J. ALWD call for articles on best practices in persuasion

The Journal of the Association of Legal Writing Directors (J. ALWD) invites submission of articles for its Fall 2009 Best Practices in Persuasion issue. The Journal encourages authors to submit articles addressing the "best practices" theme as well as articles on other topics that fit within the mission of the Journal.

The Journal's mission is to advance the study of professional legal writing and to become an active resource and a forum for conversation between the legal practitioner and the legal writing scholar. The Journal is dedicated to encouraging and publishing scholarship (1) focusing on the substance of legal writing; (2) grounded in legal doctrine, empirical research, or interdisciplinary theory; and (3) accessible and helpful to all "do-ers" of legal writing: attorneys, judges, law students, and legal academicians.

The Journal encourages submissions from law professors, practicing lawyers, and judges as well as from academics, researchers, and specialists in other disciplines. The final deadline for submission of articles for the Fall 2009 issue is September 15, 2008. Article selection will be completed by November 15, 2008. 

The Fall 2009 issue marks the beginning of annual print production of the Journal, thanks to the support of West, A Thomson Business, which prints the Journal, and ALWD, which supports distribution of the Journal by mail to some 3,200 practicing lawyers and judges; law school libraries, deans, and professors; and others interested in the field of legal writing. The Journal is available electronically on the ALWD website and from Westlaw, SSRN, HeinOnLine, and H.W. Wilson Company. J. ALWD has been published biennially since 2002; annual electronic publication began with the Fall 2007 issue (which will be distributed in hard copy as part of the Fall 2008 issue).

• Topic ideas

For the Fall 2009 Best Practices in Persuasion issue, the Journal editors envision articles that explain and apply theories and research from the law and other disciplines to lawyers¹ practices of persuasion. So, for example, articles might be constructed around classical and contemporary rhetorical theory; metaphor, narrative, and archetype theories; psychological theory and research; cognitive science studies; learning theory and research; communications theory and research; social research; cultural anthropology; critical theory; or empirical research focusing on legal audiences.

The Journal also will select articles and practice notes for the Fall 2009 issue that do not specifically address the theme but fit within the mission of the Journal. The Fall 2009 issue will include the proceedings of the 2009 AALS Annual Section Program on Legal Writing, Reasoning and Research.

Questions about potential articles are welcome and should be directed to [email protected].

• Submission of Articles

Submissions are due on or before September 15 of the calendar year before an upcoming issue. Most issues bring together "best practices" articles on a particular subject, but the editors welcome articles on any topic that falls within the mission of the Journal: to develop scholarship focusing on the substance and practice of professional legal writing and to make that scholarship accessible and helpful to practitioners as well as to legal academics. Without compromising analytical rigor and the necessary theoretical and research foundation, the Journal's goal is to publish articles that are readable and usable by the broader audience of professional legal writers. Journal editors are looking for clear, concrete, direct writing; strong, interesting, intelligent voices; and a style that uses the text for substance and the footnotes to provide support, sources, and references for additional study.

Potential authors may wish to consult articles published in past issues of the Journal as well as the more specific information for authors available at the ALWD website.

• Exclusive submission

The Journal prefers exclusive submission of manuscripts. If an author has submitted the manuscript elsewhere or wishes to do so, the author should inform the Journal at the time of submission and notify the Journal immediately should the author accept another offer of publication.

• Technical requirements

Manuscripts should be accompanied by (1) a cover letter summarizing the article and (2) the resume of the author, including telephone number and e-mail address. For major articles, the Journal will consider manuscripts from 30 to 50 typewritten pages (7,500 to 12,500 words). For practice notes, the Journal recommends manuscripts from 5 to 15 typewritten pages. All manuscripts should be prepared in Microsoft Word, using double-spacing, one-inch margins, 12-14 point font, and footnotes (not endnotes). Hard copies should be submitted on 8-1/2 x 11 paper, printed on one side only. Citation format should adhere to the current edition of the ALWD Citation Manual.

• How to submit

Electronic submissions (via e-mail) are preferred, but authors may elect to mail hard copies to Professor Linda L. Berger, Chair, J. ALWD Editorial Committee, at one of the following addresses, depending on the date of submission:

(before July 1) Thomas Jefferson School of Law, 2121 San Diego Ave., San Diego, CA 92110

(July 1 and later) Mercer University School of Law, 1021 Georgia Ave., Macon, GA 31207

Authors will receive e-mailed acknowledgment of their submissions.

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