Cleveland-Marshall College of Law
The Legal Writing program at Cleveland-Marshall College of Law consists of three mandatory semesters of writing courses in addition to a required upper-level scholarly writing project. (10 credits) The Legal Writing Department is also responsible for conducting a week long (12-16 hour) orientation covering legal process for all first year students in order to prepare students for doing legal analysis in substantive classes.
The Legal Writing Faculty is composed of seven full-time Legal Writing professionals with 5-22 years of legal writing teaching experience. We Legal Writing faculty have 405 (c) status and the ability to earn 5 year renewable contracts. Our scholarship has been placed in top 30 law reviews and over the past several years, the Legal Writing professors have contributed to about 25% of the total scholarship of the faculty. A detailed description or our program follows.
The first year of Legal Writing consists of two graded semesters totaling five graded credits. Credits will be six hours next year. All first year sections are taught by seven full-time Legal Writing professors with an approximate class load of 20-23 students per section. The curriculum of the first semester progresses from the basics of analysis, objective writing, legal research, and citation, to a more advanced mastery of these skills. Legal Writing professors teach all aspects of research and generally have a curriculum consisting of 2-3 major writing assignments in addition to five to ten smaller assignments related to grammar, citation, research or analysis. There are compulsory drafts for, at the very least, the first objective memorandum. A lockstep curriculum is not mandated and some Legal Writing professors often end their semesters with written exams, while others end their semesters with major research projects (and corresponding memoranda).
The second semester generally consists of teaching federal statutory research, administrative research, and advocacy (both written and oral). Most Legal Writing professors assign at least one open universe memo and one or two open universe motions. Some opt to do oral arguments, while others opt to end the year with a mock multistate performance test (MPT). The MPT is now a major component of the Ohio Bar Exam. Appellate Advocacy has been removed from the first year and made one of the electives for fulfilling the mandatory third semester requirement.
The third semester requirement of Legal Writing is a two-credit hour graded requirement that may be fulfilled by students taking one of six-eight electives offered. The offerings include Appellate Brief Writing, Motion Practice, Trial Practice Writing, Litigation, Document Drafting both General and Specific subject matter, and Scholarly Writing. Full-time Legal Writing professors teach at least two of the third semester offerings while adjunct faculty teaches the other sections. From year-to-year, seventy or more students will take Brief Writing. Thus, there are four sections of Brief Writing offered each fall, and one section offered in the spring. Those students completing Brief Writing may opt to compete for the school’s moot court team for one additional credit. Most of the third semester writing courses may be used for students seeking certification for a concentration in advocacy.
The final required writing component in the curriculum is the upper level (scholarly) writing project. This is to be a 40-60 page law review type article that demonstrates “depth of knowledge, research, and thought.” Although this requirement may be fulfilled by way of approved seminar courses, the requirement is generally fulfilled by participation on one of the schools two publications and/or completing an independent project for one to three graded credits. Legal Writing professors either advise or co-advise both of the law school’s publications, and Legal Writing professors ordinarily advise 40% of all upper level writing projects done in the school.
Legal Writing has been a mandatory class at Cleveland-Marshall College of Law for approximately twenty years. There have never been caps on the length of stay for a Legal Writing professor, and two of the original members of the department are still teaching. The average years of “service” of a Legal Writing professor is about twelve and a half years with our “rookies” having five years of seniority. We have three adjuncts teaching third semester classes who have taught Legal Writing courses for approximately fifteen years. Last, but not least, each Legal Writing professor may employ at least one student tutor.
Within the last three years, Legal Writing professors have attained 405 (c) status. We have been officially (and contractually) dubbed “professors” by the faculty, have been offered the opportunity to be awarded long term contracts, and have been given the vote on all issues except tenure. Legal Writing professors have always been voting members on law school committees and have been responsible for ensuring that committee work has actually gotten done. Legal Writing professors serve on all committees except for committees related to whether a professor will be awarded tenure. A Legal Writing professor is currently serving on the Dean’s Search Committee and another on the state mandated Self-Study Committee. Lastly, Legal Writing professors are not forbidden from teaching non-Legal Writing courses if they choose the overload.
If I may be so bold to say so, Legal Writing professors are, in many ways, the very foundation of the law school. Legal Writing professors are responsible for a majority of student organizations and activities including the Law Review, the Journal of Law and Health, and the school’s Moot Court program. Most have played (and continue to play) central roles in the Academic Assistance programs, Bar Prep programs, and community advocacy related programs. In addition, the scholarship of Legal Writing professors of the last five to seven years has amounted to nearly 25% of the total scholarship combined of all current tenured faculty members. Several of our publications have been placed in top 30 law reviews.
The seven full-time professors are on ten month contracts, with the opportunity to teach for compensation in the summer. The Director is not tenured and teaches a virtual full load, if not more. Curriculum and textbooks are neither mandated by the school nor by the Director. Legal Writing professors receive the same research and travel dollars that tenured faculty receive. Finally, although Legal Writing professors are theoretically entitled to sabbaticals, thus far the school has found our collective presence indispensable and has not granted any yet.
