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I wasn't exactly sure what topic to put this under. I wrote a note for law review that was selected as first alternate for publication. I am free to submit it elsewhere for publication. I have a job secured in biglaw for postgrad.

Is there any advantage to trying to get my note published as a 3L versus after I graduate? I have a job secured but I would like to clerk at some point. The reason I am thinking about waiting is I am incredibly busy right now (I am on multiple eboards) and want to make substantial edits to one section before submitting it for publication.

Thoughts? Is it harder to get published as a newly graduated attorney than as a 3L? Or will they hold the note to the same quality?

As I'm sure you've surmised at this point, article selection in law journals is basically a massive crapshoot. The selection committees read hundreds of articles over a short time frame and make decisions which, at least in my experience, were driven as much by personality and EIC/SAE preference as quality or whatever else. Note selection, on the other hand, is more of a quality control test. You will also be far, far busier than you currently are when you get started working full-time.

Do it now -- you won't want to do it later and having the note will help you get additional publications down the line.

unlicensedpotato wrote:Do it now -- you won't want to do it later and having the note will help you get additional publications down the line.

Yes, think of this as your foot in the door. Do it now.

I'll also point out that if you wait until you start your job, you will in all likelihood have to run the note past your firm before you publish, which will be yet another hoop you have to jump through to get something published. Depending on whether or not the topic was relevant to something your future firm does or mentions a client of the firm (e.g., you talk about Google as an example of some thing in privacy law and your firm happens to consult with Google on some things, or your note is about environmental law and your firm does environmental litigation, etc.), there's a chance what you wrote will be considered in conflict with the firm's mission/clients and that they won't approve your request to publish. If you do it now, then you don't have to run it by your firm or worry about conflicts.

If you're waiting until you're less busy to publish, I'll look forward to reading your note in 2050.

Anonymous User wrote:As I'm sure you've surmised at this point, article selection in law journals is basically a massive crapshoot. The selection committees read hundreds of articles over a short time frame and make decisions which, at least in my experience, were driven as much by personality and EIC/SAE preference as quality or whatever else. Note selection, on the other hand, is more of a quality control test. You will also be far, far busier than you currently are when you get started working full-time.

At least for my journal (I do Note and Article Submissions), the process is fairly similar and I think Note publication is just as much a crapshoot. There are QA issues with article selection (professors looking to outsource editing/research) and I think Note selection is just as much a crapshoot. The fundamental problem is that SEs don't really know what submissions have merit (because they don't know the substantive issues) so most of the decision comes down to personal taste and writing quality (which is itself relatively subjective). If anything, Articles submissions are more predictable because many journals do not blind review Articles, so you can just defer to the author's CV/reputation.

If you want to be an academic, or if the note is on a subject you could see being relevant to your practice, then I'd try and publish it.

If not, my advice is to forget about it, because few people care, and life's too short to deal with this sort of bullshit imho.

mjb447 wrote:If you're waiting until you're less busy to publish, I'll look forward to reading your note in 2050.

OP here...point very well taken. Thanks everyone!