Legal Writing Prof Blog

Connecticut is Hiring

The University of Connecticut School of Law is seeking a Director of its Legal Practice Program.  Get more information at this link: https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/25375.

Hat tip to Jessica Rubin.

(mew)

Cincinnati is Hiring

The University of Cincinnati College of Law is looking for someone to supervise their moot court teams and advocacy competition teams and to teach some advocacy courses. Contact the law school for more information.

Hat tip to Rachel Smith.

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Mercer is Hiring

The Mercer University School of Law invites applications from entry-level and pre-tenure lateral candidates (Assistant and Associate rank) for three tenure-track faculty positions to begin in the Fall of 2024. They welcome applications from candidates in all subject matter areas, especially commercial law, and legal writing. They also welcome candidates who are truly entry-level, with no prior law teaching experience, but who show significant promise for excellence in teaching and scholarship.  

Founded in 1873, Mercer University School of Law has a long tradition of producing lawyers who are ready to practice and committed to service. The School has earned a reputation as an excellent provider of legal education with an intense focus on student and faculty interaction. With an enrollment of about 375 students, Mercer Law School is one of 12 schools and colleges of Mercer University, which has been listed among the top institutions of higher education in the nation. The School of Law is nationally recognized for its exceptional programs in legal writing, advocacy (moot court and mock trial), public service, and professionalism and ethics.

The School of Law is located in Macon, Georgia, a city of approximately 156,000. Macon is known for its strong musical heritage (e.g., Otis Redding, Little Richard, the Allman Brothers), its vibrant arts community, its recreational offerings (e.g., the Ocmulgee Mounds National Historic Park), and its affordable cost of living. Located 85 miles from Atlanta, Macon offers the livability of a smaller city with ready access to large city amenities.

Mercer University recognizes the power of a diverse community and encourages applications from individuals with varied experiences, perspectives, and backgrounds. Mercer University is an AA/EEO/Veteran/ADA employer. 

Applicants should have a J.D. degree from an accredited university/college, a commitment to excellence in teaching, and demonstrated potential for excellence in research and scholarship. Interested applicants will need to complete the brief online application at merceruniversity.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/external/...and attach a current CV with the names and contact information for three references. For information contact Professor Pam Wilkins, Chair, Appointments Committee, Mercer University School of Law, [email protected].

Hat tip to Suzianne D. Painter-Thorne

(mew)

“Practical English Language Skills for Lawyers” Wins the 2023 GLS Book Award

Natasha Costello and Louise Kulbicki have won the 2023 Global Legal Skills Book Award for their book, Practical English Language Skills for Lawyers: Improving Your Legal English.” The book was published in 2023 by Routledge (London and New York). The award was presented during the closing plenary session of the Global Legal Skills Conference held July 30 to August 1, 2023 at Nottingham Trent University.

The 354-page book on Practical Legal English Skills includes chapters on networking, telephoning and conference calls, client meetings, presentations, social media marketing, and job applications and interviews. There are also short chapters with advice on legal writing, contract negotiation and drafting, advocacy, and alternative dispute resolution. Appendices in the book include questions for self-assessment and peer-assessment, a short chart with examples of how to convert legalese to plain English, transcripts of conversations, and a useful glossary of legal terms.  

Natasha Costello is a non-practicing English solicitor and a former senior lecturer in law at Manchester Metropolitan University in England. She is currenting working as an independent teacher in Paris, where she teaches legal English to practicing French lawyers and to law students at various universities in the Paris area.

Louise Kulbicki is a legal English teacher and the founder of Study Legal English, which provides online legal English resources to learners in more than 140 countries. She gained practical experience in the field of international environmental law before turning to teaching legal English.

Both Natasha and Louise have served on the board of EULETA, the European Legal English Teachers’ Association. EULETA was also recognized with a Global Legal Skills Award during the 2023 GLS Conference in Nottingham.

