Executive Board Positions - Pro and Con discussion Forum

[DrGuano]

I've posted this in another thread but I'll repeat here...

2L at a T30 on LR.

At my T30, which has a very well-respected LR (probably gives away which school), there is very little upside to the board. It is entirely student run, meaning students do all the work. Editors put in between 5-6 hours a day, on top of an SA gig, during the summer prepping for fall publications and reading writing comp. submissions. While I intuitively know that someone other than the editors and their parents read the LR, I really don't think anyone cares much for their hard work other than say, people at the school that pat them on the back for their hard work since they make the school look good. But other than that, it is a (very nice I must say) group of people needlessly working their ass off to put out a 500 page book once a month that is pretty much worthless.

The one good thing about it - the Managing Editor wrote on to LR, had mediocre grades entering 2L OCI. Worked at some tiny firm nobody ever heard of. Used his position to reinterview during 3L OCI and is now working at SullCrom. There is the one pro (other than some arguable clerking advantage) of the board.

Here's a pro for not doing it - 3L year is the last year for maybe your entire life that you'll be able to somewhat enjoy your free time and pursue your non-professional interests. Why waste it on something that no one other than your tiny little circle of editors appreciate? Spend your time wisely.

[IAFG]

At my T30, which has a very well-respected LR (probably gives away which school)...

Sorry but I had to lol. Do people really keep track of the relative "respectedness" of LRs?

[chiwachiwa]

At my T30, which has a very well-respected LR (probably gives away which school)...

Sorry but I had to lol. Do people really keep track of the relative "respectedness" of LRs?

http://lawlib.wlu.edu/LJ/

[Geist13]

At my T30, which has a very well-respected LR (probably gives away which school)...

Sorry but I had to lol. Do people really keep track of the relative "respectedness" of LRs?

http://lawlib.wlu.edu/LJ/

It's one of the executive board's main strategies to get 2Ls to give a fuck about bluebooking. "Gotta maintain that RANK!" The sad thing is that it actually appears to motivate some people (although I'm pretty sure it de-motivates me).

[Borhas]

At my T30, which has a very well-respected LR (probably gives away which school)...

Sorry but I had to lol. Do people really keep track of the relative "respectedness" of LRs?

http://lawlib.wlu.edu/LJ/

So..... William & Mary?

[DrGuano]

At my T30, which has a very well-respected LR (probably gives away which school)...

Sorry but I had to lol. Do people really keep track of the relative "respectedness" of LRs?

If the editors are willing to commit 40 hours a week they gotta justify it somehow.

[Advice Dog]

At my T30, which has a very well-respected LR (probably gives away which school)...

Sorry but I had to lol. Do people really keep track of the relative "respectedness" of LRs?

http://lawlib.wlu.edu/LJ/

It's one of the executive board's main strategies to get 2Ls to give a fuck about bluebooking. "Gotta maintain that RANK!" The sad thing is that it actually appears to motivate some people (although I'm pretty sure it de-motivates me).

Same here. I actually laughed when someone was telling me about the importance of maintaining our journal's rank. I can't believe people actually care about this stuff. There is nothing more depressing than frittering away an afternoon checking sources for an article about what (insert obscure 17th century economic school of thought) would think of (insert supreme court case).

But if we don't make sure that the source is REALLY strong enough for a "see" signal rather than a "cf," the entire RULE OF LAW MIGHT COLLAPSE AS WE KNOW IT!

[MichaelRansom78]

Which law review E-board position is best for obtaining a clerkship? Right now I am considering Managing Editor, but if I don't make it I will probably run for Note and Comment Editor.

Is there a disadvantage to being a managing editor? It appears to be more like a secretarial position.

Any idea what positions judges tend to look for the most? Thanks!

[Bobby Dazzler]

The one good thing about it - the Managing Editor wrote on to LR, had mediocre grades entering 2L OCI. Worked at some tiny firm nobody ever heard of. Used his position to reinterview during 3L OCI and is now working at SullCrom. There is the one pro (other than some arguable clerking advantage) of the board.

Dear god let this be me come August/September. Otherwise 3L will be absolutely killself-worthy.

[chiwachiwa]

Which law review E-board position is best for obtaining a clerkship? Right now I am considering Managing Editor, but if I don't make it I will probably run for Note and Comment Editor.

Is there a disadvantage to being a managing editor? It appears to be more like a secretarial position.

Any idea what positions judges tend to look for the most? Thanks!

Every journal titles its positions differently. The best positions for clerkship prospects are, in order, (1) Editor-in-Chief, and (2) the Articles selection editor, whatever that may be called at your school. Cite-checking and bluebooking editors are probably next, followed by the rest of the substantive editors (Notes, Comments, Book Reviews, etc.), and finally the business positions.

[Green Crayons]

Since they hardly get discussed, SSC clerkship applications also benefit from a board position (I assume most people think Art. III when clerkships are thrown around).


Having seen the time-sinks versus reward ratio of the various positions in person, your decision as to what position you want to vie for depends upon why you are wanting to be on board. For example, if you want to clerk, you should honestly go EIC-or-bust -- where "bust" is a low-rung editing position (something right above cite-checking); the EIC position appears to be the only position that really "excuses" the inevitable grade drop from one of the higher positions (if GTL/etc. clerkship thread has anything to say about it), and with less responsibilities you can still focus on grade maintenance. The catch is that if the retiring board sees that you only ranked EIC and then low-responsibility positions, you probably won't get EIC. Oh well, you weren't going to get that anyways. Now you can say you were on LR board in a position that doesn't sound absolutely worthless but were still able to focus on whatever else makes you a special snowflake for clerkship applications.

