essay Award Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: A scholarship to cover tuition for the Program of Advanced Studies in Human Rights and Humanitarian Law for either the Diploma or Certificate of Attendance options Notes: Essay Award Topic for 2023: Equality and Human Rights: Confronting Racial Discrimination Eligibility: Applicants for the Award must hold a law degree and have a demonstrated experience or interest in international human rights law.

Typically Held in January

These competitions have been held in January in prior academic years. Check each link for the latest information.

• National Native American Law Students Association Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Topic: All students are encouraged to submit scholarly articles between twenty (20) and fifty (50) pages, either individually or jointly with other students, about Native American legal issues. Eligibility: Competitors must be active, dues-paying members of National NALSA.
• American Society of Legal Writers Scribes Law-Review Award Deadline: January 15, 2023 Notes: Since 1987, Scribes has presented an annual award for the best student-written article in a law review or journal. The Scribes Law-Review Award is presented at the Scribes annual CLE, which is usually held in April.
• Louis Jackson Memorial National Student Writing Competition in Employment and Labor Law Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $3,000 Topic: Employment and labor law
• American College of Legal Medicine Student Writing Competition Deadline: January 28, 2022 Eligibility: All students studying Medicine, Law, Dentistry, Podiatry, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Science, Healthcare Administration or Public Health are encouraged to compete.
• Center for Alcohol Policy National Essay Contest Deadline: January 28, 2022 Prize: $5,000 Topic: After Prohibition, states generally issued licenses for on-premise and off-premise sale of alcohol. Drinking was thus largely confined to bars, restaurants, the home, and private clubs. Alcohol is now regularly offered in places like salons, grocery stores, clothing stores, and galleries. Is this trend towards ubiquitous availability of alcohol a good one? And is there a new regulatory regime needed to address this trend?
• ABA Section of Antitrust Law Robert Pitofsky Law Student Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $2,500 Topic: Antitrust or consumer protection law Eligibility: Open to any law school student in good standing, over the age of 21, who is currently attending an ABA-accredited law school within the United States and its possessions, and who is a citizen or legal permanent resident of the United States. Entrants must submit an original article, which has already been published or which is scheduled to be published.
• ABA Antitrust Law Section Harvey Saferstein Consumer Protection Essay Contest Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $5,000 Topic: Consumer protection law
• Federal Bar Association Donald C. Alexander Tax Law Writing Competition Deadline: January 31, 2022 Prize: $2,000 Topic: Federal taxation
• International Trademark Association Ladas Memorial Award Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $1,250 Topic: Subject of the paper must be trademark law or a matter that directly relates to, or affects, trademarks. Eligibility: Eligible students must be enrolled as either full- or part-time law or graduate students. Eligible papers may include both original unpublished manuscripts and published articles that are submitted to INTA by the submission deadline.
• Baxter Family Competition on Federalism Deadline: TBA for 2025 Prize: $5,000 (CAD) Topic: Federalism: What makes it work (or not!). This broad theme welcomes reflections about the institutional, political and cultural elements that explain successes and failures of federalism, whether small scale or at the macro level. We particularly welcome analyses which explore the potential and pitfalls of cooperative federalism. Cooperative angles are especially encouraged. Eligibility: All undergraduate or graduate students in law or political science students, as well as junior scholars, lawyers or practitioners who graduated in these disciplines with five (5) years of working experience or less, from anywhere around the world.
• Georgetown Institute of International Economic Law Greenwald Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $2,500 Topic: Current issues relevant to international trade law, the jurisprudence of the WTO or regional trade organizations, jurisprudence concerning U.S. trade organizations, an issue relating to the political economy or the efficacy of U.S. or international trade regimes. Eligibility: JD, LLM, and SJD students
• American Constitution Society Constance Baker Motley National Student Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $3,000 Topic: ACS welcomes all student papers furthering and promoting a progressive vision of the Constitution, law, and public policy. Entrants are encouraged to view this topic broadly, and we welcome submissions on a variety of substantive areas. Examples of possible topics include: census report, civil legal aid, civil liberties, constitutional convention, consumer rights, criminal justice, disability rights, freedom of speech, immigration, indigent defense, money in politics (including judicial elections), labor law, LGBTQ+ rights, privacy, protection of health, safety, and the environment, racial equality, religion, role of state attorneys general, second amendment and guns, separation of powers and federalism, women’s reproductive rights and reproductive freedom, voting and political process, and whistleblower protection. Eligibility: The competition is open to all law students who are current, dues-paying ACS National members.
• American Constitution Society Richard D. Cudahy Writing Competition on Regulatory and Administrative Law Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $1,500 Notes: Submissions should be focused on American regulatory or administrative law, broadly construed. Appropriate subjects include empirical or comparative analyses of the effectiveness of specific regulatory regimes or deregulation; doctrinal investigations of the development of administrative law rules or principles by courts and administrative agencies and the effects of that development; and normative analyses of how particular regulatory or administrative regimes or deregulation advance or fail to advance values of fairness, participation, and transparency. Eligibility: The competition is open to all lawyers and law students. Practicing lawyers, policymakers, academics, and law students all are encouraged to participate. To be considered for the law student category the author(s) must be currently enrolled in a J.D. or LLM program at a U.S. law school.

March Competitions with February Registration Deadlines

Paper submissions for these competitions are due in March, but registration is required and due in February.

• American College of Coverage Counsel Insurance Law Writing Competition Registration Deadline: TBA for 2024 Submission Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $2,000 Topic: This year’s writing competition asks students to choose one of two sides in a case involving an insurance company and a Texas based business in preparing a motion for partial summary judgment on a specific set of grounds as presented by each party.
• Roy Snell Health Care Regulatory and Compliance Writing Competition Registration Deadline: TBA for 2024 Submission Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $5,000 Notes: In keeping with Roy Snell’s keen interest in practical, realistic, and user-centered communication, as well as a commitment to efficiency and clarity in writing, this demanding competition requires students to analyze a hypothetical fact pattern (the Competition Problem) involving an organization facing multifaceted health care regulatory/compliance matters and draft two separate internal memoranda to two different recipients within the organization. Students must analyze the facts presented, identify any and all regulatory/compliance concerns, and advise the recipient of the memorandum. Eligibility: The competition is open to all full and part-time law students in J.D. programs who have completed their 1L year. The competition is also open to any student currently enrolled in a Compliance Certification Board (CCB) accredited program.

Typically Held in February

These competitions have been held in February in prior academic years. Check each link for the latest information.

• Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts Law Student Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $5,000 Topic: Open to 2L and 3L students at any Pennsylvania law school and Rutgers Law. Topic: Under the existing rules of judicial conduct, how might Pennsylvania's courts utilize current communication tools, such as social media, to engage the people of Pennsylvania to instill confidence in the workings of the judicial branch and its decisions?
• ABA Standing Committee on Lawyers’ Professional Liability Ed Mendrzycki Essay Contest Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $5,000 Topic: This year's hypothetical involves multiple ethical and professional liability concerns that arise when a partner in a law firm is retained to represent a client in several business and real estate matters regarding a series of land acquisitions, and the law firm is contacted by the Department of Justice to assist in the investigation of potential money laundering allegations against the client.
• ABA Antitrust Law Section Privacy and Information Security Committee Data Privacy and Cybersecurity Writing Competition Deadline: February 24, 2024 Prize: $5,000 Topic: Participants are required to submit an original written work on data privacy or cybersecurity law. Eligibility: Contestants need not be a member of the American Bar Association (“ABA”), the Antitrust Law Section ("Section") or the Privacy and Information Security Committee ("Committee") although membership in all is encouraged.
• Epstein Becker Green Health Law Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $4,000 Topic: Papers may address any traditional area of the law as applied to health care (e.g., antitrust, tax, corporate) or areas of law unique to health care (e.g., fraud and abuse, managed care, Medicare/Medicaid, clinical trials, telehealth/telemedicine).
• American Indian Law Review National Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $1,500 Topic: Any legal issue specifically concerning American Indians or other indigenous peoples. Eligibility: The competition is open to students enrolled in J.D. or graduate law programs at accredited law schools in the United States and Canada as of the competition deadline of Monday, Feb. 28, 2022.
• Sports Lawyers Association Student Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $5,000 Notes: Each entrant must be a current law or LLM student and 18 years of age or older, and a member in good standing of the Sports Lawyers Association.
• Society of International Economic Law/JIEL/OUP Essay Prize Deadline: February 28, 2022 Prize: £200, as well as £400 of Oxford University Press book vouchers Topic: Any topic in the field of international economic law
• ABA Forum on Affordable Housing and Community Development Law Student Legal Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $1,000 Topic: Entries should address any legal issue regarding affordable housing, fair housing and/or community development law. Eligibility: Open to all law students who are at the time of entry, (a) enrolled in a law school that is at the time of entry, ABA Accredited, (b) member of the ABA and the Forum, (c) at least 21 years old, and (d) U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents.
• Transnational Law & Contemporary Problems Trandafir Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $2,000 Topic: Any contemporary international business or economic concern. Recent winning submissions have included such topics as recommendations the United States should follow to update its privacy laws to harmonize with international general data protection regulation commitments, why international labor organizations should adopt fair trade as an enforcement mechanism to end labor violations, and why the United States Treasury should wait for Congress to end corporate tax sheltering tactics. Eligibility: All students currently enrolled in law or graduate degree programs.