Pictured here (from left to right) are Natasha Costello, Professor David Austin (California Western School of Law and member of the GLS-15 Planning Committee), Louise Kulbicki, and Mark E. Wojcik (University of Illinois Chicago School of Law and founder of the Global Legal Skills Conference Series).

The next Global Legal Skills Conference will be held June 4-6, 2024 at the University of Bari in Southern Italy.

(mew)

Save the Dates: Central States Legal Writing Conference in Des Moines

The Central States Legal Writing Conference will be held September 22-23, 2023 at Drake Law School in Des Moines, Iowa. Programming starts at 2:00 pm. Friday and runs through Saturday at 5:00 p.m.

(mew)

Global Legal Skills Award Winners Since 2012

Global Legal Skills Award Winners Since 2012

The first Global Legal Skills Awards were presented in 2012 in San Jose, Costa Rica, at the Seventh Global Legal Skills Conference. This is a cumulative list of GLS Award Winners from 2012 to 2019, including awards for individuals, scholarship and books, and law firms, bar associations, and other organizations. GLS Awards were not presented from 2020-2022, during the Covid-19 Pandemic. The next GLS Awards will be presented in Nottingham, England on August 1, at the close of the 2023 Global Legal Skills Conference.

Individual Award Winners 

This category recognizes individuals around the world who have made significant contributions to the promotion and improvement of global legal skills.

