Law Review vs. Moot Court Forum

[feeblemiles]

I've been hearing a lot about how law review is in a class all its own when it comes to gold stars on your resume. While I'd imagine this remains true does anyone have anecdotal evidence on how competing on a moot court team (against other schools) compares?

[thesealocust]

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[DelDad]

What thesealocust said

Law review is in a class all its own. If you can't get onto law review, you do the other things to make up for that. Employers, especially top firms and (especially) certain judges won't even look at people who weren't on law review. Others will, but there's still no substitute for law review. (Note that lots of people do both moot court and law review, or moot court and a secondary journal.)

Anecdotally, I was asked very little about my moot court and secondary journal experience during my OCI (which went well - but then I was looking in a secondary market); rather, employers seemed to look on the resume to make sure such experiences were there and then went on to talk about other things.

[sophie316]

Is LR such a big deal because the ability to get onto it shows something, or because actually being on it gives you valuable experience/skills?

[mallard]

Law review far outstrips moot court. But it's not irreplaceable; there are very famous people who were not on law review - from Harvard, Orin Kerr (JLPP) and Cass Sunstein (CRCL) come to mind.

[feeblemiles]

I've been hearing a lot about how law review is in a class all its own when it comes to gold stars on your resume. While I'd imagine this remains true does anyone have anecdotal evidence on how competing on a moot court team (against other schools) compares?

lol. 0L?

I don't mean to be mean, but the gaping, ferocious, awe-inspiring chasm between LR and Moot Court is gaping, ferocious, and awe-inspiring.

There are jobs for which having LR won't make much of a difference in your ability to land them, and it seems like LR can be over-hyped just because it's hard to get and law students are prestige-bots programmed to burn/maim/kill on their path to attaining anything which 1) other people want and 2) only some can get.

But in terms of prestige, employment boost, etc. LR >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Moot Court. Law Review (and I'm talking about ________ Law Review or _________ Law Journal, not _________ Journal of Cite Checking and Popular Science Law) stands completely on its own in terms of LS activities / resume boosts, there's really no comparison.

Ya, I've heard this a lot this year. (just finished 1L) Berkeley's LR selection is completely based on a write on competition which includes a diversity statement, editing packet, and case note. In the days when LR was basically composed of the top X% of the class, I completely understand the standalone prestige value. In the current trend towards write-on competitions, I wonder if participation on LR is/will remain what it used to be and I don't think I'm alone (but I'll concede that your view is probably still the majority, which matters when you're sending out applications).

Anecdotally I know several people that struggled to find jobs this year on LR and several that weren't and didn't have any problems.

[feeblemiles]

in terms of prestige, employment boost, etc. LR >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Moot Court.

You'd have to agree that Grades easily outdo both of these though right?

[Rock Chalk]

.

[dood]

...

[thesealocust]

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[RUQRU]

What percent of the 1L class makes LR? Obviously if this is so prestigious membership must be limited, right?

[DelDad]

The number of 1Ls taken, as well the method by which they are chosen (usually it is some combination of 1L grades and a writing competition) vary widely between schools - but it is certainly limited.

[thesealocust]

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[DelDad]

Law review size as a proportion of the class does vary quite abit in the T14, though. For example, while Georgetown has about 9% of its class of 590 on the Law Journal, at Duke, it's about 5% of a class of 640; Chicago and Penn are both just over 20% (Class sizes of 200 and 270); at Yale, it's about 30% of a class of ~200.

[thesealocust]

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[DelDad]

Yep - my mistake, oops; about 15% of Duke's class.

[HeelsforHoos]

Del Dad: I think Duke might have 640 students; i.e. just over 200 each year, making its LR 3x the size you posted.

Can't vouch for the accuracy, but I found this on the web:

--ImageRemoved--

Blatant anti-Dook trolling?

[A'nold]

What if you are gunning for crim law?

[D-ROCCA]

While having LR on your resume is virtually irreplaceable, some legal professions (JAG comes to mind) have a particularly strong emphasis on courtroom experience and would potentially look more favorably on moot court experience than LR.

[TTT-LS]

,

[mallard]

By the way, that chart shows one of the most overlooked reasons - possibly the best single reason - to attend Yale over Harvard.

[James Bond]

By the way, that chart shows one of the most overlooked reasons - possibly the best single reason - to attend Yale over Harvard.

Says the Harvard man?

[mallard]

By the way, that chart shows one of the most overlooked reasons - possibly the best single reason - to attend Yale over Harvard.

Says the Harvard man?

Who threw away an enormous writing comp packet in disgust and shame.

[DelDad]

What if you are gunning for crim law?

Then you try to get on law review so that you have the best shot possible shot at an AUSA gig (although some AUSA positions require up to a couple years of professional litigation experience before you can apply). If you don't make law review, you try to get on the schools journal of criminal law, if any.

Plus you do things like a criminal defense clinic and possibly intern with Federal Public Defender's office or US Attorney's office after 1L.

____________________
Chart above:
It was right at 20% at Penn - 54 1Ls from a class of 270, so the numbers in the chart might vary a bit in some instances.

[James Bond]

By the way, that chart shows one of the most overlooked reasons - possibly the best single reason - to attend Yale over Harvard.

Says the Harvard man?

Who threw away an enormous writing comp packet in disgust and shame.

I don't even understand what a writing comp packet is or why you were disgusted and shamed by its disposal

Well we know what tier I'm not in...