Congratulations rising 2Ls on your completion of boot camp.  Some in worse condition than others, but rising nonetheless.  And the immediate issue is what to do this summer.  You can take a summer job, and tread water until the fall semester.  Comfortable if not restful -- not bad.

You can do a lot better.

Join the Journal of Law & Education.  As a member you will be writing responsible legal text, overseen by experienced student editors and professionals, before publication.  You'll enjoy the pains and pitfalls of communicative and precise legal writing.  You'll acquire what will over time become second nature.  Indeed, you can have an article available in print for employers (former law review members themselves) before graduation.

Among other benefits of Journal membership are scholastic credit, and an opportunity to satisfy the writing requirement.

The deadline for applications is May 29.  Find our application here.

Why should you apply for JLE?  Two great reasons:

1. You value your time
   1. Work is spread out, requiring most of all responsibility in meeting deadlines, a basic professional trait.
   2. No office hours; ours is an unstructured time commitment.
   3. Each candidate has over six months, with reasonable deadlines, to write a Note.
2. Amazing opportunities
   1. 4-5 opportunities for your note to be published!
   2. Your written abstracts are published in EVERY edition.  That is four times you are guaranteed publication of your written work!
   3. JLE is the leading journal in the field of law and education - ranking well above the median in law review circulation.
   4. Supportive staff; we want to help you develop as a writer.
   5. Abundant editorial board position opportunities for 3Ls.

Application deadline is May 29 at 5 p.m.  Find our application here.  Mark your calendar for a mandatory orientation June 12 from 6 to 8 p.m.  To submit your application or if you have any questions, please contact Cassie Blausey at cassie.restrepo@gmail.com.

There are seven writing competitions open to law students with deadlines in June, plus many more competitions with deadlines throughout the summer.  Below is a list of competitions with upcoming deadlines.  To view a more complete list, go to https://www.law.louisville.edu/node/7044.  Good luck!

 

25th Annual Law Student Essay Contest

Sponsor: American Judges Association

General criteria: Essays submitted must be under the topic of "Comparing Hearsay Rules in Different Courts."  All papers shall be the original, unpublished work of an individual student, but may have been prepared as a course assignment.

Deadline: June 1, 2013

Amount of award: First prize is $3,000; second is $1,500; and third is $1,000.

Submission information: See http://aja.ncsc.dni.us.

 

KBA Annual Student Writing Competition

The Kentucky Bar Association encourages UofL Law students to enter the KBA Annual Student Writing Competition.  This competition is open only to students at the three Kentucky law schools - UL, UK, and Chase! 

First ($1,000), second ($300), and third place ($200) awards will be given.  Entries must be received by June 1, 2013.

Students may enter their previously unpublished articles. Articles should be of interest to Kentucky practitioners and follow the suggested guidelines and requirements found in the "General Format" section of the Bench & Bar Editorial Guidelines at www.kybar.org/103.

Our very own Leah Rupp Smith won the 2012 KBA Writing Award with her entry titled "Standing Your Ground: The Happy Medium Buried in Kentucky's Common Law."   Let's continue the tradition for 2013!

Submission Information

National Student Writing Contest on Real Property Law 

Sponsor:  The Texas Wesleyan Journal of Real Property Law (Property Journal)

Criteria: This is a national writing competition for all law students on any topic falling into the general theme of real property law. This is a great opportunity for students on law reviews and journals whose note or comment may not have made the final publication cuts, and students who have written excellent papers for a seminar class or independent study. There are cash prizes as well as an opportunity to publish in the Property Journal.

Deadline:  June 1, 2013

Amount of award: First-place will receive $750; Second-place will receive $500.00; and if a Third-Place essay is selected, that author will receive $250.00.

Submission information: http://www.realpropertyjournal.org/Home/national-writing-contest.

 

Employee Benefits Writing Competition

Sponsor: The American College of Employee Benefits Counsel

Criteria:  Papers must deal with employee benefits topics.  As an illustrative example, a paper might address legal issues involving health benefits, pensions, 401(k) plans, severance, executive compensation, claims, appeals, current or former spouses' or domestic partners' benefits, collectively-bargained benefits, benefits in bankruptcy, ERISA litigation or fiduciary obligations. 

