I. Introduction

What's the problem? What is my thesis? Writing a law review note provides concrete, direct, long-term benefits.  Why?

• personal

• deep learning experience

• collaborative

• resume & hiring value

• opportunity to affect law

• good preparation for law practice because it requires a self-initiated, self-directed, and sustained effort

Roadmap (presentation will follow the organizational structure of a typical law review note or article)

II. Situating the thesis within a context (the background section)

    A. Kinds of notes

        1. the case cruncher (or the case note)

        2. the law reform article

        3. the legislative note

        4. the interdisciplinary article

        5. the theory-fitting or theory-discovering article

        6. the legal profession, legal education, legal argument article

        7. the article that joins an ongoing debate

        8. the article that traces legal history

        9. the article that compares law from different countries

        10. the extremely rare article that reports the results of empirical research

    B. Law students usually write in the first three categories.

III. How to write a note (the analysis, critique, description of solution section).

    A. Prewriting

        1. Developing potential topics

            --your interests, background, work, education, family

            --read legal and regular newspapers, other legal and regular news sources

            --ask an expert

            --browse loose-leafs in a particular field

            --check current developments online

            --check with professors

            --talk with other students

            --start with preemption - check law review articles on your topic

            --then check secondary sources

            --remember that you can do factual research & research in other disciplines

            --use the zoom lens - start large and narrow on a more specific idea

            --the thesis must state a claim

            --that is novel

            --not obvious

            --and useful

            --and not likely to be moot before publication

    How?

            --identify a problem and brainstorm solutions

            --look for a particular jurisprudential approach (legal formalism, feminist critique, critical race theory, law and

              economics, legal realism, legal rhetoric) to criticize or apply

            --search for inconsistencies or omissions in the cases or the policies

            --examine the context to more fully explain decisions, rules, policies 

            --find a niche within a well-explored area

            --examine types of legal arguments

            --examine types of scientific/literary/cultural critiques

            --keep a journal or list or freewrite to come up with ideas

            --talk with peers/editors/professors

4. Examples

    a. Take a list of current legal issues:

        - Use of stun belts to keep defendants quiet in courtrooms

        - Taking of photos of witnesses/spectators in and outside courtrooms

        - Use of Internet research/sources in legal argument

        - "Regime change" in Iraq

        - "Client" questions in corporate lawyering

    b. Develop possible initial thesis list just to get you started; these obviously will be refined and changed as you research

        and write

B. Drafting

Two kinds of people in the world: drafters v. outliners, expanders v. cutters. But have to be both kinds in writing a law review note, just at different times.

    1. The organizational template

        a. Introduction - thesis, outline of paper

        b. Situating in context - what's the background? what's the problem?

        c. The critique or analysis & the solution or the proposal

        d. The conclusion

    2. Note-taking within a template - include footnotes as you take notes.

    3. Stop from time to time to outline in more detail and rearrange notes.

    4. Turn notes into rough draft paragraphs.

    5. Copy whole document on copy cut out everything except topic sentence for a topic sentence outline

        --check logical order

    7. Re-read to re-draft.

        --check thesis

        --check coverage

        --content choices

        --content support and development

        --check major writing problems

    8. Re-draft.

        --determine where to expand and contract

        --revise in stages and pieces

        --remember end of article, not just the beginning

    9. Another after-the-fact outline.

    10. Get feedback from others.

    11. Re-read to re-organize and re-draft.

    12. And so on.

C. The final draft - Who is your audience? Primarily the students who will decide whether or not to publish your note.

        --get feedback from others

    2. Revise for content.

        --too much v. too little

        --what goes in footnotes v. what goes in text

    3. Revise to make organization visible.

        --show major divisions and subdivisions

        --check logical order

        --use signposts

    4. Revise and edit sentences.

        --tone

        --sentence structure/word choice

        --grammar/punctuation

    5. Proofread.

        --mechanics

        --citations