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Hello, I am a 1L transitioning to my 2L year with OCI just around the corner. This summer, I am working in a government agency producing appellate administrative opinions (usually around the recommended greatest length of a writing sample - 8-10 pages). The problem is that this agency utilizes an extremely laidback citation system in its opinions (no pincites, very few direct quotes, etc. - pretty much just name dropping the case and the reporter).

Would it still be beneficial/look okay to the firm interviewer if I used a writing sample from this externship even though it employs a very simplistic citation system? Or should I just fall back on my best memo/brief writing assignment from legal writing/practice?

Thanks.

You could just explain that in the description. "This writing sample is [blah blah blah]. The Ohio Office Of Regulatory Intrusion utilizes a less-stringent citation standard than typical legal writing, and the citations have been left unaltered."

Or you could fix the citations and explain that in the description of what the writing sample is. "This writing sample is [blah blah blah]. The citations have been edited to comply with formal Bluebook standards, as the Ohio Office Of Regulatory Intrusion utilizes a less-stringent citation standard than typical legal writing."