• David W. Austin (California Western School of Law, San Diego, California) in recognition of his longstanding commitment to legal skills education around the world and in appreciation of his many contributions to the Global Legal Skills Conference Series. [2018 Winner]
• Amrtia Bahri (Head of Global Legal Skills and Common Law Program, ITAM University, Mexico) in recognition of her demonstrated and energetic commitment to the promotion of global legal skills. [2016 Winner]
• M. Catherine Beck(Department of English, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, Indiana) for creating the Legal English Program at the Indiana University Robert McKinney School of Law and for her support of global legal skills education. As a non-lawyer language specialist working in Legal English for more than 15 years, she has enhanced legal skills pedagogy for lawyers and law students who speak English as a second language. [2017 Winner]
• E. Joan Blum (Boston College Law School, Massachusetts, United States) is recognized for her years of teaching common law legal reasoning in the International Tax Program at Harvard Law School and later directing the Boston College Law Summer Institute for international lawyers, for her many publications in the field of legal writing education, for her service to the legal writing community, and for her work teaching legal reasoning and writing to judges, lawyers, and law students in the former Yugoslavia.[2017 Winner]
• Heidi Brown, (then at New York Law School, later at Brooklyn Law School, New York), was recognized for her work with students to reduce extreme fear of public speaking and increase performance in classrooms, oral arguments, and client-centered legal skills activities. [2014 Winner]
• Juliana V. Campagna, Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University (New York) and Adjunct Professor of Law, Facultad Libre de Derecho de Monterrey (Mexico), was recognized for developing English Immersion Training Programs and for exceptional devotion to meeting the needs of international students around the world. [2014 Winner]
• Lurene Contento (then at The John Marshall Law School, now at Chicago-Kent College of Law) was recognized for many contributions to legal skills education around the world, including her interactive and innovative teaching in China, Central America, and Central Europe. She has shared her knowledge and ideas to improve legal writing at many international conferences and through her award-winning publications. She has given years of dedicated service to the Global Legal Skills Conference Series, ensuring its success and a positive experience for the participants. Over the years she has helped thousands of law students, including many non-native speakers of English. She has also contributed to the professionalization of writing centers across the United States through her leadership as Chair of the Association of Legal Writing Specialists.[2017 Winner]
• Sha-Shana Crichton (Howard University School of Law, Washington, D.C., United States), in recognition of her steadfast commitment to the promotion of global legal skills education and for advancing diversity and inclusion in legal education around the world. [2018 Winner]
• Marion Dent (ANO Pericles, Moscow, Russian Federation) was recognized for her work in higher education in Russia and for her work to bring the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition to Russia. [2014 Winner]
• Diane Penneys Edelman(Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law, now at Brooklyn Law School), in recognition of her early and sustained contributions to the promotion of legal skills internationally, to international legal exchange programs, and to closer cooperation between law professors and the global practicing bar. [2018 Winner]
• Alissa Hartig (Department of Applied Linguistics at the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Portland State University) was recognized for her research and scholarly contributions to the field of Global Legal Skills. Dr. Hartig received her B.A. summa cum laude in French from New York University and her Ph.D. in Applied Linguistics from Penn State University. She taught English as a foreign language as a Peace Corps volunteer in Guinea. She later taught and did research in Ecuador, Mexico, and South Korea. Her scholarship on advanced academic literacy in law for non-native speakers of English informs professors and challenges them to look underneath the surface of what they see. For example, her work on “Connecting Language and Disciplinary Knowledge for Specific Purposes” examines how international students develop legal writing skills and an awareness of how lawyers and legal scholars communicate. [2019 Winner]
• Craig Hoffman (Georgetown University Law Center) in recognition of his research in legal discourse and for his contributions to promoting global legal skills education. [2019 Winner]
