June 2024 Notes Pool

The Journal of Law & Politics will be accepting submissions for its Notes Pool until 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, June 4^th. Late submissions will not be accepted. Students who would like their Note to be considered for publication in the Journal should read the following guidelines and submission instructions.

Notes Pool Eligibility: Notes are student-written articles and the Journal accepts submissions from current J.D. candidates at the University of Virginia School of Law. Submissions are also considered from recent graduates who have recieved a J.D. from the University of Virginia within the preceding twelve months.

Selecting a Note Topic: Notes may be on any area of law but must have a substantial focus on the nexus between the law and politics. The Journal is the only nonpartisan publication focused on law and politics and in maintenance of that mission considers submissions from all political ideologies. Submissions may take an ideological position or may opt to remain neutral. The topic may also not be preempted by an already published piece. Interested students should examine if their topic of choice has already been covered in previous publications, if their Note will contribute a sufficiently different viewpoint of the issue, and if their discussion is appropriately tailored.

Length: The recommended length for a Note is 10,000–14,000 words including footnotes (approximately 35–40 pages in double-spaced, 12-point Times New Roman font). Notes longer than 14,000 words are strongly discouraged. Notes longer than 15,500 words will not be considered without prior approval of the Editor-in-Chief. Students may submit Notes shorter than 10,000 words without approval.

Graded Submissions: Per the University’s Academic Policies, no student may submit a Note during the same semester the written work is submitted for a grade without prior approval from the Assistant Dean for Academic Services and Editor-in-Chief.

Formatting and Submissions Requirements

• Please use double-spaced, 12-point Times New Roman font for the body of your submission. Please use single-spaced footnotes rather than endnotes for citations and references. Submission must use Bluebook style for footnotes, rather than any other style guide.
• Submissions must be emailed to submissions@lawandpolitics.net in .docx format by the time the pool closes.
• The document must include a cover page, the file name must be the title of the note, and the subject line of the email must be June Notes Pool. The cover page(s) should only include: the title of the submission; an abstract of approximately 250 words or fewer, single spaced that briefly summarizes the argument of the submission; a table of contents; the word count for your submission, both with and without footnotes; and a very brief summary of the doctrinal landscape of your topic and a clear statement of your note’s central argument.
• Please remove any identifying information from the body of the document as well as any personal information embedded in the digital file. This includes removing identifying information typucally included at the beginning of a Note in a * footnoote, such as advisors, class information, or professors that assisted in the drafting and editing of the submission.
• In addition to the cover page, all submissions must email a separate document as a PDF to editor@lawandpolitics.net. This document should be a single page and include your name, phone number, e-mail address, and mailing address; the title of the note; a signed statedment that your Note was substantially written during law school; and the name of any professors with whom you worked when writing your Note. 

Notes Advising: The Journal  offers advising to all students who are interested in submitting a Note for publication, whether or not those students are current members of the Journal. Advising is available at any stage of the writing process (selecting a topic, reviewing an existing draft, etc.) and to answer questions about the submission process. However, pursuant to the University of Virginia’s Honor Code, we are unable to give substantive advice on any paper that will be submitted for a grade until the student has turned it in to their professor. Students interested in Notes Advising may email the Editor-in-Chief, Rachel Thompson (tkv6qp@virginia.edu). Please note that new requests for advising will not be entertained during open Notes Pools. This policy is intended to ensure that authors have sufficient time to implement suggested changes before submission deadlines.

Please contact the Editor-in-Chief, Rachel Thompson (tkv6qp@virginia.edu) with any questions.