Listed below are a few writing competitions focused on labor and employment law that offer cash prizes that could assist with the cost of law school. There are several other writing competitions for students so you should check your law school’s or state bar association’s websites.
The American Bar Association’s Section of Labor and Employment Law established the LEL Trial Advocacy Competition to introduce law students to the challenges and rewards of employment and labor litigation.
Law students who participate in the competition have the opportunity to develop their trial advocacy technique in a mock courtroom experience. The Competition offers participating students a forum in which they may develop the skills they will be using as practitioners, and a chance to meet and network with fellow law students and labor and employment law practitioners.
Please contact the Section office with any questions regarding the Competition.
The College of Labor and Employment Lawyers and American Bar Association Section of Labor and Employment Law Annual Law Student Writing Competition. Articles for the competition may address any aspect of public or private sector labor and/or employment law relevant to the American labor and employment bar. Information for the current year’s competition can be found at https://www.theclel.org/law-student-writing-competition/.
The Louis Jackson National Student Writing Competition in Employment and Labor Law is an annual law student writing competition administered by Illinois Institute of Technology Chicago-Kent Institute for Law and the Workplace, a national center for research, training dialogue and reflection on the law that governs the workplace. The Institute pools the resources of leading academic scholars and the practicing professional community to train students and professionals, monitor policies and trends, and reflect upon issues confronting the labor and employment law community in a neutral setting. Additional information can be found at https://www.kentlaw.iit.edu/institutes-centers/institute-for-law-and-the-workplace/louis-jackson-writing-competition
The American College of Employee Benefits Counsel, Inc. Writing Competition
The College sponsors a writing competition for law students to encourage them to learn about employee benefits. Papers may be on any topic in the employee benefits field. Two monetary prizes are offered. Winners also receive an employee benefits treatise published by BNA Books. If deemed suitable by the editors, one or more of the winning papers may be published by the BNA Pension and Benefits Reporter or in the BNA Tax Management Compensation Planning Journal. More information can be found at http://www.acebc.com/employee-benefits-writing-competition
The Debra Evenson Social Justice Writing Award. The award is granted annually to a law student based on a writing competition with a topic focusing on social justice and workers’ rights issues. A panel of judges will select the winning entry with a $500 cash award to be presented to the winner. The winning article will be submitted for publication to the National Lawyers Guild Review (selection for publication is at the sole discretion of the NLG Review). For more information, visit http://www.sugarlaw.org/.