• Kimberly Holst (Arizona State University Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law) was recognized for her efforts on projects that advance legal skills training in the United States and around the world. Her recent scholarship examines the importance of teaching reflective practices to law students so that they can develop those skills in law school and transfer them to practice. She also explores drafting techniques in the context of alternative dispute resolution. She has also served the legal writing community through her leadership of the Association of American Law Schools Section on Legal Writing, Reasoning, and Research. She also enhanced the ability of presenters to make presentation proposals to the Global Legal Skills Conference, deepening the pool of presenters from around the world. After receiving the 2017 award, Kim served as a Co-Chair of the 2019 GLS Conference at Arizona State University She also served a term as President of the Legal Writing Institute.[2017 Winner]
• Matthew J. Homewood (Nottingham Trent University, England, United Kingdom) is recognized for his extensive experience in teaching and innovative curriculum development across a comprehensive range of undergraduate, post-graduate, professional, and practitioner programs. He is the Acting Head of Postgraduate Programmes at Nottingham Law School, England. He has significant expertise in the use of educational technology and the impact of such technologies on student engagement. Matthew recently received an HEA National Teaching Fellowship, the most prestigious individual award in the United Kingdom for excellence in teaching in higher education. After receiving the 2017 award, Dr. Homewood served as a Co-Chair of the 2023 Global Legal Skills Conference at Nottingham Trent University. [2017 Winner]
• Rosa Kim (Suffolk University Law School, Massachusetts) was recognized for her dedication to teaching global legal writing skills and for promoting global legal skills education. [2019 Winner]
• Charlotte Ku (Texas A&M University School of Law and former Executive Director of the American Society of International Law) was recognized for her longstanding commitment and contributions to global legal education. Before joining Texas A&M, Dr. Ku was the assistant Dean for Graduate and International Legal Studies at the University of Illinois College of Law. Before that, she was executive vice president and executive director of the American Society of International Law. Through her international work at ASIL, Dr. Ku became well known by professors, judges, and lawyers across the world. Dr. Ku is a political scientist with a rich background in global legal education.  Her interest in world affairs began during her childhood in Hong Kong, then under British rule.  She earned a Ph.D. in International Relations at Tufts University in the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. [2019 Winner]
• Chantal Morton (Melbourne Law School, Australia) is a senior lecturer at Melbourne Law School, where she develops resources and runs programs with a focus on legal writing and academic skills for law students and graduate law students. Dr. Morton was recognized for her work to improve legal skills education in Australia. Before joining the faculty at Melbourne Law School, she taught at the Osgoode Hall Law School (Canada) where she was also the Director of Career Services. After receiving the 2017 award, Dr. Morton served as a Co-Chair of the 2018 Global Legal Skills Conference in Melbourne, Australia. [2017 Winner]
• Laurel Currie Oates (Seattle University School of Law) in recognition of her demonstrated commitment to excellence in global legal skills education, including work in Afghanistan and Africa. [2016 Winner]
• Robin Palmer, University of Canterbury, New Zealand, in recognition of his demonstrated commitment to excellence in global legal skills education in South Africa and New Zealand and for  his work to improve clinical legal education. [2016 Winner].
• Shelley Saltzman, Associate Director for Curriculum and Assessment and Senior Lecturer for the American Language Program (ALP) at the Columbia University School of Professional Studies (New York, USA), received the Global Legal Skills (GLS) Award for Outstanding Contributions to International Legal Skills Education for 25 years of innovation. [2015 Winner]
• Mimi Samuel, Seattle University School of Law, in recognition of her demonstrated commitment to excellence in global legal skills education, including work in Afghanistan and Africa. [2016 Winner]
• Rebecca Schillings (Hamad bin Khalifa University College of Law and Public Policy, Qatar) is an Assistant Professor at Hamad bin Khalifa University’s College of Law and Public Policy (CLPP), where she is responsible for the legal skills component of the curriculum. She created a legal lab that engages law students in experimentation and interactive prototyping to develop new approaches to legal practice. [2017 Winner]
• Lynn Su (New York Law School) in recognition of her strong commitment to promoting global legal skills education, cross-cultural communication, and the empowerment of diverse students. [2018 Winner]
• Elena Trosclair (Ural State Law University, Yekaterinburg, Russian Federation) was recognized for her dedication to teaching English to law students in the Russian Federation and for promoting scholarship in global legal skills. [2015 Winner]