Typically Held in March

These competitions have been held in March in prior academic years. Check each link for the latest information.

• Access To Justice Tech Fellows Legal Tech Fictional Writing Competition Deadline: March 1, 2022 Prize: $1,000 Topic: We’re seeking short fictional stories (1,500 words or less) about how technology is or will impact the legal field and access to justice. The stories are not meant to be academic articles designed for publication in a journal but rather an easily read work of fiction. The topic is fairly broad and can encompass any aspect of the interaction between the law and technological innovation.
• Judge Samuel G. DeSimone Legal Writing Competition Deadline: March 1, 2022 Prize: $3,000.00 Topic: “Given the sweeping ‘Me Too’ movement throughout the nation, should other states join New Jersey and adopt laws similar to S477/A3648, by expanding the two-year civil statute of limitations to seven years for all victims of sex assault, and make the expansion retroactive? Eligibility: The Judge Samuel G. DeSimone Legal Writing Competition is open to full-time and part-time law students who are enrolled in the 2021-2022 academic year in an accredited Law School, who reside in Southern New Jersey.
• Institute for Energy Law Hartrick Scholar Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $2,500 Topic: Any topic related to energy development. This includes, for example, topics concerning oil and gas law, alternative energy resources, energy regulation, and environmental regulation of the energy industries.
• Center for Legal & Court Technology Artificial Intelligence Writing Competition Deadline: March 1, 2022 Prize: $2,500 Topic: Papers must focus on at least one application of these technologies (e.g., Internet of Medical Things devices, facial recognition technology, autonomous systems, social media monitoring, etc.)
• Notre Dame Law School Program on Church, State & Society Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $3,000 Topic: Papers should be focused, broadly, on topics related to church, state & society. For guidance on selecting a topic, students may wish to view our Program website and mission statement: https://churchstate.nd.edu/
• White River Environmental Law Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $1,000 Topic: Any relevant topic in the fields of environmental law, natural resource law, energy law, environmental justice, land use law, animal law, and agricultural law. Eligibility: Current J.D. or LLM students at any ABA-accredited law school.
• Freedom From Religion Foundation Cornelius Vanderbroek Memorial Essay Competition Deadline: June 1, 2023 Prize: $3,500 Topic: As the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines has become vital to the global effort to end the pandemic, both government and private employers, as well as some schools, around the country have announced vaccine mandates. Historically, very few employees have claimed religious exemptions from required vaccinations. However, people who oppose COVID-19 vaccines for political or other reasons are now abusing religious exemptions in order to flout vaccine mandates. Against this backdrop lawsuits have surged, challenging vaccine requirements on religious grounds and arguing that religious exemptions to such requirements are required by the First Amendment. Craft an argument that religious exemptions from vaccine requirements are not legally required, addressing constitutional questions as well as other legal issues raised by such mandates.
• Berkeley Technology Law Journal Writing Competition Deadline: March 28, 2022 Prize: $1,000 Topic: A wide variety of topics at the intersection of law and technology, including but not limited to: technology and the public interest, privacy, internet law, intellectual property, antitrust, First Amendment issues, entertainment and news media, telecommunications, biotechnology, and cybercrime. Eligibility: The competition is open to all currently enrolled graduate-level law students (including J.D., L.L.M., and J.S.D. candidates, along with law students outside of the United States).
• ABA Section of Family Law Howard C. Schwab Memorial Essay Contest Registration Deadline: TBA for 2024 Submission Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $1,500.00 Topic: The subject may be any aspect of family law. Eligibility: Contestants must be J.D. students at ABA-approved law schools who are: second or third-year full-time students; second through fourth-year part-time students; or first-year students enrolled in schools where the subject of family law is part of the first-year curriculum; and citizens or legal permanent residents of the U.S. more... less... The primary focus of each essay should be an issue of law, although some interdisciplinary material may be useful in addressing a legal issue. Family law includes dissolution of marriage and other intimate relationships, relationships of persons of the same sex, parentage, custody, child support, division of property, alimony (maintenance), attorney's fees, adoption, dependency, termination of parental rights, rights pertaining to procreation, and alternative dispute resolution of Family Law issues. Family Law generally does not include Juvenile Justice, Probate, Labor, Immigration Law, and sociology topics unless those topics are related to more traditional Family Law subjects.

Typically Held in April

These competitions have been held in April in prior academic years. Check each link for the latest information.

• American Kennel Club Companion Animal Law Writing Contest Deadline: April 1, 2022 Prize: $2,500 Topic: Students are asked to choose between two topics: The impact of “lawyers for dogs” laws on animal cruelty cases or the constitutionality of mandatory spay/neuter laws. Eligibility: Entrants must be enrolled at an ABA-accredited law school in the United States.
• ABA Standing Committee on Armed Forces Law Keithe E. Nelson Distinguished Service Award Deadline: TBA for 2024 Topic: Military law or the status of lawyers in the Armed Forces
• UIC John Marshall Law School Center for Tax Law & Employee Benefits Paul Faherty Tax Law Writing Scholarship Deadline: April 13, 2021 Prize: $3,000 Notes: Please contact the Center for Tax Law & Employee Benefits for additional information.
• ABA Admiralty and Maritime Law Committee Law Student Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $1,000 Topic: Recent developments in admiralty and maritime law Eligibility: The Competition is open to any U.S. citizen law student or LLM candidate over the age of 21, currently attending an ABA-accredited law school within the United States and its possessions.
• Marshall M. Schulman Annual Competition for Student Papers in Criminal Law and/or Criminal Procedure Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $1,500 Topic: Criminal law and/or to criminal procedure, with a particular focus on contemporary issues of concern in the State of California Eligibility: This is a nationwide competition; while the focus is on California law, past winners have included students attending schools across the country.
• Pennsylvania Bar Association Intellectual Property Law Section Writing Contest Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $500 Topic: Patents, copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets or trade dress Eligibility: Open to all law students enrolled in any law school in the United States who intend to take the Pennsylvania bar exam.
• American University Washington College of Law National Health Law Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $2,000 Topic: Papers must address and analyze health law and/or food/drug/device law issues. (Note that a paper that analyzes intellectual property or environmental laws/statutes, even if relating to health or the health care industry, will not be eligible.) Eligibility: Current 2L, 3L, and 4L (evening/part-time) JD and LLM students enrolled in a U.S. law school at the time of paper submission are eligible to participate.
• Public Citizen Law Hogan/Smoger Access to Justice Essay Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $5,000 Topic: Legal Remedies to Combat Climate Change
• National Association of Chapter 13 Trustees Law Student Writing Competition Deadline: April 30, 2021 Prize: $1,000 Topic: Chapter 13 of the Bankruptcy Code
• AALL/LexisNexis Call For Papers Awards (Student Division) Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $650 Topic: A paper may address any subject relevant to law librarianship. It may be scholarly or practical in substance and tone, but the subject should be explored in depth with appropriate reference to sources and documentation of assertions. Eligibility: Those enrolled in library school, information management school or the equivalent, or in law school, during the Fall 2022 or Spring 2023 semester. Entrants in the Student Division need not be members of AALL.
• ABA Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Student Writing Contest Deadline: May 31, 2023 Prize: $2,500 Topic: Real property, trust and estate law.* Eligibility: Open to any law school student in good standing, over the age of 21, who is currently attending an ABA-accredited law school within the United States and its possessions, and who is a citizen or legal permanent resident of the United States. more... less... *“Real property, trust and estate law” is a broad category containing numerous practice disciplines. Without attempting to define the area precisely, the subject is intended to include matters within law school curricula in courses entitled: Property; Estate and Gift Tax; Wills and Decedents’ Estates; Real Estate Development; Environmental Law; Land Use Planning; Federal Taxation; Real Estate Finance; Secured Transactions; Debtors and Creditors; Employee Benefit Plans; Planning, Drafting and Negotiating Commercial Transactions; Taxation and Regulation of Non-Profit Organizations; Business Succession Planning; Life Insurance and Other Insurance Products; Trusts and Trust Law; Wealth Management; Fiduciary Income Taxation; Estate Planning; and Probate and Estate Administration.

