Guide to Student Writing for Publication & Prizes

Student writing competitions are one way to hone your legal writing skills. There are over a hundred competitions on many different topics and some offer substantial prize money.

The library has put together a list of  current competitions arranged by topic so you can look for competitions of interest to you. Note that some competitions allow you to submit previously written papers, so you may be able to use something you've written for a class.

Many Suffolk students have won prizes in writing competitions and been published in outside journals and other publications. The lists of  published students writing competition prize winners show these past successes and will surely continue to grow.

The following resources are suggested to help you write your winning article and get it published.

Writing Resources

  • Belcher, Writing Your Journal Article in 12 Weeks: A Guide to Academic Publishing Success,  Z471 .B45 2019  (topics include designing a writing plan, writing your article, and editing)
  • Richard Delgado, How to Write a Law Review Article, 20 U.S.F. L. Rev. 445 (1986)


  • Fajans and Falk, Scholarly Writing for Law Students: Seminar Papers, Law Review Notes, and Law Review Competition Papers, Law Reserve KF250 .F35 2017 (topics include choosing a topic, the research phase, the writing process and ethical use of materials)

  • Goldstein and Lieberman, The Lawyer's Guide to Writing Well, ProQuest Ebook (general guide to writing)

  • Hacker and Sommers, A Writer's Reference, Law Reserve PE1408 .H2778 2011 (general resource that covers composition, grammar, punctuation, spelling, and more)
  • Nero Coughlin, Modern Legal Scholarship: A Guide to Producing and Publishing Scholarly and Professional Writing KF250 .C684 2020  

  • Volokh, Academic Legal Writing: Law Review Articles, Student Notes, Seminar Papers, and Getting on Law Review, Law Reserve KF250 .V65 2016 (topics include how to find a topic, tips on researching, editing, and entering writing competitions)

  • Examples of Good Student Writing
    • Diler Erdengiz, Beyond the Red Sole: Rejecting Binary Approaches as a Basis for Protecting Fashion Design
    • Molly Rose Goodman, The Buck Stops Here: Toxic Titles and Title Insurance

Publishing Resources

As you're working on an article for a competition or publication, keep in mind that most competitions and journals will check to see that you've properly attributed the sources on which you base your work. See the following sources for tips and advice on how to adhere to the ideals of academic integrity in your writing:

If you would like guidance on writing for publication and prizes, please contact Professor Kathy Vinson.

If you need assistance with legal research, you can also set up an appointment with a legal research librarian at 617.573.8516 or [email protected].

If you have questions or comments, please email: [email protected], Legal Research & Innovation Librarian.