Scholarship and Book Awards 

This category recognizes exceptional books and articles that advance the teaching of global legal skills, including new casebooks and texts for lawyers and law students.

• Cynthia M. Adams, The International Lawyer’s Guide to Legal Analysis and Communication in the United States(Wolters Kluwer 2008). [2014 Winner, with Deborah B. McGregor]
• Mary Ann E. Archer, International Law Legal Research (Carolina Academic Press 2013), a book designed to enrich international law courses by showing students how to research sources of international law, and to help law schools create stand-alone courses in international law legal research. [2014 Winner, with Anthony Winer and Lyonette Louis-Jacques]
• Teresa Brostoff and Ann Sinsheimer created the U.S. Law and Language program at the University of Pittsburgh. They co-authored a legal English text, United States Legal Language and Culture, published by Oxford University Press. Their book, in its third edition at the time of the award, helped develop the field of legal English education. In addition to teaching at Pittsburgh, Professors Brostoff and Sinsheimer have taught in China, Ethiopia, Iceland, Japan, Oman, Poland, Serbia, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, and other countries. [2019 Winner, with Ann Sinsheimer]
• Laura Carballo Piñeiro(University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain), for the book, Comparative Law for Spanish–English Speaking Lawyers: Legal Cultures, Legal Terms and Legal Practices (Edward Elgar Publishing 2017). [2017 Winner, with S.I. Strong and Katia Fach Gómez]
• Katia Fach Gómez(University of Zaragoza, Spain) for the book, Comparative Law for Spanish–English Speaking Lawyers: Legal Cultures, Legal Terms and Legal Practices (Edward Elgar Publishing 2017). [2017 Winner, with S.I. Strong and Laura Carballo Piñeiro].
• Paul Kossof (Beijing, China) in recognition of his books that promote a better understanding of Chinese law and the Chinese legal system, including Chinese Legal Research, the condensed guide to legal research in China for foreign researchers. [2018 Winner]
• Lyonette Louis-Jacques, International Law Legal Research (Carolina Academic Press 2013), a book designed to enrich international law courses by showing students how to research sources of international law, and to help law schools create stand-alone courses in international law legal research. [2014 Winner, with Mary Ann E. Archer and Anthony Winer]
• Deborah B. McGregor,The International Lawyer’s Guide to Legal Analysis and Communication in the United States (Wolters Kluwer 2008). [2014 Winner, with Cynthia M. Adams]
• Nadia E. Nedzel (Southern University Law Center, Louisiana) in celebration of her book, Legal Reasoning, Research, and Writing for International Graduate Students, and her contributions to international legal education. [2019 Winner]
• Alison Riley (United Kingdom/Italy) in recognition of her contributions to global legal skills education through years of dedicated teaching and through the publication of her co-authored books, Legal English and the Common Lawand Common Law Legal English and Grammar: A Contextual Approach. [2016 Winner, with Patricia Sours]
• Karen M. Ross (New York University School of Law) in recognition of her book, Essential Legal English in Context: Understanding the Vocabulary of U.S. Law and Government (NYU Press 2019) [2019 Winner]
• Ann Sinsheimer and Teresa Brostoff created the U.S. Law and Language program at the University of Pittsburgh. They co-authored a legal English text, United States Legal Language and Culture, published by Oxford University Press. Their book, in its third edition at the time of the award, helped develop the field of legal English education. In addition to teaching at Pittsburgh, Professors Brostoff and Sinsheimer have taught in China, Ethiopia, Iceland, Japan, Oman, Poland, Serbia, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, and other countries. [2019 Winner, with Teresa Brostoff]
• Patricia Sours (United States/Italy) in recognition of her contributions to global legal skills education through years of dedicated teaching and through the publication of her co-authored books, Legal English and the Common Lawand Common Law Legal English and Grammar: A Contextual Approach. [2016 Winner, with Alison Riley]
• S.I. Strong(University of Missouri School of Law, United States), for the book, Comparative Law for Spanish–English Speaking Lawyers: Legal Cultures, Legal Terms and Legal Practices (Edward Elgar Publishing 2017).  [2017 Winner, with Katia Fach Gómez and Laura Carballo Piñeiro].
• John B. Thornton, S. Legal Reasoning, Writing, and Practice for International Lawyers(LexisNexis 2014). [2015 Winner]
• Anthony S. Winer, International Law Legal Research (Carolina Academic Press 2013), a book designed to enrich international law courses by showing students how to research sources of international law, and to help law schools create stand-alone courses in international law legal research. [2014 Winner, with Mary Ann E. Archer and Lyonette Louis-Jacques]

Law Firms, Bar Associations, and Other Institutional Winners 

This category recognizes companies, professional associations, law firms, and other organizations around the world that give special support for global legal skills. The names of persons accepting these law firm and institutional awards are in parentheses.

• Arias and Muñoz, Costa Rica (José Antonio Muñoz F.), was recognized for innovative skills training for its lawyers and in thanks for its active support of holding the Global Legal Skills Conference in Central America. [2012 Winner]
• BarWrite and BarWrite Press, New York, USA (Dr. Mary Campbell Gallagher), for the company’s early and thoughtful recognition of the special bar exam preparation needs of lawyers and law students from other countries. [2014 Winner]
• The Centro de Estudios sobre la Enseñanza y el Aprendizaje del Derecho, A.C.(Mexico) in Monterrey is an independent, non-profit research center dedicated to improving the quality of the legal education and legal practice in Mexico. [2017 Winner]
• The law firm of DLA Piper was recognized for its extraordinary support of education and training in international commercial arbitration. Mark Nadeau, founding partner of the law firm’s Phoenix office, accepted the award when the GLS Conference was held in Phoenix. [2019 Winner]
• Fondazione Floresta Longo, Catania (Sicily), Italy (Prof. Antonino Longo), in recognition of its dedicated commitment to improving the quality of legal services by teaching global legal skills to lawyers and law students. [2015 Winner]
• The International Law Institute in Washington, D.C. was established in 1955 as part of Georgetown University to assist in the building of governmental and economic institutions in post-war Europe. Over the years, the ILI has provided training and technical assistance to thousands of lawyers, judges, and other government officials. It was a pioneer in creating a course in Legal English, publishing the first U.S. Coursebook on Legal English, and in creating a course to introduce the U.S. legal system to law students and lawyers from outside the United States. The ILI is headquartered in Washington DC and has regional offices in Chile, Egypt, Nigeria, Turkey, and Uganda. [2017 Winner]
• Lawbility Professional Language Program, Zurich, Switzerland (Jean-Luc Delli),in recognition of its innovative programming, publications, and demonstrated commitment to excellence in global legal skills education. [2016 Winner]
• The Legal Writing Institute Global Legal Writing Skills Committee(Professors Cara Cunningham of the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law and Sammy Mansour of the Michigan State University College of Law), was recognized for its support and active encouragement of global legal skills. [2014 Winner]
• The Library Teaching Team at Melbourne Law School Law Library,given to Lucie GoudieIn, Jane Jilbert, Christina Ward, and Kirsty Wilson for sharing their understanding of the global nature of law and for their longstanding and dedicated support of law students from around the world. [2018 Winner]