Typically Held in May

These competitions have been held in May in prior academic years. Check each link for the latest information.

• UNIDROIT Essay Competition Deadline: May 1, 2022 Prize: 2,500 € Topic: Any relevant current or future UNIDROIT instrument(s) such as the UNIDROIT Principles on International Commercial Contracts, the Cape Town Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment and its Protocols, the 1995 UNIDROIT Convention on Stolen or Illegally Exported Cultural Objects, the UNIDROIT-FAO-IFAD Legal Guides on Contract Farming, and/or Agricultural Land Investment Contracts, among others.
• Chief Justice John B. Doolin Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $1,000 Eligibility: Open to any student enrolled in college, at any level.
• National Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Bar Association Michael Greenberg Student Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $500 Topic: Legal issues affecting LGBTQ+ persons.
• AALL Morris L. Cohen Student Essay Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $500 Topic: Essays may be on any topic related to legal history, rare law books, or legal archives.
• National Crime Victim Law Institute Annual Law Student Victims’ Rights Writing Competition Deadline: May 20, 2024 Prize: $200 Topic: Victims’ rights (preference given to papers focusing on rights enforcement in the context of criminal justice systems) Eligibility: Authors/presenters must be enrolled in an ABA-accredited law school at the date of their submission or have graduated from such a school within the last 18 months.
• IDEA Student IP Writing Competition Deadline: May 28, 2021 Prize: $500 Topic: Intellectual property law
• ABA Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources Writing Competitions Deadline: May 31, 2023 Prize: $1,000 Topic: See link for details of eight separate writing competitions: Endangered Species, Energy Law, Forest Law, International Environmental and Resources Law, Native American Resources, Public Land and Resources, Superfund, Brownfields, and Resource Recovery, and Water Law
• American Association of Patent Judges Hon. Frederick E. McKelvey Memorial Scholarship Deadline: June 30, 2023 Prize: $500 Topic: For this year’s entry, an entrant must identify ways patents “promote the progress of … useful arts” (Const.; Art. I, Sec. 8, Cl. 8) and explain how the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) can encourage that. In your answer, please define “useful arts.” Eligibility: Students matriculated at and attending an ABA-accredited law school at least half-time as of February 28, 2022, are eligible to submit an entry for this competition.
• International Insolvency Institute Prize in International Insolvency Studies Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $3,000 Topic: Topics of international insolvency and restructuring significance and comparative international analysis of domestic insolvency and restructuring issues and developments. Eligibility: The Prize Competition is open to full and part-time undergraduate and graduate students and to practitioners in practice for nine years or less. Entries must not have been published.
• Judge John R. Brown Award for Excellence in Legal Writing Deadline: May 31, 2023 Prize: Up to $15,000 Eligibility: Any law student currently enrolled in an accredited law school in the United States seeking a J.D. or LL.B degree is eligible to submit a paper for the Award. The article must be accompanied by a letter of recommendation from a law school faculty member or legal professional other than the author of the paper.
• Georgetown Law Technology Student Writing Competition Deadline: May 31, 2023 Prize: $4,000 Topic: This year’s writing competition invites submissions on Personal Information, Power, and the Intersection of Technology and Society. Submitted papers should in some way address data-driven or data-intensive technologies. See link for further details and examples of potential topics. Eligibility: Papers will be accepted from students enrolled at any ABA-accredited law school in the United States during the 2021-2022 academic year. The paper must be the author’s own work, although students may incorporate feedback received as part of an academic course or supervised writing project. The paper must not have been published or committed for publication in another journal.
• Tax Notes Student Writing Competition Deadline: June 30, 2023 Topic: Submissions should focus on an unsettled question in federal, state, or international tax law or policy. Eligibility: The competition is open to any student currently enrolled in a law, business, or public policy program. Each student may submit only one paper. Co-authored papers will be accepted.

Typically Held in June

These competitions have been held in June in prior academic years. Check each link for the latest information.

