Writing Competitions
We encourage you to pursue all outside sources of assistance.
American Bar Association Essay & Writing Competitions
- Deadline: Various
- Awards: Various
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Requirements:
- Contests include topics in Administrative & Regulatory Practice Law, Business Law, Criminal Justice, Antitrust Law, Domestic Violence, Intellectual Property Law, Health Law and many other others.
- Website: www.abanet.org/lsd/competitions/writing-contests/home.html
ABA Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee Writing Competition for Law Students
- Deadline: February 1, 2013
- Awards: $500, plus up to $500 toward attendance at an ABA TIPS meeting, plus publication in the ADR newsletter and consideration for publication to the TIPS Law Journal Board
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Requirements:
- Topic: Recent developments in Alternative Dispute Resolution
- Entrants are encouraged to write on subjects of national interest, not state specific.
- All entries must be previously unpublished
- Website: http://www.americanbar.org/groups/antitrust_law/awards_fellowships/l_student_writing_competition.html
American Indian Law Writing Competition
- Deadline: January 18, 2013
- Awards: $1,000 and publication, $500, $250
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Requirements:
- Open to all current law students
- Papers will be accepted on any issue concerning American Indian Law
- Website: http://nationalnalsa.org/events/writingcomp/
Ladas Memorial Student & Professional Award Competition
- Deadline: January 18, 2013
- Award: $2,000 plus other benefits
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Requirements:
- Open to currently enrolled law or graduate students
- Subject of the paper must be Trademark Law
- Website: http://www.inta.org/Academics/Pages/LadasMemorialAward.aspx
ASECA Securities Law Writing Competition
- Deadline: November 16, 2012
- Prizes: $5,000, $3,000, $2,000
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Requirements:
- Open to all current law students
- Papers will be accepted on any subject in the field of Securities Law
- Website: http://www.secalumni.org/content.asp?contentid=4
Grammy Foundation Writing Competition
- Deadline: January 3, 2013
- Award: $5,000, $1,000
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Requirements:
- Open to current JD students
- Research & identify a compelling legal issue confronting the Music Industry, and propose a solution
- Website & Rules: http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Entertainment-Law-Initiative/78505784535?v=info
Endangered Environmental Laws Writing Competition
- Deadline: April 12, 2013
- Award: $2,000 and publication
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Requirements:
- Open to all currently enrolled law students
- Any topic addressing recent developments or trends in U.S. Environmental Law that have a significant constitutional or “federalism” component
- Website: http://www.eli.org/writing_contest.cfm
State Bar of Michigan Environmental Law Essay Contest
- Deadline: June 30, 2012
- Award: $2,000, $1,000, $500 and publication
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Requirements:
- Open to all currently enrolled law students
- Papers accepted on any Environmental Law topic of current interest to Michigan practitioners
- Previous Wayne Law winners: 2008 Jim Roush, 2010 Eric Jamison
- Website & More Information: www.michbar.org/environmental/essay.cfm
Hogan/Smoger Access to Justice Essay Contest
- Deadlines: Intent to Enter: January 31, 2013; Essay Submission: March 31, 2013
- Award: $5,000, Publication in Journal of Environmental Law
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Requirements:
- Open to all currently enrolled law students
- Essay topic for 2013: "Is Democracy for Sale? Have Citizens United's holdings run amok? Legal challenges left to Super Pacs? Can funding disclosure be required?"
- Website & More Information: http://publicjustice.net/news-events/awards/hogansmoger-essay-contest
American College of Consumer Financial Services Lawyers Writing Competition
- Annual Deadline: December 1, 2012
- Awards: $2,500, $2,000, $1,000 plus other benefits
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Requirements:
- Papers accepted on Consumer Financial Services
- Website: http://www.accfsl.org/writing-competition
Food & Drug Law Institute's H. Thomas Austern Memorial Writing Competition
- Deadline: May 31, 2012
- Prizes: $4,000, $1,000
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Requirements:
- Open to all currently enrolled JD students or recent graduates
- Papers accepted on law that affect Foods, Drugs, Devices, Cosmetics and Biologics
- Two competitions - Short Paper and Long paper
- Website & Rules: http://www.fdli.org/resources/academics/h-thomas-austern-memorial-writing-competition
Trandafir International Business Writing Competition
- Deadline: March 1, 2012
- Award: $2,000
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Requirements:
- Open to all currently enrolled law or graduate students
- Papers accepted on any topic of contemporary International Business or economic concern with a legal nexus
- Website & Rules: www.uiowa.edu/~tlcp/trandafir_competition.html
Elliot A. Spoon Business Law Writing Competition
- Deadline: March 2, 2012
- Award: $500 and publication
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Requirements:
- Open to all upper-level, currently enrolled law students
- Papers accepted on any topic concerning Business or Securities Law
- Website: www.msu.edu/~jbsl/
- Contest Rules: https://www.msu.edu/~jbsl/spoon_competition.html
National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys Student Writing Competition
- NAELA will not hold a Student Writing Competition in 2012. NAELA is taking this year to re-evaluate the Student Writing Competition as a means of promoting Elder and Special Needs Law as an area of specialty to law students and determine if there are more effective ways to accomplish that goal.