Law School Winners 

This category recognizes law schools around the world that give special attention to and support for global legal skills.

• Facultad Libre de Derecho de Monterrey, Mexico,was recognized for its innovative educational leadership in requiring its graduates to have taken classes in three languages, for successfully bringing the Global Legal Skills Conference to its first international destination, for hosting the GLS Conference two times in Mexico, and for other efforts to promote the study of Legal English and comparative law. [2012 Winner]
• University of Houston Law Center, in recognition of its strong commitment to international legal education. [2019 Winner]
• Melbourne Law School, Melbourne, Australia, in recognition of its groundbreaking commitment to legal skills education in Australia and around the world. [2018 Winner]
• Pacific McGeorge School of Law was recognized for innovations in its legal research and writing program that introduce students to cross-cultural awareness, comparative law, and international law.[2015 Winner]
• Peking University School of Transnational Law, People’s Republic of China,in recognition of creating an academically rigorous, bilingual four-year program of legal education that prepares students for the mixture of common law, civil law, and Chinese legal traditions. [2018 Winner]
• Qatar University College of Law Lawyering Skills Program, in recognition of creating the first comprehensive program in legal writing, research, reasoning, and advocacy in the Middle East and North African region. [2018 Winner]
• University of Verona Department of Law, Italy,in recognition of its demonstrated commitment to excellence in global legal skills education and in appreciation of hosting the 2014 and 2016 Global Legal Skills Conferences. [2016 Winner]
• Jigme Singye Wangchuck School of Law, Bhutan,in recognition of being the first law school in the history of Bhutan and for its dedication to teaching legal skills as a fundamental part of legal education. [2018 Winner]

 

ALWD Conference

Here's a reminder that the Association of Legal Writing Directors will hold its 2023 Biennial Conference at the University of California-Irvine on July 12-14, 2023. Click here for more information about the ALWD Conference.

Hat tip to Kim Peterson.

(mew)

Nominations Open for the 2023 Global Legal Skills Awards

Nominations are open for the 2023 Global Legal Skills Awards, which will be presented on August 1, 2023 at the next GLS Conference in Nottingham, England.

To nominate an individual, institution, or organization for one of the categories below, please send an email to [email protected] by July 15, 2023. There is no particular format required for the nomination. Nominees not selected for 2023 will be carried over to the 2024 GLS Conference.

We invite nominations for the GLS Awards in the following categories:

• Individuals: This category recognizes individuals around the world who have made significant contributions to the promotion and improvement of global legal skills. 
• Scholarship and Book Awards: This category recognizes exceptional books and articles that advance the teaching of global legal skills, including new casebooks and texts for lawyers and law students.
• Law Firms, Professional Organizations, and Other Institutions: This category recognizes companies, professional associations, law firms, and other organizations around the world that give special support for global legal skills
• Law Schools: This category recognizes law schools around the world that give special attention to and support for global legal skills.

