Choosing a Topic for Your Journal Article

Prepared by Mary Whisner, Gallagher Law LIbrary, University of Washington School of Law. An excellent series of guides covering various aspects of writing and publishing in law reviews. Many of the resources discussed in this guide are also available to U of M Law Students.

Allison Christians, Really Basic Rules for Writing Good Papers in Law School, 23 Green Bag 2d 181 (2020). This extremely brief guide is intended to help students avoid some frequently observed habits of poor writing. It covers paper structure, substance and style.

Provides advice on identifying and researching a journal topic using resources available on Bloomberg Law. Includes a Circuit Splits Chart and Circuit Splits Court Opinion Search.

Includes webinars on topic selection and preemption checking and cite and substance checking utilizing various Lexis + resources.

By Lawrence J. Trautman, 51 Ind. L. Rev. 693 (2018).
Presented first is a brief examination of why lawyers do not write well. Second, is a description of the law review: its value; a brief history of the American law journal experience; the editor selection process; who does what on law reviews; and the number and type of law journals. Thoughts about the writing process and important considerations regarding law review writing in particular are then presented. Reflections by recent law journal editors about their law review experiences are offered, along with suggestions about how authors may improve their manuscripts. Following that, the who, what, where and when of the publication process is covered. Comments about the Social Sciences Research Network (SSRN) are presented, then followed by a brief discussion about the currency value of citations. I believe this Article starts a *694 fresh conversation about the importance and value of legal writing, law review, and law journal publication.

By Heather Meeker, 1996 Utah L. Rev. 917 (1996)

By Andrew Yaphe, 62 J. Legal Educ. 259 (2012)

By Robert Luther III, 50 U. Rich. L. Rev. Online 63 (2016).

By Christian C. Day, 6 Legal Writing: J. Legal Writing Inst. 229 (2000)

By Richard Delgado, 20 U.S.F.L. Rev. 445 (1986)

Gerald Lebovits, 78 N.Y. St. B.A. J. 64 (2006).

Sean Burke, 99 J. PAT. & TRADEMARK OFF. Soc'y 113 (2017).

Prepared by Mary Whisner, Gallagher Law LIbrary, University of Washington School of Law. An excellent series of guides covering various aspects of writing and publishing in law reviews. Many of the resources discussed in this guide are also available to U of M Law Students.

Allison Christians, Really Basic Rules for Writing Good Papers in Law School, 23 Green Bag 2d 181 (2020). This extremely brief guide is intended to help students avoid some frequently observed habits of poor writing. It covers paper structure, substance and style.

Provides advice on identifying and researching a journal topic using resources available on Bloomberg Law. Includes a Circuit Splits Chart and Circuit Splits Court Opinion Search.

Includes webinars on topic selection and preemption checking and cite and substance checking utilizing various Lexis + resources.

By Lawrence J. Trautman, 51 Ind. L. Rev. 693 (2018).
Presented first is a brief examination of why lawyers do not write well. Second, is a description of the law review: its value; a brief history of the American law journal experience; the editor selection process; who does what on law reviews; and the number and type of law journals. Thoughts about the writing process and important considerations regarding law review writing in particular are then presented. Reflections by recent law journal editors about their law review experiences are offered, along with suggestions about how authors may improve their manuscripts. Following that, the who, what, where and when of the publication process is covered. Comments about the Social Sciences Research Network (SSRN) are presented, then followed by a brief discussion about the currency value of citations. I believe this Article starts a *694 fresh conversation about the importance and value of legal writing, law review, and law journal publication.

By Heather Meeker, 1996 Utah L. Rev. 917 (1996)

By Andrew Yaphe, 62 J. Legal Educ. 259 (2012)

By Robert Luther III, 50 U. Rich. L. Rev. Online 63 (2016).

By Christian C. Day, 6 Legal Writing: J. Legal Writing Inst. 229 (2000)

By Professor Richard Delgado, 20 U.S.F.L. Rev. 445 (1986)

Gerald Lebovits, 78 N.Y. St. B.A. J. 64 (2006).

Sean Burke, 99 J. PAT. & TRADEMARK OFF. Soc'y 113 (2017).