• American College of Employee Benefits Counsel Writing Contest Deadline: June 1, 2023 Prize: $1,800 Topic: Employee benefits legal topics Eligibility: Any J.D. and graduate (L.L.M. or S.J.D.) law students enrolled at any time between August 15, 2021, and August 15, 2022, who have not at any time engaged in the practice of law.
• American Society of Law, Medicine & Ethics Health Law and Anti-Racism Graduate Student Writing Competition Deadline: July 1, 2023 Prize: $500 Topic: Note that a wide variety of topics will be viewed as in scope, but papers must focus specifically on health law in the context of anti-racism. If you have questions about the suitability of your topic, please ask.
• Notre Dame Smith-Doheny Legal Ethics Writing Competition Deadline: June 1, 2022 Prize: $2,500 Topic: Any issue within the general category of legal ethics. Eligibility: Open to all law students at U.S. and Canadian law schools.
• CITBA/University of Miami School of Law Andrew P. Vance Memorial Writing Competition Deadline: June 3, 2022 Prize: $1,000 Topic: Current issues relevant to customs and international trade law. Eligibility: Entrants must be currently enrolled in a J.D. or L.L.M. program at any of the nation’s law schools.
• ABA Commission on Disability Rights Adam A. Milani Writing Competition Deadline: June 9, 2023 Prize: Up to $1,000 Topic: The submission may address any aspect of disability law, theory, or practice the contestant chooses. Other permissible topics include issues arising under any of the following statutes: Civil Rights Act of 1964; Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972; Age Discrimination in Employment Act; Family and Medical Leave Act; or any state statutes or municipal ordinances prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Eligibility: The competition is open to all students who attend a law school in the United States. Full-time students who are not law students but who write law-related papers as part of a course at an American law school are also eligible.
• Food and Drug Law Institute H. Thomas Austern Writing Competition Deadline: June 12, 2023 Prize: $750 Topic: Current legal issues concerning food, drugs, animal drugs, biologics, cosmetics, diagnostics, dietary supplements, medical devices, veterinary devices, cannabis, or tobacco
• ABA Section of Dispute Resolution James Boskey Essay Competition Deadline: June 9, 2023 Prize: $1,000 Topic: Any aspect of dispute resolution practice, theory or research that the contestant chooses. Eligibility: The competition is open to anyone, age 21 or older, who was a full-time or part- time J.D. law student, including students in joint J.D. degree programs, at an ABA-accredited law school during the 2020-21 academic year.
• American Journal of Mediation National Dispute Resolution Writing Competition Deadline: December 15, 2023 Prize: $5,000 Topic: Subject matter focus for entries can embrace the full range of the alternative dispute resolution field– consensus-based dispute resolution (e.g., negotiation, mediation), adjudicative processes (e.g., early neutral evaluation, binding or non-binding arbitration and private judging), or mixed processes (e.g., arb-med, med-arb, high low arbitration, baseball arbitration). Papers can also focus on ADR process design, practice techniques, specific case studies, related legislation, and ethical dilemmas and standards for dispute resolution professionals. Eligibility: The competition is open to all North American JD and LLM law students enrolled as of December 15, 2021.
• Chapman LLC Scholarship for Law Students Deadline: June 15, 2023 Prize: $1,000 Topic: Should collegiate athletes be paid? Argue for or against and provide at least 3 reasons for your position. Eligibility: Law student planning on attending, accepted to attend, or currently attending an accredited law school in the U.S.; U.S. citizen 18 years or older.
• Bloomberg Tax Insights Student Writing Competition Deadline: June 15, 2022 Prize: One-year subscription to Bloomberg Tax Topic: Tax policy Eligibility: You must be a part-time or full-time law student at an accredited U.S. law school or foreign equivalent, or a part-time or full-time student pursuing an undergraduate or graduate tax, accounting, or business degree. Co-authored or team papers are OK.
• College of Labor and Employment Lawyers Writing Competition for Law Students Deadline: June 15, 2022 Prize: $3,000 Topic: Labor and employment law
• ABA Forum on Construction Law’s Law Student Writing Competition Deadline: June 30, 2023 Prize: $2,000 Topic: Papers should address a topical issue of interest to the construction industry. Eligibility: The competition is open to any student age 21 years or older enrolled in an ABA-accredited law school during the academic years 2021 and 2022 of the competition who is a legal resident of the United States.
• ABA Infrastructure and Regulated Industries Section K. William Kolbe Writing Competition Deadline: June 30, 2023 Prize: $2,500 Topic: Papers should address a current topic of general interest in a legal area covered by the Infrastructure and Regulated Industries Section (communications, cable TV, internet, electricity, gas, oil pipelines, aviation, railroads, and water industries).
• American College of Trust and Estate Counsel Mary Moers Wenig Student Writing Competition Deadline: June 30, 2023 Topic: The paper must relate to the area of trusts and estates, broadly defined. Entrants should write on issues of general interest, rather than state specific issues. Eligibility: Any law student in good standing (full-time or part-time) who is currently enrolled at the time of submission or was a student within the past 90-day period prior to submission as a J.D. or LL.M. candidate in an ABA-accredited law school within the United States or its possessions. more... less... Any one or more of the following topics are appropriate for discussion: Business Planning; Charitable Planning; Elder Law; Employee Benefits; Fiduciary Accounting; Fiduciary Administration; Fiduciary Income Taxation; Fiduciary Litigation; Estate Planning and Drafting; Professional Responsibility; Substantive Laws for the Gratuitous Transmission of Property; Wealth Transfer Taxation (Estate, Gift and GST Tax)
• American Intellectual Property Law Association Robert C. Watson Award Deadline: June 30, 2023 Topic: Intellectual property law
• American Society for Pharmacy Law Simonsmeier Award Deadline: June 30, 2023 Topic: Pharmacy law (law related to pharmacists, pharmacies, the provision of pharmaceutical care, the manufacturing and distribution of drugs, and other food, drug, and medical device policy issues) Eligibility: Papers published in or accepted for publication in any English-language peer-reviewed journal (including law reviews) during the period from January 2020 through December 2021 are eligible.
• Journal of Law in the Middle East by LexisNexis Student Essay Competition Deadline: June 30, 2022 Prize: LexisNexis MENA Book Collection, valued at over USD $1000 Topic: Discuss the legal and ethical considerations of AI applications, with a focus on the Middle East. Eligibility: At the time of submission, the student must be an LL.B., LL.M., Ph.D. or S.J.D. candidate at any institution in the world.
• American Planning Association Smith-Babcock-Williams Student Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $2,000 Topic: Planning, planning law, land use law, local government law or environmental law Eligibility: Open to law students and planning students
• ABA Section of Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice Gellhorn-Sargentich Law Student Essay Award Competition Deadline: June 30, 2023 Prize: $5,000 Topic: The entry must discuss any topic relating to administrative law. Eligibility: The Competition is open to law students who are, at the time of entry, (a) enrolled in an ABA-accredited law school, (b) members of the ABA and the Section, (c) at least 21 years old, and (d) U.S. citizens and U.S. permanent residents.

Typically Held in July

These competitions have been held in July in prior academic years. Check each link for the latest information.

• ABA Criminal Section Justice Annual William W. Greenhalgh Student Writing Competition Deadline: July 1, 2023 Prize: $2,500 Topic: Technology-enhanced searches Eligibility: The contest is open to students who, on the date the entry is submitted, attend and are in good standing at an ABA-accredited law school within the United States and its possessions. Membership in the Criminal Justice Section is not a requirement. Entrants must be at least 21 years of age and legal permanent residents or citizens of the United States.
• American Inns of Court Warren E. Burger Prize Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $5,000 Topic: Authors should address one or more aspects of professionalism, ethics, civility, and excellence within the legal profession.
• Arizona State Law Journal Criminal Justice Reform National Writing Competition Deadline: July 1, 2023 Prize: $1,000 Topic: Criminal justice reform Eligibility: Applicants must be enrolled full-time at an ABA-accredited law school at the time of submission.
• INS/IYNA Neuroethics Essay Contest Deadline: July 7, 2023 Prize: $250 Topic: Essay submissions can cover any topic in neuroethics and should address a focused problem at the intersections of the mind and brain sciences, ethics, and law. Example topics include, but are not limited to: neuroenhancement, neurolaw, moral psychology, moral philosophy, brain stimulation, ethics of neurodegenerative illness, neurogenetics, neurotechnology policy and regulation, philosophy of mind, clinical ethics in psychiatry and neurosurgery, neural imaging, big data and neuroscience, brain–computer interaction, military applications of neurotechnology, and free will. Notes: Those included in the definition of ‘post-secondary student’ or ‘early career trainees’ during the Spring 2022 semester may submit an essay to either the Academic or General Audience categories. Authors may submit two different essays — one to each category. See Neuroethics Essay Contest website for more information on essay categories.
• Theodore Tannenwald, Jr. Foundation for Excellence in Tax Scholarship Writing Competition Deadline: July 10, 2023 Prize: $5,000 Topic: Submitted papers must focus primarily upon technical or policy-oriented tax issues relating to any type of existing or proposed U.S. federal or state tax or U.S. federal or state taxation system (including topics relating to tax practice ethical and professional responsibility matters). See Competition Rules for more information.
• Esports Bar Association Journal Top Student Submission Deadline: July 15, 2022 Prize: $3,000 Topic: Esports and the law Eligibility: Submissions are open to current law students, law school faculty, attorneys, and other practitioners over the age of 18. You do not need to be a member of the EBA in order to submit.
• NYSBA Committee on Animals and the Law: Student Writing Competition Deadline: July 7, 2023 Prize: $1,000 Topic: Animal law Eligibility: To be eligible for consideration, the submission must be written by a student currently enrolled (full time or part time) in an ABA-accredited law school. Students expecting to receive their degree in 2022 are eligible for consideration. The submission must be written by one, and only one student, i.e., papers jointly written by more than one student or that have been subjected to line editing by professors or advisors shall not be considered. No paper that has been previously published in any form shall be considered.
• Taxpayers Against Fraud Education Fund Law School Writing Competition Deadline: July 15, 2022 Prize: $5,000 Topic: TAFEF wants to encourage the submission of articles that address topics in both federal and state False Claims Acts as well as the administrative programs that support whistleblowers and sanction fraudulent claims in government programs. Topics that fall within these parameters are eligible. Eligibility: For the 2022 competition, the article submitted to TAFEF must have appeared in a law journal or review during the 18-month period January 2021 through June 2022. If the law journal or review has not yet been published, you must certify that your submission has been accepted for publication in a law review or journal dated during that period.
• CLGI Global Climate Law and Governance Essay Competition Deadline: July 19, 2022 Topic: Essays can address any aspect of law and governance related to climate change or sustainable development, from local to global. This may include principles or provisions of the Paris Agreement and its Katowice Rulebook; recent trends in climate change dispute settlement and litigation; the challenges and opportunities of design, implementation and reform of legal and institutional frameworks for climate mitigation, adaptation/resilience or finance; climate aspects of trade and investment instruments; and human rights and climate justice. Eligibility: The competition is open to undergraduate and graduate students. Students from least developed countries are especially encouraged to apply. Submissions may be co-authored.
• National Institute of Military Justice Rear Admiral John S. Jenkins Writing Award for Law Students Deadline: July 31, 2023 Prize: $250 Topic: Military law Eligibility: Papers and/or published articles are eligible for this award if they were written by a candidate for the J.D. in the previous academic year.