Mark E. Wojcik

ALWD Conference

Here's a reminder that the Association of Legal Writing Directors will hold its 2023 Biennial Conference at the University of California-Irvine on July 12-14, 2023. Click here for more information about the ALWD Conference.

Hat tip to Kim Peterson.

(mew)

Western Regional Legal Writing Conference

The 11th Annual Western Regional Legal Writing Conference will be held at the University of San Francisco on Friday, August 25 and Saturday, August 26, 2023. The deadline for submitting proposals for presentation has been extended to June 26, 2023.

Hat tip to Adam Abelkop at the University of San Francisco School of Law

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Save the Dates: Central States Legal Writing Conference in Des Moines

The Central States Legal Writing Conference will be held September 22-23, 2023 at Drake Law School in Des Moines, Iowa. Programming starts at 2:00 pm. Friday and runs through Saturday at 5:00 p.m.

(mew)

Scholars' Workshop at the ALWD Conference in California

In conjunction with the Biennial Conference of the Association of Legal Writing Directors (ALWD), UC Irvine Law will host a Scholars' Forum thanks to funding by ALWD. This is an excellent opportunity for anyone working on scholarship to get amazing feedback in a welcoming and collaborative environment.

The Scholars' Forum will take place on Tuesday, July 11, 2023 from 2-4pm, just before the conference begins. Participants should have a draft of an article or detailed outline to share. These documents will be circulated the week before the event. Before the Forum, lunch will be provided at 1pm, again thanks to ALWD. Please consider joining in by sending an email to Professor Heidi Gilchrist at Brooklyn Law School. Please include a working title of your project.

Hat tip to Heidi Gilchrist.

(mew)

ALWD Conference

The Association of Legal Writing Directors will hold its 2023 Biennial Conference at the University of California-Irvine on July 12-14, 2023. Click here for more information about the ALWD Conference.

Hat tip to Kim Peterson.

(mew)

ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar

The Council of the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar met on May 12, 2023 to consider recommendations, reports, and other issues.

You can find a summary of actions taken at the meeting (with links to proposed revisions and recommendations) by clicking here.

 

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Illinois Will Require Libraries to Reject Book Bans

The Illinois House and Senate have sent HB 2789  to Governor J.B. Pritzker to sign -- landmark legislation that will require Illinois libraries and library systems to adopt express policies against book bans. See Marcus GilmAs Book Bans Increase Nationwide, Illinois is Breaking New Ground to Stop Them. Juice [Crain's Chicago Business Political News], May 3, 2023er, .

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LWI 2024 in Indianapolis

The Legal Writing Institute confirmed that next year's biennial LWI conference will be July 17-20, 2024 in Indianapolis, Indiana at the Indiana University Robert F. McKinney School of Law.

And here's the team that will make the magic happen:

Budget Chair Carolyn Williams (UND)

Sponsorship Chair Heidi Brown (Brooklyn)

Registration Chair Tessa Dysart (Arizona)

Site Co-Chairs: Allison Martin (IU-McKinney) & Joel Schumm (IU-McKinney)

Program Co-Chairs: Elizabeth Berenguer (Stetson) & Eun Hee Han (Georgetown)

Bench & Bar Co-Chairs: Sylvia Lett (Arizona) & Jane Grisé (Kentucky)

Site Sub-Committee: Heather Gram (Wake Forest), Wendy-Adele Humphrey (Texas Tech), Joy Kanwar (Brooklyn), Charles Calleros (ASU), Katrina Robinson (Cornell), Brad Desnoyer (IU-McKinney), Jim Dmitri (IU-McKinney), Cynthia Adams (IU-McKinney), Amber Morgan Walker (IU-McKinney), & Kristina Swanson (IU-McKinney)

Program Sub-Committee: Rosa Kim (Suffolk), Tiffany Jeffers (Georgetown), Drew Simshaw (Gonzaga), Rebecca Rich (Duke), Sarah Ware (UVA), Bryan Schwartz (Arizona), Sha-Shana Crichton (Howard), Sarah Morath (WFU), & Suzanna Geiser (Campbell)

