NYU Law Students Demand Compensation For Work On Law Journals

Washington Square News, NYU Law Students Demand Compensation For Academic Journal Work:

Students at NYU’s School of Law are demanding compensation for their work on student-run journals — scholarly publications affiliated with the law school that focus on legal issues. The students created a petition with over 250 signatures in support of the cause, and eight on-campus publications signed a letter to law school administrators this past Monday.

In the letter, students asked that all contributors to the journals be able to choose whether to receive compensation in hourly wages or credit hours. Currently, only third-year students are eligible for compensation through credit hours, and no students receive hourly pay.

“We love our work, but prestige is not adequate compensation for the value we provide,” the letter reads. “Our journals have been cited in courts throughout the country, up to the Supreme Court. NYU reaps the benefits of robust journal publication in admissions and institutional prestige.”

Sean Connolly, a second-year law student and an editor for one of the journals, and Devin McCowan, a third-year who edits a different journal, said that NYU Law administration has acknowledged the letter, but has yet to address student compensation.

Connolly also claimed that other universities, like the University of Pennsylvania and Vanderbilt University, give credit hours for all student work on journals. He said that if students are able to secure hourly wages, NYU Law would be the first law school to provide financial compensation for this type of work.