- Website: www.naela.org
College of Labor & Employment Lawyers Writing Competition for Law Students
- Deadline: May 15, 2013
- Prizes: $1,500, $1,000, $500
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Requirements:
- Open to all currently enrolled law students
- Papers accepted on any domestic aspect of public or private Labor or Employment Law
- Website: http://www.laborandemploymentcollege.org/products/writing%20competition.aspx
Louis Jackson National Student Writing Competition in Employment & Labor Law
- Deadline: January 22, 2013
- Awards: $3,000, $1,000 and publication
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Requirements:
- Open to currently enrolled law students with course work in employment or labor law
- Papers accepted on any topic relating to the law governing the workplace, such as Employment Law, Labor Law, Employee Benefits, or Employment Discrimination
- Website: http://www.kentlaw.iit.edu/institutes-centers/institute-for-law-and-the-workplace/louis-jackson-writing-competition
Howard C. Schwab Memorial Essay Contest
- Deadlines: 2013 TBA
- Awards: Recognition, publication, membership
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Requirements:
- Open to currently enrolled second or third year law students
- Any aspect of Family Law
- Website: http://www.americanbar.org/groups/family_law/resources/essay_contest.html
Center for Alcohol Policy Essay Contest
- Deadline: December 14, 2012
- Prizes: $5,000, $2,500, $1,000
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Requirements:
- Open to all persons over the age of 18.
- Website: http://www.centerforalcoholpolicy.org/essay-contest
Tannenwald Writing Competition
- Deadline: July 3, 2012
- Prizes: $5,000, $2,500, $1,500
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Requirements:
- Open to all currently enrolled law students - each paper must be sponsored by a law school professor
- Papers must focus primarily upon technical or policy-oriented Tax issues
- Website: http://www.tannenwald.org/competition
Federal Bar Association Tax Writing Competition
- Deadline: January 7, 2013
- Prizes: $2,000 & trip to conference, $1,000 plus other benefits
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Requirements:
- Open to all currently enrolled full-time JD or LLM law students
- You may submit any original, unpublished paper concerning federal taxation
- Website: www.fedbar.org/Sections/Section-on-Taxation/Writing-Competition.aspx
Paul Faherty Tax Law Writing Competition
- Deadline: April 15, 2013
- Awards: $3,000, two honorable mention awards of $1,000
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Requirements:
- Paper must address a public policy issue, a critique of a leading case or doctrine, a comment on a statute or the need for statutory modification, or a comment on a common law doctrine
- Open to any currently enrolled law school student
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Website & Rules: www.jmls.edu/faherty
Michael Greenberg Student Writing Competition
- Deadline: May 20, 2012
- Awards: $3,000, $2,000, $1,000 plus other benefits
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Requirements:
- Open to all currently enrolled law students
- Papers accepted on a cutting edge legal issue affecting the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and/or Intersex community
- Website & Rules: www.lgbtbar.org/competition.html
American College of Legal Medicine Student Writing Competition
- Deadline: January 4, 2013
- Awards: $1,000
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Requirements:
- All currently enrolled law students
- Any aspect of Legal Medicine
- Website and Contest Rules: www.aclm.org/resources/swc
American College of Bioethics Student Writing Competition
- Deadline: January 4, 2013
- Awards: $1,000, $500, $250
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Requirements:
- All currently enrolled law students
- Any aspect of Bioethics
- Website: www.aclm.org/resources/swc
State Bar of Michigan Health Care Law Annual Writing Competition
- Deadline: July 31, 2012
- Awards: $2,000, $1,500
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Requirements:
- Open to all first and second year Michigan law students
- Topic: Personal Health Records
- Previous Wayne Law winners: 2009 Deborah Fisch, 2008 Lindsey Hoffman
- Website & Rules: www.michbar.org/health/writingcompetition.cfm
Epstein Becker Green Health Law Writing Competition
- Deadline: January 31, 2012
- Awards: $4,000 and possible publication, $2,000 and $500
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Requirements:
- Open to all law students who attended during the school year
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Papers may address any traditional area of the law as applied to Health Care or areas of the law unique to health care
- Website & Rules: http://www.ebglaw.com/healthlawwriting
Sarah Weddington Writing Prize in Reproductive Rights
- Deadline: March 4, 2013
- Awards: $750, $500, $250. The 1st place winning submission will have a presumption of publishability.
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Requirements:
- Open to all law students and recent graduates
- This year's theme is "Economic (in)Justice of Reproductive Regulation."
