Whether you write a simple paragraph, an essay, or a thesis, you must ensure that it comes out as you had planned so that the time and effort you put into writing any of these should not go in vain. For instance, if you are writing an essay. you need to make sure that you give enough time and focus well to meet all the instructions. Besides that, your essay should be well-written to get an A grade. With that said, if you need to write a law review article, read the article below thoroughly enough to understand and learn how to write a law review article.
What is a Law Review Article?
A law review article is a secondary source of a legal study. It carefully analyses and constructively criticizes legal issues, and adds numerous references to secondary and primary sources.
In addition, a law review article focuses on a specific topic, such as environmental law or real estate. Its components will include the outcomes of a broad range of panels and symposia on appropriate legal law review article topics.
Law students commonly edit law reviews in collaboration with their teachers. They often focus on new or developing areas of law. Then, offer more critical commentary than an ALR item or legal reference book.
With that being said, continue reading to find out how to write a law review article that will receive positive feedback during peer assessment.
How to Write a Law Review Article
Whether you are in high school or college, you will almost certainly have to tackle different writing tasks. Since it does not rely on one’s personal knowledge and expertise, an article review is, therefore, one of the most difficult tasks for many students.
After all, I t is crucial to select the appropriate article and follow the guidelines of your teacher.
Besides, the entire writing process can take you a long time. While many students have other priorities too, such as spending spare time with friends, watching TV shows, and traveling.
In addition to that, you may have a heavy workload with numerous assignments from various other professors. Therefore, it is occasionally impossible to accomplish all tasks on time and with the desired outcome. Thus, keep on reading to learn how to write a law review article in no time.
Step 1: Find a Relevant Research Question
The first step to learning how to write a law review article is to choose a topic for your law review article before you actually begin writing. You can begin with a broad topic. Besides, it does not even have to be one in which you intend to start practicing.
However, you should be interested in the subject because you will be working on this review for months.
Once you find a broad topic, immerse yourself in various subtopics. Then, choose one and begin writing down questions unanswered that could be addressed in your law review.
However, if you are stuck on a topic, make sure that you contact your professor. No doubt they can show you the right direction.
Step 2: Make a list of Everything that You Want to Include
Once you figure out what you want to write about, determine which minor questions should be addressed before moving on to the larger issue. For instance, to answer the major question of how to file a client’s lawsuit, you should first answer the following questions:
- Who has the right to file a client case and who does not?
- Is it feasible for a company to file a consumer complaint?
- What academic documents are required to file a customer complaint?
- What are the court’s explanations for rejecting an application?
- How long will it require to resolve the case?
- What type of compensation can be expected?
So on and so forth. Furthermore, more inquiries are possible. Thus, make up some more questions on your own. These will eventually become the headings and subheadings of your paper.
Step 3: Create Your Fundamental Framework
By now, we assume that you know what you want to write about and you have made a list of all the sub-points that you want to include in your review article. If so, you should be ready to make an outline for your law review article. For instance, if you want to write a law review article on “how to file a complaint as a client or consumer?”, the outline of your paper should look something like this.
- What are some possible complaints that one can make as a consumer?
- Is it possible to file a complaint on behalf of someone or any company?
- Where should I go if I am filing a complaint?
- Which Court may have the authority on the specific section?
- What does one need to be able to file a complaint?
Moreover, a traditional law review article has the following components.
Introduction
The first part of a law review article is its introduction. This is also the main part of the paper. After all, if one could construct a strong enough introduction, he can definitely make his reader keep on reading his paper.
With that being said, the introduction of your law review article should include a problem description that states the main problem that your paper is addressing. Other than that, it should include a thesis statement and an argument roadmap that will be covered throughout the body of the argument.
The thesis statement is usually considered to be one of the most important parts of any paper’s introductory section. After all, it helps your reader decide whether they want to continue reading or not.
Besides, if you find writing the introduction of your law review article difficult. You can also keep it aside and focus on writing the rest of the article. Because you can come back any time and write this part of your paper.