Typically Held in August

These competitions have been held in August in prior academic years. Check each link for the latest information.

• Education Law Association George Jay Joseph Award Deadline: August 1, 2022 Topic: The subject matter must address one or more legal issues within any of the various contexts of education, including public and private K-12 schools and institutions of higher education, especially current and emerging issues.
• Philadelphia Bar Association Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Pursuit of Justice Legal Writing Competition Deadline: August 1, 2023 Prize: $2,500 Topic: Candidates may submit a law review quality submission on any topic relating to rights, privileges, and responsibilities under federal law. Eligibility: Open to full-time and part-time law students who completed their second or third year of study by the end of the 2021-2022 academic year at one of the following six institutions : Drexel University Thomas R. Kline School of Law, University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, Rutgers Law School, Temple University Beasley School of Law, Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law and Widener University Delaware Law School. Part-time law students who were in their third or later year of study during the 2021-2022 academic year are also eligible.
• National Association of Women Lawyers Selma Moidel Smith Law Student Writing Competition Deadline: February 1, 2024 Prize: $500 Topic: Entrants should submit a paper on an issue concerning, in your opinion, the most pressing issue related to advancing equality in the legal field. Topics can include but are not limited to, examining race, gender, sex, feminism, LGBTQIA+, pay equity, equal education, and employment opportunity, and or the Equal Rights Amendment, etc. Eligibility: Essays will be accepted from students enrolled at an ABA-accredited law school during the 2020-2021 school year. The essays must be the law student author’s own work and must not have been submitted for publication elsewhere. Papers written by students for coursework or independent study during the summer, fall, or spring semesters are eligible for submission. Notwithstanding the foregoing, students may incorporate professorial feedback as part of a course requirement or supervised writing project.
• Sarin McGill Annual Student Essay Contest on Aircraft Finance & Leasing Registration Deadline: TBA for 2024 Submission Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: Airfare and accommodations to tour McGill University's Institute of Air and Space Law. Topic: Following the Russian Federation’s re-registration, without the consent of the lessors or the states of registration, of aircraft leased to Russian operators, what are the implications for leasing and financing of aircraft, for the Chicago Convention, for the rule of law generally, and especially for third countries to which any such aircraft may be flown? Are there any precedents and, if so, how may they be compared and contrasted with the current situation? What solutions might there be? Eligibility Any student of law, enrolled in an undergraduate, graduate or doctoral programme in any law school or legal professional training school worldwide, at the time of submission of the entry, shall be considered eligible.
• Goettingen Journal of International Law Essay Competition Deadline: August 1, 2021 Topic: The pandemic continues to be omnipresent in our lives and gives rise to a number of legal questions, including in international law. GoJIL is seeking student contributions that explore such questions from novel and interesting perspectives.

Typically Held in September

These competitions have been held in September in prior academic years. Check each link for the latest information.

• Philadelphia Bar Association Law Student Essay Contest Deadline: September 6, 2022 Prize: $500 Topic: Advice for new or aspiring law school applicants Eligibility: Any rising 2L, rising 3L, or recently graduated law student attending a Philadelphia area law school (University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, Drexel University Thomas R. Kline School of Law, Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law, Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law, Widener University Delaware Law School, Rutgers University Law School-Camden)
• ABA Aviation and Space Law Committee Writing Competition Deadline: September 9, 2022 Prize: $500 Topic: Submissions should address a recent development in any area of aviation or space law or discuss an area of aviation or space law where a controversy or disagreement exist. Eligibility The competition is open to all current U.S. citizen law student and LLM candidates. Membership in the ABA, TIPS or the Aviation and Space Law is not required for participation, though membership is free for all law students.
• PIABA Foundation James E. Beckley Student Writing Competition Deadline: September 16, 2022 Prize: $1,000 Topic: Any aspect of Securities Law; Securities Arbitration; The Federal Arbitration Act, Title 9, US Code, Section 1-14; or FINRA Code of Arbitration, effective April 16, 2007 and any changes or proposed changes to that Code. Eligibility: The competition is open to all students who attend a law school in the United States. Full-time students who are not law students but who write law-related papers as part of a course at an American law school are also eligible.
• International Fiscal Association International Tax Student Writing Competition Deadline: September 30, 2023 Prize: $5,000 Topic: Any topic relating to U.S. taxation of income from international activities, including taxation under U.S. tax treaties. Eligibility: All students during the 2021-22 academic year (including independent study and summer 2022 school courses) pursuing a graduate degree (J.D., L.L.M., S.J.D., M.S.T., MTA, Masters of Taxation, or similar program). Any appropriate papers written in fall 2021 or spring and summer 2022.
• ABA Section of Public Contract Law Student Writing Competition Deadline: September 30, 2022 Prize: $2,000 Topic: Papers should address a topical issue of interest to the public contract and grant law community. Eligibility: To be eligible to participate in the Competition, as of September 30, 2022 entrants must be 21 or over, U.S. citizens or permanent legal residents of the United States; and current members in good standing of the American Bar Association (ABA) and the Section of Public Contract Law (ABA and Section membership dues paid in full for the current bar year). more... less... Unpublished papers prepared for law school credit are eligible for entry in the Competition. Papers prepared for law school credit that have been submitted to or published by the Public Contract Law Journal are also eligible for the Competition. Papers that have been published in media other than the Public Contract Law Journal prior to September 30, 2022 are not eligible for the Competition. Papers submitted for publication in media other than the Public Contract Law Journal are not eligible for the Competition, unless the other publication agrees that the Public Contract Law Journal shall have the right of first publication of the winning essay.

Typically Held in October

These competitions have been held in October in prior academic years. Check each link for the latest information.

• American Agricultural Law Association Modern Agricultural Legal Issues Essay Contest Deadline: October 14, 2022 Topic: Agricultural law Eligibility: The competition is open to law students who are, at the time of entry, (a) enrolled in an ABA-accredited law school, (b) pursuing a J.D. degree; and (c) at least 18 years old.

Typically Held in November

These competitions have been held in November in prior academic years. Check each link for the latest information.

• NYSBA Albert S. Pergam International Law Writing Competition Award Deadline: November 3, 2023 Prize: $2,000 Topic: Public or private international law Eligibility: Law Students (including J.D., LL.M., Ph.D. and S.J.D. candidates) are cordially invited to submit to the International Section an article concerning any area of public or private international law or practice. Faculty members of any college or university are ineligible to participate.
• vLex International Law and Technology Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: £1,500 Topic: Can choose one of three topics: law, technology and sports; law, technology and climate; or law, technology and crypto. See competition page for more information. Eligibility: All current students and recent graduates can enter.
• American College of Consumer Financial Services Lawyers Writing Competition Deadline: November 1, 2023 Prize: $1,500 Topic: Eligible entries must discuss some aspect of U.S. consumer financial services law. Topics that relate principally to securities regulation, bankruptcy, insurance, or the safety and soundness aspects of banking regulation are not eligible, but works on subjects within these (or other) areas will be considered if they bear directly on U.S. consumer financial services.
• Video Game Bar Association David S. Rosenbaum Scholarship Deadline: Contact [email protected] Prize: $2,500 Topic: Video games and the law. Potential topics could include: developments in game accessibility; reputation management and user-creations (mods, skins, etc.); game developer unionization and labor rights.
• Dukeminier Awards Jeffrey S. Haber Prize for Student Scholarship Deadline: TBA for 2023 Prize: $1,000 Topic: Sexual orientation and gender identity law

Typically Held in December

These competitions have been held in December in prior academic years. Check each link for the latest information.