- Website & Rules: http://lsrj.org/awards
Levit Essay Contest on Lawyers' Professional Liability
- Deadline: 2013 TBA
- Awards: $5,000
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Requirements:
- Open to law students & young lawyers enrolled as members of the ABA
- Website & Rules: http://www.americanbar.org/groups/lawyers_professional_liability/awards/overview.html
Constance Baker Motley National Student Writing Competition
- Deadline: February 22, 2013
- Awards: $3,000 and two runner-up awards of $1,000
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Requirements:
- All currently enrolled law students
- Papers furhering and promotinga progressive vision of the Constitution, law, and public policy. Examples: Racial Equality, Civil Liberties, and Human Rights.
- Website: http://www.acslaw.org/chapters/studentcompetitions/writing
American Judges Association Law Student Essay Competition
- Deadline: June 1, 2012
- Awards: $3,000 and possible publication, $1,500, $1,000
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Requirements:
- Open to all current law students
- Essay topics focus on the effective administration of Justice. See the website for this year's topic.
- Website & Rules: http://aja.ncsc.dni.us/essay-contest
William W. Greenhalgh Student Writing Competition
- Deadline: June 11, 2012
- Awards: $2,000 and travel to attend ABA Criminal Justice Section meeting
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Requirements:
- Open to all current law students who are members of the ABA
- Essay topics focus on issues of American criminal constitutional procedure
- Website: http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/uncategorized/criminal_justice/greenhalgh_rules.authcheckdam.pdf
Federal Circuit Bar Association George Hutchinson Writing Competition
- Deadline: April 15, 2012
- Awards: $3,000
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Requirements:
- Open to all current law students
- Essay must deal with a topic that lies within the substance, procedure, or scope of the specialized jurisdiction of the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals
- Website: http://www.fedcirbar.org/olc/pub/LVFC/cpages/misc/scholar.jsp
James William Moore Federal Practice Award
- Deadline: June 1, 2012
- Awards: $2,000
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Requirements:
- Open to all current law students
- Essay subject of the paper must be federal civil practice and procedure, including civil jurisdiction and venue rules of federal courts
- Website & Rules: http://www.lexisnexis.com/documents/pdf/20120117015617_large.pdf
ABA Section of International Law Rona R. Mears Student Writing Competition
- Deadline: January 20, 2012
- Awards: $1,000 plus publication and travel/lodging at Spring Meeting
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Requirements:
- Open to all current law students who are members of the ABA Section of International Law
- Website: http://www.americanbar.org/dam/aba/publications/law_student_enews/dec11.html#cwc
Warren E. Burger Writing Competition
- Deadline: June 1, 2012
- Awards: $5,000 and publication
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Requirements:
- Open to all current law students
- Papers will be accepted on a topic that addresses issues of legal excellence, civility, ethics, and professionalism
- Website & Rules: http://www.innsofcourt.org/
Smith-Doheny Legal Ethics Writing Competition
- Deadline: April 27, 2012
- Awards: $2,500
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Requirements:
- Open to all current law students
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Paper may be on any legal ethics topic
International Association of Defense Counsel Legal Writing Competition
- Deadline: May 18, 2012
- Awards: $2,000, $1,000, $500 and possible publication
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Requirements:
- Open to all current law students
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Paper must be original work, previously unpublished and must cover the fields of tort law, insurance law, civil procedure, evidence, or other areas of practical concern to lawyers engaged in the defense or management or the defense of civil litigation
- Previous Wayne Law winner: 2001 Monica Matter
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Website & Rules: http://www.iadclaw.org/publications/contest.aspx
Selma Moidel Smith Law Student Writing Competition
- Deadline: May 1, 2012
- Awards: $500 and publication
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Requirements:
- Open to all current law students
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Essays must have topics on issues concerning women's rights or the status of women in the law
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Website: www.nawl.org
National Association of Chapter 13 Trustees Law Student Writing Competition
- Deadline: April 30, 2012
- Awards: $1,000 and publication in the NACTT Quarterly
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Requirements:
- Open to all current law students
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Essays must be the law student's own work and must not have been submitted for publication elsewhere
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The topic should be an issue concerning Chapter 13 of the Bankruptcy Code
Website & Rules: www.nactt.com/
University of Connecticut School of Law Student Legal Writing Competition
- Deadline: June 1, 2013
- Awards: $750, $500, $250
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Requirements:
- Open students enrolled in an ABA-accredited law school in the United States or Canada
American Intellectual Property Law Association Robert C. Watson Competition
- Deadline: June 30, 2013
- Awards: $2,000
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Requirements:
- Article must relate to the Protection of Intellectual Property
- Article must be written solely by a student or students in a full-time attendance at a law school or prepared in connection with a law school course
- Article must be written or published between July 1, 2012 and June 30, 2013
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Website & Rules: www.aipla.org
Brown Award for Excellence in Legal Writing
- Deadline: June 4, 2012
- Awards: $10,000
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Requirements:
- Open to current law students
- Must submit four copies of a current legal writing
- Students must also submit a letter of recommendation by a law school faculty member or legal professional
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Website & Rules: www.brownsims.com/judgebrownaward.htm
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