The Upper-Level Writing Paper And The Law Review Article: How To Tell Your Story

Lisa Smith-Butler (Charleston), The Upper-Level Writing Paper and the Law Review Article: How to Tell Your Story, 51 Cap. U. L. Rev. 205 (2023): 

This article theorizes the actual writing process for faculty and students is quite similar and mirrors one another. Differences do exist between the two groups, particularly in terms of motivation, expectations, and publication processes. Ultimately, an ideal checklist for both can be composed. The checklist asks the faculty or student writer to consider the following:

1. What will your topic be and how do you pick it?
2. Is it original, i.e., has it been preempted?
3. Who is your audience?
4. What is it that you want to prove or disprove, i.e., what is your thesis statement?
5. What is your roadmap? How can you show your reader where you will take them?
6. What resources will you consult to find information on this topic? Is the topic original? Is it manageable?
7. What resources will you consult to find the relevant primary sources of law? Where would you locate additional research resources that might be needed?
8. How will you organize your material so it flows logically, paragraph by paragraph, for your reader? Outlining is crucial for understanding the paper’s intended organization and exposing any gaps in the research.
9. Is more research necessary?
10. Can you now begin the rough draft? Garner advises you to write this quickly. Use your outline and research while drafting.
11. Re-read, edit, and re-write.
12. Keep your footnotes correct while you edit.
13. Seek feedback from others.
14. Re-write again!
15. Polish and edit.
16. To paraphrase Garner, did you say what you intended to say?
17. Using the tools discussed, seek publication as appropriate.

As this checklist demonstrates, the actual writing process is similar for professors and students. Expectations regarding the writing process do differ. ABA Standard 303(a)(2) requires a faculty member to supervise a student’s upper-level writing paper.180 From this supervision, the student can expect meetings with the faculty member, guidance, review, and help as needed. In turn, a faculty member expects a student to meet deadlines and turn in an original and readable paper. Institutions and law review editors have differing expectations for scholarship produced by professors, and specific, specialized tools exist to help faculty with publishing. In spite of the differences that exist, there are enough similarities that a uniform checklist for an upper-level writing paper or a scholarly article can be created and used by both professors and students.

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