[Geist13]

Since they hardly get discussed, SSC clerkship applications also benefit from a board position (I assume most people think Art. III when clerkships are thrown around).


Having seen the time-sinks versus reward ratio of the various positions in person, your decision as to what position you want to vie for depends upon why you are wanting to be on board. For example, if you want to clerk, you should honestly go EIC-or-bust -- where "bust" is a low-rung editing position (something right above cite-checking); the EIC position appears to be the only position that really "excuses" the inevitable grade drop from one of the higher positions (if GTL/etc. clerkship thread has anything to say about it), and with less responsibilities you can still focus on grade maintenance. The catch is that if the retiring board sees that you only ranked EIC and then low-responsibility positions, you probably won't get EIC. Oh well, you weren't going to get that anyways. Now you can say you were on LR board in a position that doesn't sound absolutely worthless but were still able to focus on whatever else makes you a special snowflake for clerkship applications.

um, even most state court clerk hiring is finished before you have any grades, dooder.

I guess maybe this holds if you're talking about working for a few years then clerking, but if that's the case, you're probably talking AIII not state courts.

[Green Crayons]

2Ls who received top board positions are already getting major time sinks, thereby impacting Spring grades. That is applicable to both SSC and Art. III clerkships as both generally hire in Summer/3L Fall, notwithstanding those judges who hire super early in the Spring.


My reference to SSC was only to note that the "if you want to clerk should you do exec board" extends to both Art. III and SSC clerkships -- just because it's state doesn't mean they aren't keen on many of the same application factors.

[Cavalier]

I agree with "EIC or bust." If you can't get EIC, go for the position with the least amount of work involved. Law journals use such different titles for their board positions that it's impossible to determine a position's significance without checking that journal's masthead, which judges are unlikely to do when comparing applicants. Unless your application is seen by a clerk who is an alum of your journal, your position probably won't matter as long as the position has a serious title (e.g. "essays editor" is fine, whereas "events planner" probably isn't).

As far as the pros and cons of serving on the board, it really depends on how the journal is run and the specific positions you're interested in. On some journals board members do several times the amount of work as regular members; on other journals the disparity isn't as great. Board positions may be just as dull as cite checking, or the work may be substantially more interesting. There's definitely a resume boost, but it's generally not critical except for SCOTUS. At UVA each year, several students who aren't on the board end up with court of appeals clerkships. If it truly doesn't interest you, I wouldn't do it.

[Geist13]

2Ls who received top board positions are already getting major time sinks, thereby impacting Spring grades. That is applicable to both SSC and Art. III clerkships as both generally hire in Summer/3L Fall, notwithstanding those judges who hire super early in the Spring.

ahhh, I gotcha, i assumed you meant 3L grades.

[a male human]

I spoke with last year's EIC of my secondary journal, and he mentioned that employers want to put that stuff on your bios. I was anonymously nominated by someone to run for EIC, and I'm debating whether I should. To those who say "EIC or bust," do you think that applies to firm/in-house jobs as well (not interested in judicial clerkships)?

[kalvano]

I'm pondering applying for a non-EIC executive position. Why do I hate myself?

[IAFG]

I'm pondering applying for a non-EIC executive position. Why do I hate myself?

If you didn't hate yourself, why would you be in law school?

[Advice Dog]

I'm pondering applying for a non-EIC executive position. Why do I hate myself?

Why would you want to do that?

[kalvano]

I'm pondering applying for a non-EIC executive position. Why do I hate myself?

Why would you want to do that?

Because I was asked to by the person who now has the job. And because our sponsoring professor is good about helping board members secure employment.

Also gunning for clerkship with meh grades, so any boost I can find.

[Hutz_and_Goodman]

I'm reviving this thread because I'm trying to decide what to do for journal (law review). I'm at a T1 school, and I have a big law SA for next summer. I'm running for EIC and I have some people supporting me. However, I don't think I'm likely to win given that I did a crappy job with spading last semester due to the job hunt. The question is: do I bid other positions where I'm more likely to win? I think I could snap a lower board position but my current thinking is i'm just going to bid EIC/ME and that way I'll either get a top position or just be a staff member next year.

[patogordo]

I'm reviving this thread because I'm trying to decide what to do for journal. I'm at a T1 school, and I have a big law SA for next summer. I'm running for EIC and I have some people supporting me. However, I don't think I'm likely to win given that I did a crappy job with spading last semester due to the job hunt. The question is: do I bid other positions where I'm more likely to win? I think I could snap a lower board position but my current thinking is i'm just going to bid EIC/ME and that way I'll either get a top position or just be a staff member next year.

i don't have any advice but if you make the wrong decision it will haunt you for the rest of your career.

[a male human]

Yes, pretty sure you can apply for more than one position.

[Hutz_and_Goodman]

Yes, pretty sure you can apply for more than one position.

No question I can, but what positions are worth it?

[a male human]

Yes, pretty sure you can apply for more than one position.

No question I can, but what positions are worth it?

I think that depends on your own skills. For me, I was confident in my Bluebooking, so I ran for Exec Articles Editor (nominated for EIC but ended up with EAE). If you want to manage and are comfortable connecting with people, EIC might be good. Both would involve a significant amount of work.

I heard some schools give academic credits (mine did not) depending on journal position, so that might play a role in your decision.