Membership

Members of the Charleston Law Review are chosen anonymously through the Charleston School of Law’s Journal Write-On Competition. The Competition is held each spring and is open to rising 2L students who have completed at least 24 credit hours. Competitors are selected for membership based on their first-year grade point average and their performance on competition assignments, which typically consist of writing a legal memorandum and answering a series of Bluebook problems. Students selected for membership join the CLR as staff members in the July preceding their 2L year. Students interested in becoming members of the CLR should keep in mind that the journal operates year-round, including during school breaks and holidays.

Eligibility

- Students are eligible to compete only if they (a) have taken LRAW I and II and (b) have completed either their 1L year or at least 24 credit hours.
- Students who have completed their 2L year are not eligible to compete for membership on the CLR.
- Competitors must have a cumulative GPA of 2.7 or higher.
- Competitors must be in good academic standing (i.e., not on academic probation).
- No student who competed in a previous year’s Write-On Competition may compete in a subsequent year’s Write-On Competition.

Benefits

Joining the Charleston Law Review offers a multitude of benefits. Current and past CLR members regularly attest that membership on the journal has allowed them to hone their writing, editing, and research skills, to increase their familiarity with the Bluebook, to refine their attention to detail, and to enhance their academic performance. Additionally, members frequently note that their association with the CLR has provided them with considerable opportunities for networking and career advancement and has enabled them to explore legal topics beyond the classroom, to contribute to scholarly discourse, and to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the law.

During their 2L year, members of the Charleston Law Review write individual Notes and thereby satisfy their Upper-Level Writing requirement. Each summer, the Notes written by CLR members during the preceding academic year are entered into the journal’s Student Works Competition, and the highest-scoring Notes (usually between 4 and 8) are published the following spring in the CLR‘s Student Works issue. Current and past members of the journal have appreciated the opportunity to become published authors by the time of their graduation and have observed the benefits during their 3L year of being able to include on their résumés that they have forthcoming publications.

Important dates

Fall-admits:

All would-be competitors must submit a signed write-on agreement by early May.
The Write-On Competition takes place over a single week in May.
Offers for CLR membership are sent to competitors in late June.
The deadline for accepting membership is in early June.

Spring-admits:

All would-be competitors must submit a signed write-on agreement by early August.
The Write-On Competition takes place over a single week in August.
Offers for CLR membership are sent to competitors in mid-August.
The deadline for accepting membership is in late August.

FAQs

Why should I join the CLR?

- Members of the Charleston Law Review benefit from opportunities to improve their research, writing, and editing skills, to develop and strengthen their connections in the legal community, and to prepare themselves for their future legal careers. In addition, members are able to satisfy their Upper-Level Writing requirement during their 2L year and have the chance to become published authors prior to their graduation from the Charleston School of Law.

What is the time commitment required of CLR members?

- Each week, 2L staff members are assigned a certain number of pages to review in an article to be published.
- The weekly time commitment required for 2L work varies according to the staff member, but most members spend between 3 and 6 hours per week on their assignments.
- In many cases, staff members will be able to “work ahead.” In other words, they will be presented with multiple assignments and deadlines at one time and will then be able to complete the work at their own pace provided all deadlines are met.

What do 2L CLR members do?

They “spade”…
- Spading involves looking at all the sources an author has cited, locating the cited material within each source, and ensuring that the author has accurately represented his or her sources.
They “Bluebook”…
- Staff members check all footnotes within an article to confirm that they correspond to the rules of The Bluebook.
They make recommendations for substantive changes…
- In the early stages of an article’s editing, staff members provide comments on the author’s text. Within their comments, they point out places (1) that would benefit from further clarification; (2) that need to be supported by additional sources; and (3) that require rewriting for comprehension or concision.
They edit for grammar, punctuation, and style…
- In the later stages of an article’s editing, staff members read the text of the article closely and identify places where the article needs to be brought into line with in-house requirements or the guidelines for grammar, punctuation, and style laid out in The Chicago Manual of Style.

How do I join, and when will I know if I’m selected for membership?

To join the Charleston Law Review, rising 2L students must participate in the Journal Write-On Competition at the end of their first year. Selection for membership is based on first-year grade point average and performance in the competition. Students chosen to join the CLR will receive offers of membership in late June.

How many people are on the CLR?

The CLR has approximately 40 members at any given time, but the journal does not set a cap on the number of students to be accepted for membership during any year. Instead, the CLR seeks the most qualified and academically successful applicants possible.