4.2.3.1.2) What sort of demands upon my time should I expect from Law Review? (King Hall Law School)
Description
This article is from the King Hall Law School FAQ, by David F. Prenatt, Jr. NetEsq@dcn.davis.ca.us with numerous contributions by others.
4.2.3.1.2) What sort of demands upon my time should I expect from Law Review? (King Hall Law School)
The first semester (i.e., the Fall Semester) of Law Review requires
"candidates for membership" to fulfill modest office hour
requirements, complete a cite checking assignment, and submit two
drafts of a "note" or "comment" on a topic of their choice. However,
the second semester of Law Review is extremely demanding, whether or
not you succeed in becoming a Member or Editor. [Note: first
semester requirements for Law Review Writers were recently changed
from one "good faith draft" during the Fall Semester to two drafts.
The jury is still out on the prudence of this decision, which is
intended to speed up the process by which people become Law Review
Editors, but which will also act as a gatekeeping mechanism for people
who are sitting on the fence about whether to do Law Review at all.]
4.2.3.1.2.1) How do I become a Law Review Member? (King Hall Law School)
Any second year law student at King Hall can "write-on" as a Member of
Law Review. Each draft of your note or comment is reviewed by two
staff editors who are assigned to you, and you revise your note or
comment according to their editorial feedback. When your staff
editors run out of criticism, they usually recommend your draft to the
Notes and Comments Editor who is assigned to you. Your Notes and
Comments Editor makes the decision as to when you qualify for Member.
More information on becoming a Law Review Member can be found on the
World Wide Web at Law Review Questions and Answers for Prospective
Students (<http://kinghall.ucdavis.edu/stu_org/lawrev/candidat.htm >).
4.2.3.1.2.1.1) How do I pick a good topic for my law review article? (King Hall Law School)
Most people make their choice of a law review topic based on a
personal predilection towards a particular issue (as I did). Other
student writers try to pick a topic that they think will be
interesting to their intended audience. After careful consideration
and months of pounding my head against a wall, I came to the well-
reasoned conclusion that the best method of choosing a topic for a law
review article is what I refer to as the "cynic's choice."
Rather than reinvent the wheel, the best way to find a "good
topic" for your own student article is to read through other student
articles until you find one that you think is well-written. Then,
research that well-written article until you find another student
article (that virtually always exists) contradicting the first article
on some key point. You have now found that mysterious and mystical
"split in authority" to which law review editors constantly refer
[technically, a split in authority should be between different
jurisdictions], along with two model articles with which to structure
your own work. You will also have a humongous head start on your own
legal research, and you will need it.
Law Review is not a creative writing process. It is an exercise
in tedious research that focusses on recapitulating and elucidating
(in "Plain English"--irony intentional) the work of other legal
scholars. Try as you may, you will never find a "good topic" for a
student article on which someone else has never written, and you are
foolish to try. By definition, the good topics are all taken.
4.2.3.1.2.1.2) Isn't the "cynic's choice" method of finding a law review topic somehow . . . dishonest? (King Hall Law School)
Quite the opposite. It requires you to be honest with yourself and
face the truth that takes most Law Review Writers (including me)
months to realize: As a Law Review Writer, you don't have an original
idea in your head that anyone else cares to read. Every intellectual
assertion that you make in your student article needs at least two
supporting authorities (if not more to convince a skeptical Law Review
Staff Editor that you are really on to something). If your ideas for
your article are truly original, they are probably fatally flawed; at
best they will be unsupportable.
4.2.3.1.2.2) How do I become a Law Review Editor? (King Hall Law School)
The process is pretty much the same as becoming a Law Review Member,
but new staff editors are assigned to you, more exacting standards are
invoked, and the Editor in Chief must approve your paper after you are
recommended for Editor. [Note: Exceptions to this process do exist.
Check with one of the current Notes & Comments Editors or Editor in
Chief if you think that special circumstances apply to your
situation.]
4.2.3.1.2.3) What happens after I become a Law Review Editor? (King Hall Law School)
After you become a Law Review Editor, you review the work of Law
Review Candidates and Members as described above. You may also wish
to seek one of the elected positions on the Law Review Editorial
Board. Check with current Board Members for further information on
these positions.
4.2.3.1.2.4) What happens if I am not recommended to become a Law Review Member or Editor? (King Hall Law School)
You can always appeal such a decision by your editors, but the odds
are stacked against you. The guidelines for what constitutes a member
or editor quality draft are very subjective. Thus, it's best to
comply with the editorial demands of your editors. Many good law
review writers who do not succeed in becoming a Member or Editor are
simply too defensive about the editorial feedback that they receive.
On the other hand, your editors may neglect their duties to you.
If this happens, you should promptly report the situation to someone
you can trust, preferably someone who can take some sort of remedial
action. Otherwise, you will end up as one of the many people who gets
eliminated from the law review process every year. You may get
eliminated anyway if you encounter some sort of problem with your
topic that you cannot fix, such as pre-emption.
If for some reason you are unable to continue with Law Review, it
is not the end of the world. Many people continue working on their
law review article to complete the Advanced Writing Requirement and
obtain independent study course credit. At least one person I know
had her law review article published in a prestigious journal after
she lost an appeal for Law Review Membership.
4.2.3.1.2.5) Why should I do Law Review? (King Hall Law School)
Most people are compelled to do Law Review because of its resume value
and the great prestige that it confers. Above and beyond this, Law
Review gives you formal access to your colleagues who are a year ahead
of you. Thus, Law Review is an excellent opportunity for you to hone
your legal research and writing skills in a very demanding academic
environment.
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