• ABA Health Law Section Student Writing Competition Deadline: December 31, 2021 Prize: $500 Topic: Any aspect of health law
• National Law Review Law Student Writing Competition Deadline: Monthly (reviewed September through May) Notes: The NLR Law Student Writing Competition offers law students the opportunity to submit articles for publication consideration on the NLR Web site.
• Houston Journal of International Law James Baker Hughes Prize Deadline: Information on the 2022 James Baker Hughes Prize coming soon. Prize: $500 Notes: The manuscript’s focus must be on international economic law.
• ABA Standing Committee on Law & National Security Writing Competition Deadline: TBD Notes: The Law Student Writing Competition will not be held for the 2020-2021 academic year.
• American Bankruptcy Institute Bankruptcy Law Student Writing Competition Deadline: TBD Prize: $2000 Notes: As of January 26, 2021, The Annual ABI Law Student Writing Competition will not be held this year. We hope to be able to resume the competition in future years.
• ELI Constitutional Environmental Law Writing Competition Deadline: TBD Prize: $2000 Topic: Any topic addressing developments or trends in U.S. environmental law with a significant constitutional, “federalism,” or other cross-cutting component.
• Hofstra Law School and the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts Family Law Writing Competition Deadline: TBA for 2024 Prize: $500 Topic: The subject of entries may be within any area of family law, although topics that focus on international or interdisciplinary subjects of family law are especially encouraged.
• If/When/How Sarah Weddington Writing Prize for New Student Scholarship in Reproductive Rights Law Deadline: TBD Prize: $750 Topic: Reproductive rights and justice issues in the U.S.
• International Association of Gaming Advisors Shannon Bybee Scholarship Award Deadline: TBD Notes: Each year IAGA awards prizes for the best scholarly research papers written by accredited law school students as part of their class work during the current school year. To be considered for the award, each submitted paper must either enhance the understanding of gaming law or recommend a beneficial gaming law change.
• LSAC Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Writing Competition Deadline: TBD Prize: $5,000 Eligibility: All currently enrolled law students pursuing a JD degree are eligible for the competition.

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• Student Legal Writing Competitions - June 2024
• March 27, 2024
• Announcements

The following are writing competitions to which law students may be eligible to submit their writings. For future writing competition deadlines and competitions by subject, see the Library’s Student Legal Writing Competitions Guide .

Cornelius Vander Broek Essay Contest for Ongoing College Students The Freedom From Religion Foundation offers five 2024 essay competitions for freethinking students — awarding more than $65,000 in total scholarships. Check the link for current topics and deadlines.

National Sports Law Student Writing Competition The goal of the National Sports Law Student Writing Competition is to encourage law student scholarship on current topics in sports law. Check the link for updated topics and deadlines.

A More Perfect Union - Chicago-Kent Annual Racial Justice Writing Competition As pledged in the 2020 Faculty Antiracism Statement, Chicago-Kent College of Law presents the second annual writing competition to encourage and honor excellent student scholarship on racial justice. The Law Library is excited to be the new sponsor of this writing competition.

Adam A. Milani Disability Law Writing Competition The purposes of the competition are to promote greater interest in and understanding of the field of disability law and to encourage excellent legal writing skills in law students.

American Bar Association James B. Boskey Law Student Essay Contest on Dispute Resolution The essay may address any aspect of dispute resolution practice, theory, or research that the contestant chooses.

H. Thomas Austern Writing Competition "intended to encourage law students interested in the areas of law affecting FDA-regulated industries: food, drugs, medical devices, biologics, dietary supplements, cosmetics, veterinary, cannabis, or tobacco and nicotine products."

Tax Notes Student Writing Competition "Our annual student writing competition recognizes superior student writing on unsettled questions in tax law or policy."

College of Labor and Employment Lawyers and ABA Section of Labor & Employment Lawyers "Current and relevant topics of labor and employment law."

ChapmanAlbin Scholarship for Law Students "Since 2015, ChapmanAlbin has sponsored a yearly $1000 scholarship for incoming and current law students. To apply, a U.S. law student must write a 300-500 word essay on a specific topic and meet a few other criteria for consideration."

Funk & Associates Annual Scholarship $1000 scholarship. "The original essay should be 500-1000 words and should describe how you plan on helping others with your legal career."

American Intellectual Property Law Association Robert C. Watson Award "Law students are encouraged to submit an article on an IP topic, written on or before June."

American Association of Patent Judges (AAPJ) Hon. Frederick E. McKelvey Writing Competition "Candidates shall submit essays concerning any subject relating to U.S. patent law. The first-place essay will be published in the Journal of the Patent and Trademark Office Society (JPTOS) (subject to editorial discretion and review, as explained below) and the author will receive an award and $1,000. The author of the runner-up essay will receive an award and $500." [2024 Information Forthcoming - Check AAPJ website.]

American College of Trust and Estate Counsel Mary Moers Wenig Student Writing Competition "Consistent with ACTEC’s purposes, the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel Mary Moers Wenig Student Writing Competition was created to encourage and reward scholarly works in the area of trusts and estates."

American Society for Pharmacy Law (ASPL) Larry M. Simonsmeier Writing Award "ASPL recognizes outstanding scholarship related to Pharmacy Law with the Simonsmeier Award."

Gellhorn-Sargentich Law Student Essay Competition "Any topic relating to administrative law."

American College of Employee Benefits Counsel Writing Compeition Prize Papers may be on any topic in the employee benefits field.

• Academic and Student Programs
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Legal Writing

• Choosing a Scholarly Paper Topic
• Conducting a Preemption Check
• Evaluating Information
• Keeping Current
• Publishing Your Scholarly Writing

Publication Submissions and Writing Competitions

Expert advice, journal information, scholarship databases.

• Avoiding Plagiarism
• Legal Citation & the Bluebook
• Persuasive Legal Writing
• Transactional Legal Writing
• Litigation Focused Writing
• Legislative Drafting
• Judicial Writing
• ADR Drafting

• Publication Submissions
• Writing Competitions

When to submit The academic publishing service  Scholastica  has identified two key dates for journals receiving and reviewing submissions: Feb. 1 and Aug. 1. However, student pieces are more likely to receive offers later in the cycle, and ASU Law Professor Troy Rule recommends a target date of late March. Submitting on schedule can help because a significant number of journals close themselves off from submissions for parts of the year. Scholastica also suggests that if you are hoping for a place in a particular journal to ask the staff when to submit your paper.

How to submit Scholastica  provides a law review author guide including instructions on creating an account, submitting your writing, communicating with prospective publishers, and submitting to multiple journals, as well as general tips to get your ideas in print. It also details how to withdraw papers and how to respond to publication offers.

Where to submit Law schools typically offer themed journals concerning particular aspects of law or society in addition to general, flagship law reviews and journals. If you have an offer but want to know whether another journal is interested in your paper, an  expedited decision request  can help.

Arizona State Law Journal: Criminal Justice Reform National Writing Competition This contest offers prize money and potential publication in the Arizona State Law Journal Online. It is open to law students across the country. Articles must not exceed 10,000 words and must concern criminal justice reform.

American Indian Law Review National Writing Competition Three awards offered annually by the American Indian Law Review at the University of Oklahoma College of Law. The competition is available to any currently enrolled law student who submits a paper on any issue concerning American Indian law.

Suffolk University Law School ICompete Writing A breakdown of writing contests into particular areas of law.

Georgetown Law Technology Review Student Writing Competition This competition for law students invites submissions addressing a legal or public policy question relating to the intersection of technology law and policy. 

ABA for Law Students Writing Competitions Contests in a variety of subject areas offer money prizes.

AccessLex Writing Competitions This is a searchable database of law school writing competitions put together by a non-profit dedicated to legal education.

• Publications
• Tips from Published Authors

Getting it Published: A Guide for Scholars and Anyone Else Serious About Serious Books (William Germano, 2016) This title, also available as an ebook, provides clear and practical guidance on choosing the best path to publication of scholarly writing. The author focuses on book publication but the lessons provided are applicable to article publication as well.

Information for Submitting Articles to Journals and Law Reviews   (Allen Rostron & Nancy Levit, 2024) This frequently updated guide to submitting articles to law reviews and journals includes information on methods of submission (such as through Scholastica, another academic publication submission program, or direct email), word counts, formatting, and how to request an expedited decision. This resource focuses on flagship law reviews and journals rather than subject-specific secondary journals.

Information for Submitting to Online Law Review Companions   (Bridget J. Crawford, 2023) Online journal companions provide another outlet for academic writing. Although these major law review companions may be a difficult destination for student writing to reach, the submission principles that the author identifies may help you associate with a big-name journal or prepare your work for consideration by other journals and online services.

Modern Legal Scholarship: A Guide to Producing and Publishing Scholarly and Professional Writing (Christine Coughlin et al., 2020) This book provides a comprehensive approach to researching, writing, and publishing a variety of documents relevant to legal practice in today's world. It covers a variety of publishing options in modern contexts including law journal articles, seminar papers and capstone projects, bar journal articles, policy papers, op-eds, social media posts, blogs, and even creative works.

