Legal Writing Prof Blog

tips on using a dictionary

Professor Kurt Metzmeier has written a helpful short piece with points to consider when turning to a dictionary to aid statutory interpretation. You Can Look it Up: The Use of Dictionaries in Interpreting Statutes appears in the July 2007 Louisville Bar Briefs.

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help for your thesis sentences

UNLV Professor Michael Higdon's most recent article in his state's bar journal, the Nevada Lawyer, is called The Legal Reader, the Legal Writer and the All-Important Thesis Sentence.  It gives helpful advice that might enrich a lesson plan or classroom handout.

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ALWD unveils redesigned website

Prof. Debra Green, chair of the Association of Legal Writing Directors' website committee, has announced the opening of ALWD's redesigned, updated, and reconfigured website. In addition to familiar content, the website is set to provide two additional new features:  a “forums” link for members and a “search” function.

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conference on rhetoric and law

Prof. Terry Godwin Phelps of American University, Washington College of Law has announced that school's hosting of a conference titled “How Legal Rhetoric Shapes the Law,” scheduled for Friday, November 2, 2007. The keynote address will be delivered by James Boyd White. To register, go to http://www.wcl.american.edu/secle/cle_form.cfm. There is no charge to attend.

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visiting position at Missouri-Columbia

The University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law is seeking applications for a nine-month appointment as a Visiting Assistant Legal Writing Professor for the 2008-2009 academic year. For information about the school's Legal Research and Writing program, contact Melody Daily, Clinical Professor of Law, and Director of Legal Research and Writing, MU School of Law, 203 Hulston Hall, Columbia, MO 65211. To apply, send a cover letter, resume, writing sample, and list of three references (with their contact information) by the October 1, 2007, deadline to Associate Dean Thom Lambert, Chair, Faculty Appointments Committee, University of Missouri–Columbia School of Law, 231 Hulston Hall, Columbia, MO 65211-4300.

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free Internet access to case law

A press release from Columbia University announces free Internet access to U.S. judicial decisions, coming soon to a wireless connection near you.

hat tip:  Professor James Duggan, Southern Illinois University

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job openings at John Marshall (Chicago), North Dakota, and Stetson

The John Marshall Law School-Chicago invites entry-level and experienced faculty to apply for possible tenure-track, long-term contract, or visiting faculty appointments beginning the 2008-09 academic year, in several subject matter areas, including lawyering skills. Applicants should e-mail or send a letter of application and resume by October 10, 2007 to Professor Mark E. Wojcik, Chair, Selection and Appointments Committee, The John Marshall Law School, 315 South Plymouth Court, Chicago, IL 60604.

The University of North Dakota School of Law seeks applications for for the position of tenure-track Assistant Professor of Law to teach in the school's Lawyering Skills program beginning in August 2008.  Applicants should mail a cover letter, resume, the names of three references, and a writing sample to Kathryn R. L. Rand, Associate Dean, University of North Dakota School of Law, 215 Centennial Drive, Mail Stop 9003, Grand Forks, ND 58202. Questions regarding the position can be directed to Kirsten Dauphinais, Director of Lawyering Skills.

Stetson University College of Law has announced an opening for the position of Assistant Professor of Legal Skills, a position with a three-year renewable contract. To apply, send a cover letter and current curriculum vitae by September 10 to Professors Michael Allen and Timothy Kaye, Co-Chairs, Faculty Appointments Committee, Stetson University College of Law, 1401 61st Street South, Gulfport, FL 33707. Most initial screening interviews will be conducted during the AALS 2007 Faculty Recruitment Conference in Washington, DC on October 25-28, 2007. For more information about the position, contact Professor Kirsten Davis, Director of Legal Research and Writing (727-562-7877).

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Diana Pratt named winner of Blackwell Award

This year's winner of the Thomas Blackwell Award is Professor Diana Pratt. The award recognizes those who have made an outstanding contribution to improve the field of legal writing by demonstrating

• the ability to nuture and motivate students to excellence;
• the willingness to help other Legal Writing Educators improve their teaching skills or their Legal Writing Programs; and
• the ability to create and integrate new ideas for teaching and motivating Legal Writing educators and students.

Professor Pratt will be honored at a joint ALWD and LWI reception at the AALS conference on Thursday, January 3, 2008 from 6:30-8:30at the Sheraton New York Hotel and Towers, in the Imperial Ballroom East.

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the cutting edge of legal scholarship

Check out William J. Aceves, James M. Cooper, Alejandro Gonzalez, & Pedro Egana Marshall, The Orthodoxy of Format:  Some Sketches on Legal Scholarship, 56 Journal of Legal Education 656 (2006).  Saying anything more would ruin it for you.

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