www.top-law-schools.com Forum

[Borhas]

So apparently getting on Law Review is super duper good thing to have and seem to correlate very well to getting jobs.

I have a few questions

1. Is LR itself so crucial or is it basically just a proxy for good grades (the good grades are what makes the difference and not necessarily LR)

2. Is it actually worth the effort? It seems like people spend shit tons of time checking up on other people's work. Wouldn't that time be better spent... I dunno... doing almost anything else?

3. Is it important as a status symbol even if the work itself is not rewarding?

4. Would it be advisable to not do law review if one got on it thanks to grades? (instead spend that time "networking," sleeping, volunteering or working?

5. Would the answer to any of these questions change if you had different career aspirations? Academia vs firm vs government vs non profit vs clerkship (I want to get a public defender job)

[yinz]

1. Yes, it's crucial for both reasons. On the one hand, it shows that you distinguished yourself from 100-300+ of your classmates and, on the other hand, it illustrates to judges and partners that you can do tedious, detail-oriented work for extended periods of time.
2. (i)Yes. (ii)Not if you value LR as much as 90% of those in the profession.
3. Depends on the type of journal you do and the type of work you do for that journal, but yes.
4. No; the only caveat here is if you were transferring to a better school (but even then it's very much debated).
5. Again, it depends, but more than not, no.

Lastly, and no offense, but it seems as if you're looking for excuses not to do the work for and on LR.

[mallard]

Some people think it's for the worst people at school and that it's worthless and not enjoyable. Some people think it distinguishes you and that it's prestigious and intellectual.

[Borhas]

but it seems as if you're looking for excuses not to do the work for and on LR.

thanks for your input, and i do realize that it's kind of presumptuous since I have no reason to believe I would do better or worse than my peers in the first place.

I'm not looking for an excuse not to do the work FOR LR since I do want to get good grades, but if I could have the grades and not have to engage in some masochistic exercise to prove to the world that I could do tedious, detail-oriented work for extended periods of time then that would be awesome... so yes I am looking for an excuse not do the work ON LR.

Some people think it's for the worst people at school and that it's worthless and not enjoyable. Some people think it distinguishes you and that it's prestigious and intellectual.

What do you think?

[mallard]

I lean toward the former position.

[YCrevolution]

..

[CanadianWolf]

Law review certainly distinguishes the brightest, hardest working law students from the less motivated students for 2L summer placement. But it is important to work hard while on law review during the second year of law school in order to get published & to become an editor during your final year of law school; this is especially true if one's 2L placement does not result in permanent employment since interviewers during one's third year of law school may want to know about law review accomplishments or ask about failure to be published or lack of success in becoming an editorial board member.

[Patriot1208]

For programs like the DOJ honors, would LR be essential? And if it's not, would moot court be a fine substituition? From what i've heard I would think I would want to avoid law review if I had the grades and didn't need it for the job I want.

[doyleoil]

Ah, Mallard at his ducky best. Framing issues in black and white and casting opposing positions in the worst possible light.

[20160810]

All I know is that every single employer coming to OCI at my school expressed a preference for LR applicants in their Symplicity profile. But on the other hand, LR sounds boring and shitty and I'm not doing it, so I'm inclined to say for biased reasons that not having a journal on your resume is fine if your grades are OK and there's something else to set you apart from the crowd.

[mallard]

Ah, Mallard at his ducky best. Framing issues in black and white and casting opposing positions in the worst possible light.

lol. I'm sorry, I just can't keep my mouth shut in a thread where people assert that "LR certainly distinguishes the brightest . . . students."

[dresden doll]

I'm more curious to know what sort of a bump LR gives to those that write on.

[MD/JD2B]

Most professional work involves tedium and paying attention to detail...otherwise you aren't doing a great job. Do you want to have a life which revolves around this type of work..if you're going to law school, my guess is yes. Law review would be a good place to start, then. Of course making connections with people, IMHO, plays an important role too.

[mallard]

Most professional work involves tedium and paying attention to detail...otherwise you aren't doing a great job. Do you want to have a life which revolves around this type of work..if you're going to law school, my guess is yes. Law review would be a good place to start, then. Of course making connections with people, IMHO, plays an important role too.