Submission of Law Student Articles for Publication  (Nancy Levit et al., 2016) This guide is geared specifically toward students, with practical tips such as withholding publication until after beginning a clerkship, when national flagship law reviews may be more receptive toward submissions. It provides tips on maximizing publication chances, such as co-authoring with a professor and optimizing the cover letter and abstract.

Professors at  ASU Law  and  S.J. Quinney College of Law , as well as students and alumni who have published articles, provided the following tips:

Write for Your Audience Legal audiences are diverse, and your paper should be useful or interesting to legal academics or legal professionals.  Commentators can provide guidance  on how to conceptualize, organize, and execute your legal arguments.

• Break new ground : Our  Conducting a Preemption Check guide  can help you make sure that other writers have not already argued your key points. The more current and cutting edge your topic, the more likely it will be of interest to a law journal.
• Tap into general interests : Notes or comments of broad interest will garner more interest than papers that are focused too narrowly, such as one examining just one particular case or jurisdiction. 
• Join a conversation : Journals may consider articles that make an effective counterpoint to an ongoing academic discussion. Our Choosing a Paper Topic guide can help you identify subjects of hot debate.
• Summarize a complex doctrine : By virtue of externships or particular research projects, students often emerge as the experts in very discrete areas of the law, and you can impart your wisdom to the professionals. Many legal practitioners turn to law review articles to help them navigate issues that arise while representing a client. User friendly breakdowns of complex legal doctrines can appeal to audiences and, consequently, journals.
• Write for particular journals : Secondary journals in your field are more likely to publish student writing than general, flagship law journals. You can tailor your article to a particular journal by choosing appropriate subject matter and writing techniques. You can read up on particular publications by browsing  HeinOnline  (available on campus or through ASURITE).
• Use reliable sources : Proper input is essential for helping you write a useful history of legal precedent in your comment or note.  Meet with a Law Librarian  for assistance in identifying and navigating reliable legal and academic resources.
• Strike an academic tone : With some exceptions, law journals and reviews will prefer sober academic and legal analysis with professional vocabulary to papers that indulge in overt activism or "soaring rhetoric." Still, the writing should be engaging and flow well.

Seek Guidance

• Join a professor:  If you find a strong connection with particular professors' research interests, assisting them with their projects can be an excellent way to learn about topics and get exposure. You will likely read up significantly on particular legal debates, and you may even be able to co-write an article with a professor, which will increase your publication potential.
• Get lots of feedback:  The more criticism and advice you solicit, the stronger your paper will be. It's particularly useful to seek different perspectives, sending articles to legal practitioners as well as legal academics.

Meet Publications' Expectations

• Reach the word count : Some student notes and comments may not be long enough to meet journals' requirements, so be sure to check journal websites to find their submission guidelines.
• Format your text properly : Most journals will enforce formatting requirements for submissions such as double spaced text. Journals will more likely reject students than legal professionals for formatting errors.
• Format footnotes properly : The law library provides resources to help you master legal citation in this  Legal Writing Research Guide . You may also  make an appointment  to discuss complex citations with a reference librarian or  email the reference librarians  about simpler questions.

Get Noticed

• Strengthen your cover letter and abstract:  First impressions count for a lot, and engaging introductory materials can help your work advance beyond the initial stages of a journal's selection process.  Commentators provide guidance  on how to get noticed.
• Cast a wide net : Try to send your article to as many journals as will likely take an interest in your topic to maximize your publication changes.
• Enter a contest : Student writing competitions typically provide prizes, recognition, or publication, depending on the particulars of the contest. Find a partial listing of contests in the Writing Competitions section below. 
• Run a blog : Particularly if you have a strong interest and take many courses in related areas of law, you can opine on a series of topics and build an audience for your ideas through a blog. It can be an informal place to recycle research assignments to gain exposure.
• ASU Law Journals
• Journal Metrics

Arizona State's law journals publish student works in print and online.

Arizona State Law Journal ASU Law's quarterly flagship law journal publishes professional and student works on general legal topics.

Jurimetrics This quarterly journal focuses on intersections between the law and science, technology, mathematics, and engineering.

Sports and Entertainment Law Journal This journal publishes professional and student writing biannually in print and online.

Law Journal for Social Justice This online journal focuses on local, national, and international social justice issues and provides a topical blog.

Corporate and Business Law Journal This journal publishes articles by students and academics, and it provides a forum for shorter, topical works.

Law Journal Submissions and Ranking For students seeking journals that will maximize their work's impact, the Washington & Lee Law School Library provides rankings, primarily based on citation counts. 

Alfred L. Brophy, The Signaling Value of Law Reviews: An Exploration of Citations and Prestige , 36 Fla. St. U. L. Rev. (2009) . A study of citations finds that articles published in secondary or subject specific journals can receive as many citations or more than articles published in top ranked general law journals. 

Social Science Research Network SSRN can help academics notice your work before it is published. Academics provide feedback and may even cite to draft articles hosted on the website.

Faculty Scholarship Repository - Arizona State University Published articles by ASU Law faculty can help you identify topics for further research or find a mentor for your writing project.

HeinOnline Law Journal Library   (available on campus or through ASURITE) This resource archives full text PDF copies of law journal articles dating back decades to help researchers identify topics or find potential publishers. 

• This database's  subject indexes  include subject specific journals that will be more likely to accept student submissions than flagship law reviews.
• Most Cited Journals on HeinOnline  lists the most prestigious law reviews and journals, which are typically highly competitive for professional legal academics and professionals. 

Google Scholar This resource compiles interdisciplinary and nonlegal scholarship in addition to law journal articles. 

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INBA’s Legal Article Writing Competition 2024, Last Date of Submission: June 30, 2024

The INBA Legal Article writing competition offers a Platform for law students and legal Scholar to address contemporary issues and contribute to social empowerment. This Article writing competition will allow students to enhance their skills in an easy way through research. The competition aims to develop interest among students to explore and analyze various legal issues, legal aspect, boom and bane of Artificial intelligence. It will provide a platform for students to remember and learn New Bills, Emerging law issues, recent judgements and about the AI.

Eligibility

• Law Students (Both undergraduate and postgraduate),research Scholar from recognized college/ university.
• Co-authorship is not allowed

How to Submit?

Participant shall send their articles to [email protected] . The Subject should be Tittle of article with add on INBA legal Article writing competition. Last date to submit the article is June 15, 2024.

General Guidelines

• The copies must be submitted in PDF Format. In case two email are sent by the participant, the copy of the draft sent last will be considered for evaluation.
• The Font should be Times New Roman, Size 12, and line spacing 1.5.
• In the Article, 15 % plagiarism is allowed for the participants.
• Word limit- 500 to 700 words

Certificates & Rewards

Winner will be decided on the basis of views and content.

• Winner Prizes: 1 st Position Rs 3000
• 2 nd Position Rs 2000
• 3 rd Position Rs 1000

Important Dates

Declaration of Result: 30 June 2024

Contact Information

In case of any queries, kindly write to [email protected] or

Contact 011-49036141

Event Details

Date/time :, categories :.

• INBA Events

THE PRINCETON LEGAL JOURNAL

Central to the PLJ’s mission is to provide opportunities for students to explore their own legal interests and to develop their personal editing and writing skills. As a result, the PLJ runs a writing competition for high school students to extend this engagement and accessibility to the law.

Spring 2024:

Topic: The First Amendment in Public Life

Winners: Matt Berkery, Maclain Conlin, & Luke Hwang.

Honorable Mentions: Ekaterina Chasovnikova, Ellie Sohn, & Pranav Gorty.

Speak Up: Speech First, Inc v. Sands, the Supreme Court, and Free Speech on College Campuses

Limiting Corporate Speech without Coercion?

Online Defamation: First Amendment Rights and Legal Standards for Unmasking the Identities of Anonymous Defendants

Spring 2023:

Topic: Emerging Issues in Law and Technology

Winners: Beatrice Neilson, Caroline Quirk, & Kaylee Yang.

