Membership on the law review is the most prestigious credential a law student can acquire. Not only is selection highly competitive, the skills law review members develop are prized by all legal employers.
Holding editorial office at a law review is among the most significant accomplishments of the beginning of a legal career and remains in the biography of every lawyer for his or her entire career. It is worth noting that three Supreme Court Justices, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, John G. Roberts, Jr., and Antonin Scalia were on Harvard law Review. President Barack Obama was the Editor-in-Chief of the Harvard Law Review.
What is Law Review?
A law review is the student-edited scholarly journal of a law school. Law reviews publish articles, major scholarly works typically written by law professors, and notes and comments written by law students.
Law review subscribers include the Supreme Court and lower U.S. courts, law schools, universities, law firms, and individuals. A law review’s subscriber base is often international.
The influence of law reviews is felt both academically and judicially. Because law continuously evolves, law reviews offer an accepted method for professionals to stay current with new legal developments. Law review articles are regularly cited by legal academics (in other articles, casebooks, treatises, and similar works) and also by judges at all levels.
The main law review of a law school is typically a general-interest legal publication. Some law schools also publish secondary journals on more limited subjects. As an example, from 1977-2007, La Verne Law published the Journal of Juvenile Law, and the University of La Verne Law Review continues to publish an annual Juvenile Law issue continuing this historic mission.
Generally speaking, eligibility for law review membership is based on both first year academic performance (grades) and the score received on the “write-on” competition, which can include a “Bluebooking” (citation) exercise, written analysis on a specific legal topic and/or a closed-universe memo on a recently-decided case.
The Brief
- Typically, law review consists of an elite group of second year law students (2Ls) and third year law students (3Ls), who work together under the leadership of the Editor-in-Chief and the Managing Board. Eligibility for law review membership is often based on both first year academic performance (grades) and the score received on the “write-on” competition.
- 2L members of the law review staff focus on cite-checking the articles to be published in the law review that year, and also write their own original Notes and Comments.
- 3L editors direct all aspects of the law review, from selecting new members, to choosing articles, to publishing the two issues a year and managing the business side of the enterprise.
About the University of La Verne Law Review
- La Verne Law began publishing the Journal of Juvenile Law in 1977, making it the first law review devoted exclusively to legal issues related to minors.
- Beginning with Volume 17 (1996), the articles and comments published in the Journal of Juvenile Law have been included on Westlaw and available for online searches.
- Beginning in 2007-2008, the spring issue of the University of La Verne Law Review has been a Symposium Issue. The Volume 29 Symposium Issue, on child soldiers, was published in May 2008. The Volume 30 Symposium Issue, on the Internet, is forthcoming in April 2009. The Volume 31 Symposium Issue, scheduled for publication in Spring 2010, will focus on immigration.
- The law review consists of an elite group of 20 2Ls and 20 3Ls, who work together under the leadership of the Editor-in-Chief and the Managing Board.
- New staff members are chosen from the top 40 students who have completed the full time first year requirements (including part-time students at the end of their second year). Occasionally, spaces open up on the law review and second-year students may compete to fill them.
- The University of La Verne Law Review publishes four to six Notes and Comments each year, written by students enrolled at La Verne Law. The Law Review Seminar, the graded academic component of the law review, is designed around giving students the opportunity to write a publishable Note or Comment on a topic of their own selection. In recent years, several La Verne Law students have published their work in outside journals, such as the Chapman Law Review, the National Black Law Journal, the Real Estate Law Journal, the BYU International Law & Management Review, the Whittier Journal of Child & Family Advocacy, and the International Sports Law Review.
- For more information about the University of La Verne Law Review, visit University of La Verne Law Review