This makes sense. If you're going to do porn, you might as well start sucking cock as early as possible.

[dresden doll]

Most professional work involves tedium and paying attention to detail...otherwise you aren't doing a great job. Do you want to have a life which revolves around this type of work..if you're going to law school, my guess is yes. Law review would be a good place to start, then. Of course making connections with people, IMHO, plays an important role too.

This makes sense. If you're going to do porn, you might as well start sucking cock as early as possible.

You've been particularly hilarious today, buddy.

[YCrevolution]

..

[doyleoil]

Ah, Mallard at his ducky best. Framing issues in black and white and casting opposing positions in the worst possible light.

lol. I'm sorry, I just can't keep my mouth shut in a thread where people assert that "LR certainly distinguishes the brightest . . . students."

totally understandable - it's good to have you around, man - you're like the hippie conscience i never had

[l.rev.serf]

If you have high grades at a solid school, I think law review isn't worth it if your career aspirations are limited to private practice.

[mallard]

If you have high grades at a solid school, I think law review isn't worth it if your career aspirations are limited to private practice.

To be clear, this isn't true of top litigation practices and clerkships - many of them seem to really want law review, even from HYS, or at least some journal work.

[l.rev.serf]

If you have high grades at a solid school, I think law review isn't worth it if your career aspirations are limited to private practice.

To be clear, this isn't true of top litigation practices and clerkships - many of them seem to really want law review, even from HYS, or at least some journal work.

Agreed wrt clerkships, but if you want that, you already know that law review is important. Susman and W&C require clerkships, so, again, not really within the scope of the conversation. If you're just aspiring to a decent career in private practice, I don't think law review is a particularly good investment.

Edit: on the other hand, I'd definitely advise students to get some journal experience.

[Patriot1208]

If you have high grades at a solid school, I think law review isn't worth it if your career aspirations are limited to private practice.

To be clear, this isn't true of top litigation practices and clerkships - many of them seem to really want law review, even from HYS, or at least some journal work.

Agreed wrt clerkships, but if you want that, you already know that law review is important. Susman and W&C require clerkships, so, again, not really within the scope of the conversation. If you're just aspiring to a decent career in private practice, I don't think law review is a particularly good investment.

Edit: on the other hand, I'd definitely advise students to get some journal experience.

Needed for DOJ honors?

[bigben]

It's mostly a proxy for grades. No question about that. The people on law review are mostly getting good jobs because of good grades.

However, it does give you a noticeable bump. If your grades aren't that great and you pulled it off, it could give you a slightly larger bump.

For some top clerkships, it's required.

If you just want a good firm job and have the school + grades to lock that up, then there is no problem with turning it down/not applying. People do it all the time.

[MD/JD2B]

Most professional work involves tedium and paying attention to detail...otherwise you aren't doing a great job. Do you want to have a life which revolves around this type of work..if you're going to law school, my guess is yes. Law review would be a good place to start, then. Of course making connections with people, IMHO, plays an important role too.

This makes sense. If you're going to do porn, you might as well start sucking cock as early as possible.

Mallard, please behave.

But be selective.

[yinz]

Most professional work involves tedium and paying attention to detail...otherwise you aren't doing a great job. Do you want to have a life which revolves around this type of work..if you're going to law school, my guess is yes. Law review would be a good place to start, then. Of course making connections with people, IMHO, plays an important role too.

This makes sense. If you're going to do porn, you might as well start sucking cock as early as possible.

Mallard, please behave.

But be selective.

What's your yield?

[bigben]

For programs like the DOJ honors, would LR be essential? And if it's not, would moot court be a fine substituition? From what i've heard I would think I would want to avoid law review if I had the grades and didn't need it for the job I want.

I highly doubt it from what I've seen. DOJ seems to be particularly interested in your commitment to govt/public service as demonstrated by your past employment/intern experiences, and maybe your personal statement.

I imagine they would also be more interested in moot court than most employers. Moot court might not happen before DOJ honors hiring, though.

Of course, L. Rev. will help you with the DOJ just like anywhere else. But it's not a prereq.