Honorable Mentions: Deirdre Chau, Carson Loveless, Erica Yip, & Yike Zhang.

Carpenter v. United States, the Stored Communications Act, & the Third Party Doctrine in the Digital Age

The High Stakes of Deepfakes: The Growing Necessity of Federal Legislation to Regulate This Rapidly Evolving Technology

Google Monopoly: Searching for a Tech Competition Precedent

Essay Competitions

Enter exciting essay competitions! Find calls for essay submissions from colleges, universities and organisations listed below. Showcase your writing skills and contribute your ideas to important legal and academic discussions.

• Essay Competitions Opportunities

1st National Online Essay Writing Competition by Career College of Law, Bhopal [Cash Prizes Worth Rs 3700]: Register by Sep 20

• August 29, 2024

CLE-CNLU National Essay Writing Competition: Register by Sept 3

• August 24, 2024

Blog Writing Competition by The Dash Counsel Tech Law: Register by Sep 11

• August 23, 2024

Essay Writing Competition by Legal Luminous Lexis: Register by Sep 15

• August 6, 2024

Blog Writing Competition by CHRIST (Deemed to be University) – Cash Prizes Worth Rs 15K: Submit by Aug 7

• August 5, 2024

2nd NLUO-CLS Essay Writing Competition, 2024 [Cash Prizes Worth Rs 9.5K]: Register by Aug 31

• August 3, 2024

Essay competition on Arbitration by Nani Palkhivala Arbitration Centre [Cash Prizes Rs 22.5K]: Submit by Aug 13

• July 30, 2024

Space Law Blog Writing Competition by DNLU-SLJ and Seven Seas Partners [Cash Prizes Worth Rs 10K]: Submit by Aug 25

• July 29, 2024

Essay Writing Competition by Literary and Debating Society, MNLU Mumbai [Cash Prizes Worth Rs 10,000]: Register by July 29

• July 27, 2024

• Call for Papers Essay Competitions Opportunities

12th RMLNLU-Lakshmikumaran & Sridharan International Legal Essay Writing Competition and Conference on Insolvency Law [Cash Prizes Worth Rs 30K]: Submit by Sep 13

• July 24, 2024

2nd State Level Online Essay Competition 2024 by New Law College: Register by July 20

• July 8, 2024

1st National Essay Writing Competition by Centre by Dr. B. R. Ambedkar National  Law University [Cash Prizes Worth Rs 25K]: Register by July 15

• July 3, 2024

1st National Essay Writing Competition on Navigating the Dynamics of Mediation in Contemporary Legal Practices by Dr. B. R. Ambedkar National  Law University, Sonepat: Register by July 1

• June 4, 2024

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• Law Schools
• Competitions

 Competitions

IDIA Bihar Chapter: 3rd National PIL Drafting And Pleading Competition, 2024 [28th - 29th Sept]

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1BBI: 5th National Online Quiz On IBC [1st- 31st August]

The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) is a key pillar of the ecosystem responsible for implementation of the IBC. It is responsible for development and regulation of insolvency professionals and other service providers. It regulates various processes, namely, corporate insolvency resolution, corporate liquidation, fresh start, individual insolvency resolution and individual bankruptcy. It acts as the 'Authority' for regulation and development of the profession of valuers.To promote...

Satya Hegde Essay Competition On 'Extending Curative Jurisdiction To Arbitration Matters – Exploring The Consequences'

The Nani Palkhivala Arbitration Centre (NPAC), is a non-profit company registered under Section 25 of the Companies Act, 1956. NPAC was set up by the Palkhivala Foundation to promote institutional arbitration in India, keeping in mind the growing burden on Indian courts and the inordinate delay in the disposal of cases. By providing world-class facilities to conduct quick, efficient and cost-effective arbitration proceedings, NPAC seeks to become a Centre of excellence in the field of...

IBBI: 5th National Online Quiz On IBC [1st- 31st August]

The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) is a key pillar of the ecosystem responsible for implementation of the IBC. It is responsible for development and regulation of insolvency professionals and other service providers. It regulates various processes, namely, corporate insolvency resolution, corporate liquidation, fresh start, individual insolvency resolution and individual bankruptcy. It acts as the 'Authority' for regulation and development of the profession of valuers. ...

1st Nyayavimarsha National Essay Writing Competition 2024

Theme: "Contemporary Challenges and Reforms in Indian Governance and Policy" Nyayavimarsha is a peer-reviewed, open-access online journal launched on January 1, 2024, with an e-ISSN: 3048-5134. It aims to enhance legal research across various disciplines and is supported by a distinguished board, including Dr. Subramanian Swamy, Former Cabinet Minister for Law and Commerce; Mr. Ram Bhushan Trivedi, former judge, DRT and Prof. Dr. Raka Arya, Dean, NLIU, Bhopal and nominated member of ...

MNLU Mumbai: Essay Writing Competition On 'Gaming Laws In India'

MNLU Mumbai - The Maharashtra National Law University Mumbai, established under Maharashtra Act VI of 2014, is one of the premier National Law Universities in India. In the recent years, the university has established various Centres for advancing research in practical orientation of law.The Centre for Advocacy, Research and Training in Sports Law housed at MNLU Mumbai provides a platform to students and young professionals for exploring various aspects of sports-related laws (including the...

SVKM NMIMS School Of Law: 2nd Edition Of International Negotiation And Mediation Competition, 2024

SVKM's NMIMS Kirit P. Mehta School of Law (KPMSOL), situated in Mumbai, was established in the year 2013 with an objective to provide world-class legal education and to produce legal professionals who are not only competent in the field of law, but also responsible citizens. Kirit P. Mehta School of Law, NMIMS aims to refine students' competency by engaging them in curricular and extracurricular activities, and Alternative Dispute Resolution is an integral part of each law student's...

Mahindra University: International Mediation Essay Competition, 2024

The International Mediation Conclave (IMC) 2024, is a landmark event in the field of mediation, organised by Lex Erudites in association with the School of Law, Mahindra University and Grayspace Law & Policy Consulting scheduled to take place at Hyderabad from 8th to 11th August. The International Mediation Essay Competition is being held as part of the conclave aims to welcome all interested authors to submit their view on the same. The objective of the International...

The 2024 Shamnad Basheer Essay Competition On Intellectual Property Law

Celebrating its founder Prof. (Dr.) Shamnad Basheer's 48th birth anniversary, SpicyIP has announced the 2024 edition of the Shamnad Basheer Essay Competition on Intellectual Property Law! As many would know, his intellectual passion and incessant curiosity continues to inspire and motivate the thousands of lives that he touched. The essay competition continues in this spirit, aiming to foster a culture of relentless inquiry and growth, as well as to celebrate his memory and his legacy...

Noida International University: 4th Moot Court Competition [28th -29th September]

Noida International University was established under U.P. LEGISLATURE ACT NO. 27 OF 2010 and recognized by Section 2(f) of the UGC Act, 1956. It achieved recognition for its academic prowess by receiving the A+ highest score of 3.44 out of 4 during the first cycle of NAAC accreditation, outperforming all other private state universities in India. This honor was bestowed by the prestigious autonomous institution under the UGC, Ministry of Education, Government of India. NIU offers a diverse...

Call For Submissions: National Essay Writing Competition By NLUJAA

The Centre for Environmental Law, Advocacy and Research (CELAR), the first of its kind in North-East India, is devoted to strengthening and contributing to the jurisprudence on environmental law, under the auspices of the National Law University and Judicial Academy, Assam. CELAR endeavors to be a torchbearer of NLUJAA's mission to translate legal knowledge and skills into an instrument that addresses various environmental concerns of the country, especially the North-Eastern region of India. ...

DBRANLU: 1st National Essay Writing Competition On 'Navigating The Dynamics Of Mediation In Contemporary Legal Practices'

Livelaw news networks  .

The Dr. B.R. Ambedkar National Law University, Sonepat, (DBRANLU) established by the Government of Haryana stands as a testament to the legacy of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, an eminent reformer and the principal architect of India's legal framework and Constitution. Since commencing its first B.A.LL.B.(Hons.) batch in 2019, DBRANLU has expanded its offerings to include LL.M. and Ph.D. courses. In its brief journey, the university has established 7 Research Centres, initiated the prestigious DBRANLU...