Part One
You can use the next section of your paper to provide a comprehensive overview of the source material in your Note, on which the subsequent analysis will be based.
Besides that, do not forget to add a fundamental and broad debate of the major topics related to your topic. Moreover, you should also add an educational element that notifies your readers about everything they need to know to understand the thought behind your law review article.
When writing this section, keep in mind that a reader who is unaware of your topic should be able to understand it.
Part Two
The third section of your law review article includes an overview of any essential cases that you will further discuss in detail while building your analysis. Besides, it should be able to illustrate to your reader the current state of your law at the time of writing your law review article.
For instance, if you are addressing an issue such as a circuit split in your review paper, you will have to illustrate any contradictory argument that others can make against your argument. Other than that, you can also choose to talk about what any other write would have said regarding the issue you are dealing with.
Part Three
In this section of your paper, you have thoroughly explained your point of view and arguments regarding your paper and the case that you are dealing with. Besides that, you should thoroughly explain why your arguments are correct and what is essential to solve the issue that you are addressing in your paper.
For instance, if you are addressing the circuit split problem, tell your reader whether, in your opinion, the circuit split is right or not. If yes, which part of it is preferable? Also, explain why.
Besides, do not forget to add your views based on hard-core facts.
Conclusion
The final section of you law review article is a summary of the main idea and the supporting arguments that you have added in your law review article. Here you have to explain why the case you have studied is evidently incorrect. Besides, make sure that you add no new content in the conclusion. However, try to keep on the rythem from the previous sections of your paper.
Step 4: Write
Now that you have finished the skeleton for your paper, you can start filling in the blanks with answers to each specific question. Also, remember that you can expand any outline with additional questions, and the possibilities are limitless. However, if you want to write more and answer specific questions, please do so in another separate review.
However, do not start writing law review articles or conducting research until the outline of your paper is complete. This will ensure that you save time and become a more organized thinker.
Furthermore, we suggest you take enough time and write without trying to make sure that everything is perfect. Because you can take out time later and fill out the gaps. Besides, this is possibly the longest step of writing a law review article.
Step 5: Putting Together the Draft
Try to set your paper aside for a while before trying to prepare the final version of your paper. This allows you to see any gaps that exist or errors in your work more clearly and accurately.
Besides, revising includes reconsidering your ideas, perfecting your arguments, restructuring your paragraphs, and rephrasing sentences that need more work. In addition to that, you may need to broaden your ideas, provide more evidence to back up your claims, or eliminate unnecessary content
Furthermore, we recommend that you should read your paper aloud to yourself. This can make it easier to notice tricky or unclear writing. Afterward, let another person look over the document and notify you if anything is ambiguous or puzzling.
Step 5: Review and Edit
The last step of learning how to write a law review article is to review your paper once you have completed it. Then, reread it at least twice and find out areas you can fill. For instance, if there are any grammatical or spelling mistakes, make sure that you correct these mistakes.
Besides, you can also use an online spell and grammar checker tool to make sure that everything is perfect. Otherwise, you can also ask a friend to help in reviewing and editing your article.
Moreover, also add a reference page. The reference page lists all of the sources that you have used during your research. Whether the source is a book, or a journal, a website, you must cite and reference it properly so that your reader can locate it easily.
Besides, as a writer, you must ensure that every source referenced in the paper is properly cited. Hence, check the the following bullets to learn how to create a reference list for your law review article.
- Always use a proper style guide such as MLA, Chicago, or APA while creating a reference list. Also, make sure that you do not blend the style features.
- The writer’s last name should be arranged alphabetically on the reference page.
- Make sure that you include all the references that you have used in your work. Because if you miss adding any source, your paper will be considered plagiarized.
- Lastly, pay close attention to indentation and spacing. For instance, use pages that are 8.5 x 11 inches. Also, use a single column and make sure that the font is Times New Roman and it is 12.
- And recheck once you have completed your final draft to make sure everything is correct.
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