Volume 24 of the Journal is proof of the growing strength and diversity of our LRW community. This volume includes more than 420 pages of legal writing scholarship, with ten essays, seven articles, and two book reviews. We are indeed seeing a “rising tide in the legal writing community,” as Suzanne Rowe notes in this…
DetailsReviewed by Elizabeth Adamo Usman* Political scientist Francis Fukuyama wrote Identity: The Demand for Dignity and the Politics of Resentment, in part, as an explanation of the polarized political climate and populist surge on the right that gave rise to the election of Donald J. Trump in the United States’ 2016 presidential election. Its…
DetailsDeborah L. Borman (West Academic 2019), 138 pages Reviewed by Sarah J. Morath* Deborah Borman’s A Short and Happy Guide to Legal Writing1 is just that—short and happy. First, this book easily fit into my small carry-on bag, and because it was a quick read, I was able to read it cover to cover on…
DetailsPatricia Grande Montana* In full disclosure, I am not a Twitter person. Not at all. So, when I think of Twitter, I think of its toxicity first. I think of how in fewer than 280 characters, a tweet can spark jealousy, hate, anger, shame, and other hurtful emotions. Indeed, its short length “forces a terse…
DetailsNancy Soonpaa* “Imagine your LRW program as a family. How would you describe it?” Lacking dysfunctional supportive change adult-children resistant disparate challenged fun growing My panel posed this question in the opening moments of a conference presentation about the developmental stages of a legal writing program. The word cloud above depicts the audience’s responses.…
DetailsMeredith Stange1 Over the years, in various legal writing forums, I have heard that legal writing professors should try to “look like ducks.” This means we should publish, teach doctrinal courses, and otherwise do everything we can to make ourselves look like the tenure-track, non-legal writing faculty. The theory is that the more we…
DetailsI. The Rise of Email, the Decline of the Traditional Memo, and the Incomplete Picture That Has Emerged Thus Far A. Substantive Emails Appear to Be Replacing the Traditional Legal Memorandum B. Prevailing Scholarship Implicitly Recognizes the Conversational Quality of Email, Without Expressly Examining It as Such II. Another Perspective: The Rise of Email, the…
Details1. Professor Title 2. Office Space and/or Segregation 3. Legal Writing “Directors” 4. The Opportunity to Teach Other Courses 5. Compensation 6. Equality of Support for Scholarship and Service 7. Significant Governance Role Joel Schumm* Over the past two decades, I have experienced a few status changes. I started teaching as an adjunct,…
DetailsThree Lessons I Learned as an Associate Dean as Told through Lin Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton Lesson One: Prepare and Be Thoughtful About the Opportunity Lesson Two: Yes, You Are in the Room Where it Happens Lesson Three: You’ll Be Back Cindy Thomas Archer* One of my favorite musicals is one I have never…
DetailsI. Pay Disparities II. Negative Effect of Pay Disparities A. The Importance of Legal Writing Classes B. Maximize Worker Utility C. Wage Discrimination Based on Sex III. Rectifying Pay Disparities IV. Conclusion Amy H. Soled* “Aren’t you happy with your improved status?” a colleague recently inquired. “I mean, things are better than they…
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