Law School Scholarship Databank – Writing Competitions

The competition is designed to encourage JD and LLM students in the preparation of scholarly papers on current topics of interest relating to health law.

The Award honors excellence in legal writing in American law schools.

The Criminal Law Section of the California Lawyers Association is pleased to announce the Marshall M. Schulman Annual Competition for Student Papers in Criminal Law and/or Criminal Procedure.

To encourage and reward law student writings on real property, trust and estate law subjects of general and current interest.

The goal of the Competition is to encourage law students to become involved in the Section. It is also intended to raise awareness of and foster dialogue regarding legal issues related to environmental, energy, and natural resources law and encourage scholarship in these fields.

This competition asks law students to consider how to advance gun violence prevention and gun safety through litigation in the civil and criminal justice systems. Though we encourage applicants to be creative, submission topics can range from reducing gun violence through representing survivors to emerging topics in Second Amendment jurisprudence.

The goal of the Competition is to encourage law students to become involved in the Section. It is also intended to attract students to the energy law practice field, and to encourage scholarship in this field.

The primary purposes of this writing competition are to encourage legal scholarship in areas of concern or interest in the employee benefits field and to foster interest in promising students in the practice of employee benefits law. 

Since 2005, the College has sponsored a writing competition for law students, to encourage them to learn about employee benefits.

The competition is intended to reach out to and reward law students interested in protecting the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.

Entries should explore ways in which emerging technologies and services interact with or challenge existing civil rights and consumer protection laws.

This Writing Competition is intended to encourage law students interested in the areas of law affecting FDA-regulated industries: food, drugs, medical devices, biologics, dietary supplements, cosmetics, veterinary, cannabis, or tobacco and nicotine products.

The purpose of the competition is to create greater interest in the field of dispute resolution among law students of the nation, particularly those who are members of the Law Student Division of the American Bar.

The purpose of the competition is to promote greater interest in and understanding of the field of disability law and to encourage excellent legal writing skills in law students.

The College sponsors a Writing Competition for Law Students, in conjunction with the ABA's Section of Labor & Employment Lawyers. A distinguished panel of attorneys from around the country will review the submitted papers written on current and relevant topics of labor and employment law.

Submit a creative thoughtful, and well-written response exploring what might happen if personal injury attorneys didn't exist and discuss the potential impact on individuals, businesses, and society as a whole.

The section seeks entries for its writing competition from all law students who are enrolled in ABA-approved law schools and are members of the ABA Law Student Division.

The goal of the Competition is to encourage law students to become involved in the Section, attract students to the administrative law practice fields, and to encourage scholarship in these fields.

This Writing Competition was created to encourage and reward scholarly works in the area of trusts and estates.

This competition requires students to discuss criminal liability imposed on parents or others for the acts of children. Clear, persuasive, and original analytical reasoning that is well-supported with concrete examples and references is essential and will weigh heavily in the determination of the contest winner.

This writing competition is designed to promote scholarship in the areas of professionalism, ethics, civility, and excellence.

 Using personal experiences, values and goals, explain what motivated you to pursue a legal education. Your essay should be 500 words or less.

The goal of the Competition is to encourage law students to become involved in the Section. It is also intended to attract students to the Criminal Justice practice field, and to encourage scholarship in this field. Each entrant must follow the rules of the competition detailed herein.

The Society sponsors the competition to promote research and writing on the California Supreme Court and the state's legal history.

The Hutchinson Writing Contest Committee annually administers a writing competition in honor of our beloved George Hutchinson, who was the first Chief Clerk of the Federal Circuit.

Named for the late Tax Court Judge Theodore Tannenwald, Jr., and designed to perpetuate his dedication to legal scholarship of the highest quality, the Tannenwald Writing Competition is open to all full- or part-time law school students, undergraduate or graduate.

The CLA Diversity, Inclusion and Outreach (DIOr) Committee seeks to recognize law student authors of exceptional literary works which advance the understanding and pursuit of increasing diversity, equity and inclusion in the legal profession. 

Prompt: Explain why a diverse and inclusive bar is important for equality, justice, and the rule of law. Pls. include research and reputable sources, as appropriate. You may also choose to include a personal or narrative perspective, including how you have been affected by a DEI program or policy.

Reflect on your "why".  For this scholarship, you will reflect on why you committed to law school and what you plan on doing with your Juris Doctorate once you graduate.

The Business Law Section sponsors an annual Student Writing Competition, open to all students who are candidates for the JD or LLM degree at an accredited law school during the year in which the article is submitted.

The purposes of the competition are to promote greater interest in and understanding of the fields of securities arbitration and securities law and to encourage excellent legal writing skills in law students.

Through our writing competition, the PCL Section introduces itself to the next generation of public contract lawyers.

The organization is sponsoring a writing competition on any topic relating to US taxation of income from international activities, including taxation under US tax treaties.

The Sarah Weddington Writing Prize seeks student scholarship exploring reproductive rights and justice issues in the U.S.

To recognize excellence among law school students writing in the area of labor and employment law; and to cultivate the relationship between the Section and future labor and employment practitioners.

The competition seeks to recognize written contributions to the field of U.S. consumer financial services law.

The Entertainment Law Initiative fosters future careers in entertainment law by seeking out the nation’s top law students and giving them invaluable networking and educational opportunities. The program includes a national legal writing competition.

The competition is intended to encourage students of law to write on areas of public or private international law.

The purpose of this competition is to heighten interest in, and competence related to, student writing on the subject of Alternate Dispute Resolution.

The Dukeminier Awards Student Writing Competition annually recognizes the best law review note written by a student in the field of sexual orientation and gender identity law.

This scholarship requires that you reflect on your purpose for entering the field of law.

Under the First Amendment, may states require religious organizations that receive government funding to comply with anti-discrimination laws?

Prompt: Following the Supreme Court ruling in Carson v. Makin, religious organizations seeking to participate in government funding programs have argued that requiring them to comply with anti-discrimination laws in order to receive public money violates their constitutional rights. Respond to the argument that anti-discrimination laws cannot be enforced against religious schools receiving public funds. Your argument must be supported by clear well-researched legal analysis, including case law.

The scope of permissible topics include any aspect of workers' compensation law.

This national academic event is intended to foster debate, analysis, and examination of state alcohol regulation in the 21st Century.

The Roy Snell Health Care Regulatory & Compliance Writing Competition recognizes law students for innovative, strategic, and sound approaches to tackling complex contemporary health care regulatory and compliance issues.

This essay contest is to encourage scholarship and innovative research and writing in the area of legal malpractice law, professional liability insurance, and loss prevention.

The goal of the Competition is to encourage and reward law student writings on antitrust law and competition law subjects of general and current interest.

This writing competition seeks to encourage and reward the qualities demonstrated by Judge Richard D. Cudahy in the fields of regulatory and administrative law, and an appreciation of the public impact of doctrinal and institutional choices, including the consequences for fundamental values such as fairness, participation, and transparency in the scholarship of others.

The American Constitution Society welcomes all papers furthering and promoting a progressive vision of the Constitution, law, and public policy. Entrants are encouraged to view this topic broadly, and we welcome submissions on a variety of substantive areas.

The overarching goal of this prestigious bi-annual competition, which is run by the Peter MacKell Chair in Federalism, is to advance research and foster informed debate on federalism.