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How much do firms care if your note is published? I know my note advisor pretty well, and they will enjoy a different style note than what my journal would like to publish. I am taking my note for three graded credits. Should I style my note so it has a better chance to get published, or style it so to get a better grade? FWIW, I am on a secondary journal and planning to apply mostly for DC lit.

Anonymous User wrote: ↑

Sun Sep 06, 2020 10:29 pm

How much do firms care if your note is published? I know my note advisor pretty well, and they will enjoy a different style note than what my journal would like to publish. I am taking my note for three graded credits. Should I style my note so it has a better chance to get published, or style it so to get a better grade? FWIW, I am on a secondary journal and planning to apply mostly for DC lit.

No one at my firm ever asks even about Journals so doubt the publication makes a difference, but could vary by firm. If it's not too much more effort, may as well snag a publication just for fun.

I've never heard of a firm caring if your student note was published-- you're not applying to legal academia. And previously, students were hired before any student notes were even drafted (heck, even with January OCI, it'll still be before journals select notes for publication).

Applying is about signaling. The law school you attend, your grades, and your law review membership are the most potent signals. Everything else for the most part is a nominal signal. It's not going to make or break you, but could help you on the margins. For example, a prestigious undergrad, Fed Soc membership, or, in this case, publishing a note.

You just have to ask yourself if you're applying for a crowd that appreciates the more nominal signs. From what I understand, only some hyper-prestigious litigation boutiques and some federal judges could care. If they were to grade your app out of 10.00, maybe they'd at 0.02 to your score (e.g. 8.90 --> 8.92).

It's, quite frankly, probably not worth publishing, especially if you're going to have your GPA hit at all. The simple solution, if you are someone focused on razor thin margins, is just to get an A and publish.

I've been in a lot of recruiting discussions at my V5 firm and I can't remember a partner or associate ever mentioning ANYTHING journal-related as a factor in whether or not to give someone a callback or offer. Publishing might have a marginal impact at some sort of "intellectual" boutique, or a one-off big firm here and there, but your grades (and school, experience, having a passable personality, etc.) are going to carry far more weight.

Firms couldn't care less. For some firms, being on LR is still a shiny gold star, but membership is enough. This is a tenuous connection, but some firms care about clerkships, and publications matter more in the clerkship context (though still not required by all judges).