ASSOCIATE REQUIREMENTS
Content:
A. THE GPA REQUIREMENT
B. THE CASENOTE
C. THE PRODUCTION WORK
D. THE COMMENT
E. DEADLINES
Because the Law Review is sponsored by the Santa Clara Law School Administration, the faculty have deemed it appropriate to institute a minimum GPA requirement for membership on the Editorial Board. Currently, the minimum GPA for Law Review membership is 3.00. Associates have two opportunities to fulfill the GPA requirement. The GPA requirement can be fulfilled by achieving a 3.00 either by the end of the first year or at the end of the fall semester of the second year. Part-time students must fulfill the GPA requirement either by the end of their first year or the semester they are selected to serve on the Law Review (fall semester of their 2nd or 3rd year). Transfer students must have a 3.00 based on their Santa Clara Law School grades (grades from a previous law school are not considered).
For example, a student who has a 3.00 at the end of the first year has fulfilled the GPA requirement despite the fact that they may drop to a 2.80 at the end of the fall semester in which they are selected to serve on the Law Review Board. Conversely, a student who has a 2.80 at the end of their first year, may still be eligible to serve on the Law Review Board if they obtain a 3.00 at the end of the semester in which they are selected to serve on Law Review Board
To become a Law Review associate, a student must write and pass a casenote. There are two opportunities for prospective associates to write and pass a casenote. One is in the summer and the other is in the fall. It is important to note, however, that the fall administration of the casenote is the last opportunity to pass the casenote requirement. Therefore, if you are a second year full-time student or third year part-time student, this is the last chance for you to become a law review associate (part-time 2nd year students will have two more opportunities to participate the following year).
A casenote is an explanation and analysis of a major case of timely importance that is likely to have an impact on the legal community. The length of the casenote should be between 8 and 10 pages (double-spaced), excluding footnotes. Footnotes are required, but are to be separated from the text. A detailed explanation of the specific requirements for the casenote will be included in the casenote packet.
Casenotes are written using material provided in a "casenote packet". A casenote packet is a self-contained research packet which includes a primary case, secondary cases and other supporting materials, e.g., statutes, Law Review articles, etc. In addition, a set of directions (i.e., "casenote information") will be included in each packet and should be read carefully. All students must work independently on their casenotes. Students may not conduct outside research in writing the casenote. The only permissible outside references that may be consulted are the Bluebook (18th ed.) and Black’s Law Dictionary.
A casenote traces the development of legal issues resolved by the court in the primary case. The secondary cases and other supporting materials are used to develop the controversies addressed by the primary court. The casenote provides a comprehensive factual overview of the primary case, an identification of its judicial holdings and a thorough analytical discussion of the resolving court’s treatment of the issue before it. It is strongly urged that you present the substantive elements of a casenote in an organized fashion, setting them apart with appropriate headings, e.g., introduction, background, analysis, conclusion, etc. It is important to remember that a casenote is not a time to be creative or innovative with organization, but rather in content and ideas. Examples of past casenotes will be available in the Heafey Law Library Reserve Room. It is recommended that you review one or more of the samples to get an idea of the format to use in writing your own casenote.
Each casenote will be read and graded by three Comments Editors. All grading is anonymous. A "packet number" will be assigned to each student when he or she picks up a casenote packet in the Law Review office. In general, casenotes are evaluated in areas of grammar, spelling, Bluebook usage, footnote usage, style, organization, and analysis. Scores are on a scale of 1 to 5 (5 being best) and are assigned to the aforementioned different areas (although not equally weighted). An average score is then formulated. A passing score is 3.5. Two passing scores are required to pass the overall casenote. Casenotes that do not receive two passing scores are automatically appealed to the Editor-in-Chief who will make a final determination of whether the casenote should pass.
Production work consists primarily of cite-checking the articles and comments to be published in the Law Review. Cite-checking is one step in the publication process by which each footnote of an article or comment is verified for technical and substantive accuracy. The cite-checking process is crucial to the integrity of the Law Review and indispensable to the task of producing a well edited and reliable legal publication. In addition, students who participate in cite-checking will undoubtedly strengthen their legal research and writing skills – an invaluable tool for professional practice.
Each associate is responsible for contributing to Volume 51’s production process through cite-checking work. Membership to the Law Review Editorial Board requires a minimum of 55 hours of cite-checking. Throughout the first year, associates will periodically receive "cite-checking packets" varying in the number of footnotes and hours needed to complete the packet. A concerted effort will be made to ensure that the work is distributed fairly among the associates. The goal is that each associate will be responsible for approximately the same amount of cite-checking hours. It is important to note that one advantage of writing and passing a summer casenote is that you can begin and thus complete some of your cite-checking requirement over the summer. This can be one way to lighten your fall semester load.
In order to begin cite-checking, all associates must attend a cite-checking workshop. At the workshop, the Technical Editors will provide detailed information about the cite-checking process, explaining the specific requirements for satisfactory completion of production work.
Upon passing the casenote, associates will be assigned to a Comments Editor. Each associate must complete and pass a comment on a topic of his or her choice. In brief, a comment analyzes a specific legal problem and provides original suggestions for its resolution. A comment must go beyond existing legal literature to resolve unanswered questions and provide an innovative legal analysis. Comments should be at least 30 pages, excluding footnotes (comments usually have at least 200 footnotes). Topics are subject to the approval of the Comments Editors. Of the comments which pass for the purposes of determining membership on the Volume 52 Board, between 12 and 16 are ultimately selected for publication in the Santa Clara Law Review. Passing comments may be used to fulfill the upper-division writing requirement for those students who qualify to become a member of the Law Review Board.
At least one comment writing workshop will be held in the fall. At that time, associates will be given a "Comments Handbook" which will further detail the comment writing process. Comments Editors will help associates through the comment writing process. He or she will assist the associate with topic selection and development as well as with refinement of his or her comment. Technical Editors will be available to answer any questions concerning citation format and use of the Bluebook. In addition, associates are encouraged to talk to any member of the current Board about their comments.
Comments are graded like the casenotes (discussed above). Evaluation of an associate’s comment is a key element in selection to the Law Review. Furthermore, the scores an associate receives on his or her comment will be a factor in deciding what positions that associate will have on the Volume 52 Board of Editors.
In order to be fair to all associates, each associate is required to meet ALL deadlines. Deadlines are imperative to the successful publication of each volume of the Law Review.
The official time as reported by the telephone service (767-1111) will be determinant of the time for the deadline set. If the deadline is missed for the casenote or comment submission, the casenote or comment will NOT be accepted. Please understand that in the case of the fall casenote and the comment, missing the submission deadline will result in disqualification from Law Review membership.
Because of the strict enforcement of the deadlines, you are encouraged to complete your casenote or comment (including printing) at least one day prior to the due date. This is to ensure that you do not miss your opportunity to participate in the Law Review.