Deadline: June 1, 2013

Amount of award:  Two cash prizes of $1,500 for the top two submissions.  The law students who submit the wining papers will be our honored guests at our annual black tie dinner in New Orleans on November 9, 2013.

Submission information: See competition rules.

 

2013 Brown Award of $10,000 for Excellence in Legal Writing

Sponsor: The Judge John R. Brown Scholarship Foundation

General criteria: Any law student currently enrolled in an accredited law school seeking a J.D. is eligible.  To be considered, four copies of a current legal writing must be submitted to the Foundation. There is no page limitation or restriction on the topic except that the writing must be on a legal subject.  The 2012 Award was presented to Daniel Alterbaum of Yale Law School for his paper entitled, Control Share Acts, Closed-End Funds, and the Battle for Corporate Control. 

Deadline: June 7, 2013

Amount of award: $10,000

Submission information: www.brownsims.com/about-brown-sims/affiliations/judge-john-r-brown-award

 

 

30th Annual Smith-Babcock-Williams Student Writing Competition

Sponsor: Planning & Law Division of the American Planning Association

General criteria: The Competition is open to law students and graduate planning students writing on a question of significance in planning, planning law, land use law, local government law or environmental law.

Deadline: June 7, 2013

Amount of award: The winning entry will be awarded a prize of $2,500 and will be submitted for publication in The Urban Lawyer, the law journal of the American Bar Association's Section of State & Local Government Law.  In addition to the first prize, the Competition will offer a second place prize of $500 and a third prize of $250.  Up to two additional submissions may be awarded Honorable Mention.

Submission information:  Visit http://www.law.asu.edu/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=epuHJYqwa-4%3D&tabid=937.

 

 

2013 Mary Moers Wenig Student Writing Competition

Sponsor: American College of Trust and Estate Counsel

General criteria: Law students may submit an original, previously unpublished work that relates to an issue within one or more of the following topics in the area of trusts and estates: Businss planning; charitable planning; elder law; employee benefits; fiduciary accounting, administration, income taxation, or litigation; estate planning; professional responsibility; or wealth transfer taxation.

Deadline: June 14, 2013

Amount of award: $5,000 for first place; $3,000 for second place; $1,000 for third place.

Submission information: http://www.actec.org/public/WenigCompetition/WenigCompetitionRules.asp

James Boskey Writing Competition

Sponsor: ABA Section on Dispute Resolution

General criteria: The purpose of the competition is to promote greater interest in and understanding of the field of dispute resolution and collaborative decision-making among law students.  The essay may address any aspect of dispute resolution practice, theory or research that the contestant chooses.

Deadline: June 14, 2013

Amount of Award: $1,000

Submission information: Visit http://www.americanbar.org/groups/dispute_resolution/awards_competitions.html

12th Annual Environmental Law Essay Competition

Sponsor: Environmental Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan

General criteria: The Competition is open to all law students.  Essays must be original and not previously published.  They may have been submitted for course credit or for law review, but not as part of paid employment.  Any environmental law topic of current interest to Michigan practitioners.

Deadline: June 30, 2013

Amount of award: $2,000 for first place; $1,000 for second place; and $500 for third place.  Winning essays will be published in the Michigan Environmental Law Journal.

Submission information:  See flyer.

Professor Laura Rothstein was recently interviewed by KET for a story about Justice Louis D. Brandeis.   Special thanks to Scott Campbell, who was very helpful in providing background information for the story. 

In episode 720 of "Louisville Life", the author of Brandeis at 150: The Louisville Perspective talks about former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis and his life in Louisville.

It will air on the following dates:

• KET: Saturday, May 25 at 7:00 pm EDT
• KETKY: Sunday, May 26 at 8:00 am EDT
• KET2: Sunday, May 26 at noon EDT
• KET2: Monday, May 27 at 7:30 am EDT
• KETKY: Monday, May 27 at 6:00 pm EDT
• KETKY: Tuesday, May 28 at 6:30 am EDT
• KET2: Thursday, May 30 at 7:30 pm EDT
• KET: Friday, May 31 at 12:30 am EDT
• KETKY: Friday, May 31 at 8:00 am EDT
• KET2: Friday, May 31 at 5:30 pm EDT
• KETKY: Saturday, June 1 at 7:00 am EDT

Tuesday (May 21) is the last day students may register for the Southeastern Intellectual Property Job Fair (SIPJF) in Atlanta on July 30th.  Employers will be interviewing 2L students for summer positions for 2014 and 3L students for permanent positions following graduation.  All students interested in intellectual property law are encouraged to attend and contact Dean Hajek (laurel.hajek@louisville.edu) for more details.  A tentative list of participating employers and student instructions are attached.

