Hogan/Smoger Access to Justice Essay Contest
Any student currently enrolled in an accredited American law school may submit a legal essay for the competition. Essays can only be written during the academic year covered by the competition and may not be prepared as part of paid legal work outside of law school.
THE HOGAN/SMOGER ACCESS TO JUSTICE ESSAY CONTEST offers law students an opportunity to receive reward and recognition for expounding on whether and how the courts can be used to obtain justice.
For 40 years, the competition was known as the Roscoe Hogan Environmental Law Essay Contest, providing law students an opportunity to investigate and offer solutions to the multitude of injustices inflicted on the environment. The contest was established in 1970 by the late Roscoe B. Hogan of Birmingham, Alabama, a prominent environmental lawyer. With additional support from noted attorney Gerson Smoger, the contest was renamed and expanded beginning with the 2011 competition.
The Hogan/Smoger Access to Justice Essay Contest is a $5,000 cash award given to the author of the winning essay. The 2011 topic is: The Gulf Oil Spill: Who Are The Victims & How Do They Get Compensated?
Each entry must be submitted through a faculty adviser. All entrants must submit an INTENT TO ENTER FORM (see link below) by January 31, 2011. The deadline for the essay is March 31, 2011. A panel of nationally renowned trial lawyers and law professors will judge the entries.
Application must consist of a hard copy (typed) and a computer disc containing the essay and the abstract. The pages of the hard copy must be firmly fastened together with a cover page which must contain the following information:
- Title of Essay (must appear at the top of the first page of the essay)
- Author’s Name
- Author’s year in law school and expected graduation date
- Law school name and address
- Date submitted for academic credit, if so submitted
- Author’s permanent and school addresses and phone numbers (IMPORTANT: indicate effective dates for all addresses)
- Sponsoring faculty member name and phone number
Students must submit an abstract (100 words or less) describing the paper. Please include name, address, law school and phone number on the abstract. The author’s name and law school must NOT appear anywhere in the essay other than on the cover page and abstract.
Essays must not exceed 50 pages of 8½ by 11-inch paper, double-spaced, excluding footnotes.
Applicants MUST submit BOTH HARD COPY AND ELECTRONIC COPY OF THE ESSAY AND THE ABSTRACT.
In addition to the $5000 cash prize, winner will also receive: recognition in the Public Justice newsletter and on the website; publication of the essay in the Vermont Law School’s online Journal of Environmental Law; and a free Public Justice Foundation membership for the Contest Year.