Everything You Need to Know About the

Write-On Competition

Who We Are• Rich McCarty– Law Review

rtmccart@central.uh.edu• Kristen Hawley– Law Review

krevans2@central.uh.edu• David Tedford– International Law Journal

datedfor@central.uh.edu• Nicole Rank – Health Law Journal

ndrank@central.uh.edu• Hessam Parzivand – Business & Tax Law Journal

hparziva@central.uh.edu• Adam Scott – Environmental & Energy Law

aescott2@central.uh.edu

What is the Write-On?

Five journals collaborate on an entry competition by which eligible students may gain membership.

Each write-on participant anonymously submits a 20-30 page casenote analyzing an assigned court decision.

Who is Eligible to Participate?

• Each journal has different requirements. Check each journal’s website for participation requirements.HLR –Top 30% of class.HJIL – Top 50% of class.HBTLJ – Finished first year.HJHLP – Finished first year.EELPJ – Finished first year.

Competition Dates• June 20, 2009, at 8:00 am.

– Assigned case will be posted on the Law Review’s website.

– http://www.houstonlawreview.org/writeoncompetition.html

• July 9, 2009, at 6:00 pm.– Papers due in to Student Services, with appropriate

forms.– Late submissions will be refused! – If you’re out of town, your casenote must be

postmarked by this date (send to Student Services, not HLR).

• July 17, 2009– Prospective members notified.

Anonymity

• Your submission is identified only by the last 6 digits of your SSN. You will also submit an identification form with your paper, which Student Services will retain until the journals have made their selections.

• Do not put your name on your paper or otherwise indicate your identity!

• The names of selected candidates are only revealed when their papers are chosen. If your paper is not selected, your identity will never be revealed to the journals.

What if you’re interested in more than one journal?• You must submit a separate copy of

your paper for each journal you are interested in.

• You must also submit a ranking form to Student Services along with your casenote. The ranking form is only consulted if more than one journal selects your paper.

Honor Code Rules

• All work must be your own.• You cannot share research.• Don’t discuss research, legal theories, cite

form, grammar, word choice, or any other aspect of your paper with anyone.

• No one can proofread your paper.• It’s a violation of the honor code if this rule is

not strictly followed.

• THE ONLY EXCEPTION: You can use the Lexis/Westlaw aides (through the website) and the UHLC Reference Librarians, for “how do I find this” questions.

Formatting Requirements

• 20-30 pages.• Double-spaced text & footnotes.• Times New Roman 12-point font for both

text & footnotes.• 1” margins (top, bottom, left, right).• No tricks on word spacing, etc!• 50/50 text to footnote ratio.• Every verifiable statement must have a

footnote and the best footnotes have parentheticals.

Tips for Writing the Best Casenote

• Follow all formatting requirements.• Figure out your point of view and argue it persuasively.

– Corollary: please have a clear point of view!• Communicate your ideas efficiently.• Keep your legal theories simple – don’t try to

overcomplicate the subject.• Research as thoroughly as you can and use a good

variety of sources in your paper.• Cite everything and use parentheticals explaining your

authority. Use proper Bluebook citation form.• Use active voice.

What is a Casenote?

• It all starts with research • Refer to Fajans & Falk, Scholarly

Writing for Law Students (3d ed. 2005)

• Parts of a casenote:– Introduction– Case Recitation– Analysis– Conclusion

• Examples on LR website

Establishing a Thesis:

• Focus your analysis on one aspect of the materials

• Examine the type of arguments the court is making.

– Ex. Based on Precedent, Interpretive, Institutional, and Policy Arguments

Writing Strategies

• MAKE SURE you update your access to Westlaw or Lexis for the summer! Do it now!

• Limited timeframe—Start Early• Organization is Key • Check Bluebook Form• Proofreading

For more detailed instruction on casenotes

• Attend Professor Tabor’s seminar!• June 6, 2009 – Time: TBD

Why should I bother?

• It’s not as bad as it sounds – really!

• Participating on a journal has lots of benefits.

Any questions???