Writing Competitions

• Freedom from Religion Foundation 2025 First Amendment Scholars Law Student Essay Competition

  For papers responding to the argument that that anti-discrimination laws cannot be enforced against religious schools receiving public funds. (First, second, and third-place awards of $4000, $3000, and $2000, respectively; deadline January 27, 2025.)

• American Bar Association Standing committee on Lawyers’ Professional Liability Edward C. Mendrzycki Award

  For scholarly essays on a hypothetical involving multiple ethical and professional liability concerns that arise when a law firm adopts an artificial intelligence software platform to assist its lawyers in providing legal services to its clients. (Award of $5000 and travel to spring 2025 National Legal Malpractice Conference in Charlotte, NC; deadline February 1, 2025.)

• Mitchell Hamline School of Law Roy Snell Health Care Regulatory and Compliance Writing Competition

  Participating students will analyze a hypothetical fact pattern involving an organization facing multifaceted health care regulatory/compliance matters and draft two separate internal memoranda to two different recipients within the organization. Registration is required. (First, second, and third-place awards of $5000, $3000, and $1500, respectively; registration deadline February 2, 2025; prompt release February 3, 2025; submission deadline March 17, 2025.)

• American Bar Association Antitrust Law Section Robert Pitofsky Law Student Writing Competition

  For original articles which either have been or are scheduled to be published no later than January 31, 2025, on a current topic dealing with antitrust or consumer protection law. The editor of the law school publication that published the entrant’s paper must also complete and submit an official 2024-2025 Entry Form. (Award of $5000; deadline February 3, 2025.)

• Illinois Tech Chicago-Kent School of Law Louis Jackson Memorial National Student Writing Competition

  For papers on any topic relating to laws governing the workplace, such as employment law, labor law, employee benefits, or employment discrimination. (First-place award of $3000; two second-place awards of $1000; deadline February 7, 2025.)

• University of Texas School of Law Bech-Loughlin First Amendment Center 2025 Free Speech Essay Writing Contest

  Limited to UT Austin students. Participants will respond to a prompt asking them to establish connections between recent campus events, UT-Austin First-Amendment scholarship, and their own personal reflections. (First, second, and third-place awards of $5000, $3000, and $2000 respectively, as well as at least three $1000 awards for honorable mentions; deadline February 17, 2025.)

• Texas Tech University School of Law Inaugural Fred Gray Civil Rights Writing Competition

  For original scholarly essays that are thematically linked to the work of Fred Gray and his contributions to the civil rights movement. Topic guidelines, submission process, and competition rules are explained in the linked PDF. (First, second, and third-place awards of $7500, $5000, and $2500 respectively; deadline February 28, 2025.)

• University of Oklahoma American Indian Law Review 2024-2025 National Writing Competition

  For papers on any legal issue specifically concerning American Indians or other indigenous peoples. (First, second, and third-place awards of $1500, $750, and $400 respectively; deadline February 28, 2025.)

• NRA Civil Rights Defense Fund 2025 Law Student Second Amendment Research and Writing Competition

  For articles addressing a specific Second Amendment Issue. (First, second, and third-place awards of $10,000, $7000, and $3000 respectively; deadline March 1, 2025.)

• University of Wisconsin-Madison Havens Wright Center for Social Justice Erik Olin Wright Prize

  For papers by graduate or professional students that best exemplify the concerns that animated Prof. Olin Wright’s work, which included the analysis of class, the study of real utopias, theories of the state, economic sociology, and social inequality, always motivated by an explicit commitment to social justice. A nominating letter from a faculty member familiar with the student’s work is required. (Award of $1,000; submissions accepted between March 1 and April 15, 2025.)

• New York Intellectual Property Law Association Honorable William Conner Writing Competition

  For papers addressing one of the following subject areas of intellectual property, i.e., patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, and unfair trade practices, as well as antitrust and data security/privacy issues to the extent they relate to intellectual property. (Winning award of $2500; runner up will receive $1500; deadline March 7, 2025.)

• American Bar Association Forum on Affordable Housing and Community Development Law 2025 Affordable Housing & Community Development Law Student Legal Writing Competition

  For unpublished student-authored submissions addressing any legal issue regarding affordable housing, fair housing and/or community development law. (Winning entry will be eligible for a $1000 cash prize; deadline March 10, 2025.)

• State Bar of Texas International Law Section Human Rights Essay Contest

  For essays on any aspect of international human rights law. (First-place award of $1500; deadline March 15, 2025.)

Collections of Writing Competitions

• American Bar Association

  Writing Competitions for Young Lawyers and Law Students

• AccessLex Institute

  Law School Scholarship Databank: Writing Competitions

• Suffolk University Law School

  iCompete Writing: A Compilation of Legal Writing Competitions

• Drexel University Thomas R. Kline School of Law

  A Guide to Legal Writing Competitions for Law Students