Bench & Bar Sub-Committee: Michael Blasie (Seattle), Kate Brem (UHLC), Kathryn Campbell (Southwestern), Tom Cobb (Mitchell-Hamline), Laura D’Amato (BU), Joy Herr-Cardillo (Arizona), Joshua Jones (Cal Western), Pete Nemerovski (UNC), Eunice Peters (Washburn), Katrina Robinson (Cornell), Nancy Soonpaa (Texas Tech), Jerrod Williams (Loyola-Chicago), & Joe Fore (UVA)

Hat tip to Prof. Abby Perdue (Wake Forest), LWI President-Elect.

(mew)

Law Day Webinar with the ABA and the Law Library of Congress

In the United States, May 1 is celebrated as Law Day.

The Law Library of Congress and the American Bar Association, via webinar, for this year’s Law Day celebration on April 27th at 3 p.m. EDT. The topic of this panel discussion will be, “Civility and Collaboration: U.S. and International Perspectives.” It will feature a conversation about how selected jurisdictions have worked to increase bipartisanship, civic knowledge, and civic engagement.

This panel discussion will be moderated by Jacksonville University College of Law Dean Nicholas Allard. He will be joined by American Bar Association President Deborah Enix-Ross, Law Library of Congress Foreign Law Specialist Kayahan Cantekin, and Law Library of Congress Senior Foreign Law Specialist Ruth Levush. 

Please register here.

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Law Library of Congress Reports Now Available Through HeinOnline

Developed in collaboration with the Law Library of Congress, HeinOnline has introduced a new database of Law Library of Congress Reports. This is an exclusive database with more than 3,500 reports on foreign, comparative, and international law. These reports will assist many scholars and law students. Have a look at this gold mine of a collection!

 

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Sirico Scholars' Workshop in Utah

There is still time to apply for the Sirico Scholars' Workshop, which will be held July 18-21, 2023, at the Westgate Park City Resort & Spa in beautiful Park City, Utah. The registration fee for each participant is $450, which will include lodging and some meals. Each participant must cover their transportation cost.

If you have a current research project that would benefit from a supportive group review and critique, please consider participating in this workshop. Past participants have a strong record of completing and placing their articles for publication.

To apply for a spot in this outstanding program, fill out the application form here. The deadline to apply is April 30. The organizers will notify participants shortly after that deadline. While all scholars, established and emerging, are encouraged to apply, if they have more applications than spaces available, preference will be given to emerging scholars. 

Hat tip to Sara Morath at Wake Forest University.

(mew)

Reminder: Nominations Open for the AWLD Rombauer Award

The Association of Legal Writing Directors (“ALWD”) is now accepting nominations for the Marjorie Rombauer Award. 

The Rombauer Award salutes a person who has contributed significantly to the field of legal writing: 

1. by education about the importance of legal writing; 
2. by published scholarship that advances the teaching of legal writing and the understanding of its underlying principles; 
3. by contributions to national legal writing organizations; 
4. by contributions to individual legal writing programs; and 
5. by efforts to improve the status of legal writing faculty. 

Past award recipients include Mary Beth Beazley (2017), Laurel Currie Oates (2009), and Mary S. Lawrence (2000). If you would like to nominate someone for the Rombauer Award, please send your nomination to rcroskery [at] law.uci.edu by 5 p.m. PST on April 14, 2023. Please provide the following information in your nomination: 

1. Your name, title, institutional affiliation, and contact information.  
2. The name, title, institutional affiliation, and contact information for the nominee. 
3. A short statement (no more than 500 words) as to why you think the nominee meets the criteria for the Rombauer Award. 

Hat tip to Professor Rachel Croskery-Roberts, President-Elect of ALWD and Associate Dean for Lawyering Skills at the University of California, Irvine School of Law

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