The Legal Writing Faculty is composed of seven full-time Legal Writing professionals with 5-22 years of legal writing teaching experience. We Legal Writing faculty have 405 (c) status and the ability to earn 5 year renewable contracts. Our scholarship has been placed in top 30 law reviews and over the past several years, the Legal Writing professors have contributed to about 25% of the total scholarship of the faculty. A detailed description or our program follows.
The first year of Legal Writing consists of two graded semesters totaling five graded credits. Credits will be six hours next year. All first year sections are taught by seven full-time Legal Writing professors with an approximate class load of 20-23 students per section. The curriculum of the first semester progresses from the basics of analysis, objective writing, legal research, and citation, to a more advanced mastery of these skills. Legal Writing professors teach all aspects of research and generally have a curriculum consisting of 2-3 major writing assignments in addition to five to ten smaller assignments related to grammar, citation, research or analysis. There are compulsory drafts for, at the very least, the first objective memorandum. A lockstep curriculum is not mandated and some Legal Writing professors often end their semesters with written exams, while others end their semesters with major research projects (and corresponding memoranda).
The second semester generally consists of teaching federal statutory research, administrative research, and advocacy (both written and oral). Most Legal Writing professors assign at least one open universe memo and one or two open universe motions. Some opt to do oral arguments, while others opt to end the year with a mock multistate performance test (MPT). The MPT is now a major component of the Ohio Bar Exam. Appellate Advocacy has been removed from the first year and made one of the electives for fulfilling the mandatory third semester requirement.
The third semester requirement of Legal Writing is a two-credit hour graded requirement that may be fulfilled by students taking one of six-eight electives offered. The offerings include Appellate Brief Writing, Motion Practice, Trial Practice Writing, Litigation, Document Drafting both General and Specific subject matter, and Scholarly Writing. Full-time Legal Writing professors teach at least two of the third semester offerings while adjunct faculty teaches the other sections. From year-to-year, seventy or more students will take Brief Writing. Thus, there are four sections of Brief Writing offered each fall, and one section offered in the spring. Those students completing Brief Writing may opt to compete for the school’s moot court team for one additional credit. Most of the third semester writing courses may be used for students seeking certification for a concentration in advocacy.
The final required writing component in the curriculum is the upper level (scholarly) writing project. This is to be a 40-60 page law review type article that demonstrates “depth of knowledge, research, and thought.” Although this requirement may be fulfilled by way of approved seminar courses, the requirement is generally fulfilled by participation on one of the schools two publications and/or completing an independent project for one to three graded credits. Legal Writing professors either advise or co-advise both of the law school’s publications, and Legal Writing professors ordinarily advise 40% of all upper level writing projects done in the school.
Legal Writing has been a mandatory class at Cleveland-Marshall College of Law for approximately twenty years. There have never been caps on the length of stay for a Legal Writing professor, and two of the original members of the department are still teaching. The average years of “service” of a Legal Writing professor is about twelve and a half years with our “rookies” having five years of seniority. We have three adjuncts teaching third semester classes who have taught Legal Writing courses for approximately fifteen years. Last, but not least, each Legal Writing professor may employ at least one student tutor.
Within the last three years, Legal Writing professors have attained 405 (c) status. We have been officially (and contractually) dubbed “professors” by the faculty, have been offered the opportunity to be awarded long term contracts, and have been given the vote on all issues except tenure. Legal Writing professors have always been voting members on law school committees and have been responsible for ensuring that committee work has actually gotten done. Legal Writing professors serve on all committees except for committees related to whether a professor will be awarded tenure. A Legal Writing professor is currently serving on the Dean’s Search Committee and another on the state mandated Self-Study Committee. Lastly, Legal Writing professors are not forbidden from teaching non-Legal Writing courses if they choose the overload.
If I may be so bold to say so, Legal Writing professors are, in many ways, the very foundation of the law school. Legal Writing professors are responsible for a majority of student organizations and activities including the Law Review, the Journal of Law and Health, and the school’s Moot Court program. Most have played (and continue to play) central roles in the Academic Assistance programs, Bar Prep programs, and community advocacy related programs. In addition, the scholarship of Legal Writing professors of the last five to seven years has amounted to nearly 25% of the total scholarship combined of all current tenured faculty members. Several of our publications have been placed in top 30 law reviews.
The seven full-time professors are on ten month contracts, with the opportunity to teach for compensation in the summer. The Director is not tenured and teaches a virtual full load, if not more. Curriculum and textbooks are neither mandated by the school nor by the Director. Legal Writing professors receive the same research and travel dollars that tenured faculty receive. Finally, although Legal Writing professors are theoretically entitled to sabbaticals, thus far the school has found our collective presence indispensable and has not granted any yet.
posted by LRW Programs at
5:23 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home