The Dave Nee Foundation has named Professor James T.R. Jones the recipient of the 2013 David S. Stoner Uncommon Counselor Award.

This Award is given annually to a member or members of the legal profession who exhibit extraordinary compassion and concern for their co-workers, family, friends, and community and who also actively fight the stigma of depression and other mental illnesses within the legal field. Professor Jones was commended for his courageous leadership demonstrated by openly sharing his experiences as a person living with bipolar disorder and receiving effective treatment.

The Dave Nee Foundation was created in 2005. It's mission is to eliminate the stigma associated with depression and suicide by promoting and encouraging not only the diagnosis and treatment of depression among young adults, but also the education of young people, their families, and friends about the disease of depression.

Professor Jones will be presented with the award atthe Foundation’s annual Gala scheduled on November 8, 2013 in New York City.

We have one spot open to a student, free of charge, for each day of the Warns Institute, the law school's annual labor and employment CLE program.  It will be held at the Seelbach Hilton on June 13-14.  More information is available at http://www.law.louisville.edu/2013warnsinstitute.  Free attendance requires a commitment to arrive early in the morning and man the registration table.  It may also require missing parts of, or entire, lectures, but we will accommodate your preferences to assure that you hear those you are particularly interested in.  If you are interested, submit an e-mail to Becky Wenning, becky.wenning@louisville.edu, copy Maggie Bratcher, margaret.bratcher@louisville.edu, and Ariana Levinson, a.levinson@louisville.edu, and include a paragraph stating why you are interested in attending.  Please submit your statement of interest no later than 5:00 p.m. on May 20, 2013.

Students are also welcome to attend the entire program at the reduced cost of $70, or one day of the program at the reduced cost of $35.  If you plan to register at reduced cost, please do so by contacting Maggie Bratcher at 502-852-1669.

The Executive Committee of the Midwest Regional Bankruptcy Seminar has established the Distinguished Bankruptcy Law Student Award.  The award was created to recognize both excellence and achievement in the field of bankruptcy and corporate restructuring law, and to encourage the pursuit of a career in bankruptcy law and corporate restructuring.
 
Dean Ballard is accepting student self nominations through May 17, 2013.  Nominees for the MRBS Distinguished Law Student Award will be a first or second year law student with a superior academic record, a strong interest in the practice of bankruptcy law and corporate restructuring, and a commitment to pursuing a career in the practice. 

To self nominate, please send your resume and a statement of interest in the fields of bankruptcy law and corporate restructuring to Dean Ballard by May 17.  Members of the Executive Committee will select up to four students from law schools in Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky to receive the award.  The recipients will receive:

• Complimentary registration at the Midwest Regional Bankruptcy Seminar scheduled for August 22-23 in Cincinnati, Ohio;
• Reimbursement for reasonable travel expenses;
• Two nights stay at the Westin Hotel in Cincinnati;
• Invitations to the Reds game on August 21 and faculty dinner on August 22;
• Listing of the Distinguished Law Student recipients on the MRBS website; and
• Recognition and award during lunch on August 22.

The Young Lawyers Division of the Kentucky Bar Association will award a $500 bar study award to a graduating University of Louisville Law student based on the following criteria:
The $500 award shall be granted to a graduating 3L or 4L who: (1) has made a significant contribution to his/her law school community (with preference for participation in student organizations such as the Student Bar Association); (2) has a demonstrated need for financial assistance; and (3) intends to practice in the Commonwealth of Kentucky.  

The award shall be used for expenses associated with taking the Kentucky Bar Exam in July 2013.  Individuals wishing to apply for the award should submit a one-page letter detailing why he/she should receive the award along with a resume to Dean Ballard by May 17, at 5:00 p.m.  The determination will be made in the sole discretion of the Executive Committee of Young Lawyers Division of the Kentucky Bar Association.