Law Commons^™

A Missed Opportunity To Clarify Students' First Amendment Rights In The Digital Age, Elizabeth Shaver

Akron Law Faculty Publications

In the last decade, the federal circuit courts have grappled with the issue whether, and to what extent, school officials constitutionally may discipline students for their off-campus electronic speech. Before 2015, three federal circuit courts had extended school authority to off-campus electronic speech by applying a vague test that allows school officials to reach far beyond the iconic “schoolhouse gate” referenced in the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District, 393 U.S. 503 (1969) Two other federal circuits had avoided the issue altogether by deciding the cases before them on other grounds. In 2015, …

Training The Superstar Associate: Teaching Workplace Professionalism In Legal Writing Courses, Sarah J. Morath, Elizabeth Shaver

Akron Law Faculty Publications

This article details efforts to increase the professional workplace skills of law students by teaching professionalism skills in a first-year legal writing course. The article describes a series of videos that demonstrate how a new lawyer’s professional attributes and attitude can create either a positive or a negative impression on a supervising attorney. Nine “what not to do” videos highlight certain types of unprofessional behavior, much of which has been personally observed among students in first-year legal writing courses. The “what not to do” videos are juxtaposed with one “what to do” video that is designed to illuminate exemplary professionalism …

Training The Superstar Associate: Teaching Workplace Professionalism In Legal Writing Courses, Elizabeth Shaver

Akron Law Faculty Publications

This article details efforts to increase the professional workplace skills of law students by teaching professionalism skills in a first-year legal writing course. The article describes a series of videos that demonstrate how a new lawyer’s professional attributes and attitude can create either a positive or a negative impression on a supervising attorney. Nine “what not to do” videos highlight certain types of unprofessional behavior, much of which has been personally observed among students in first-year legal writing courses. The “what not to do” videos are juxtaposed with one “what to do” video that is designed to illuminate exemplary professionalism …

They Know Their Colors: Using Color-Coded Comments To Facilitate Revisions, Sarah J. Morath

Akron Law Faculty Publications

Many 1L students do not understand that written comments have different purposes and varying degrees of importance. In addition, students often do not fully appreciate the importance of editing in stages. Color-coding comments is one way to help students both distinguish between different comments and incorporate comments during the revision process.

Color-coded comments are particularly useful early in the semester when students are revising drafts. Color-coded comments allow students to identify the “type” of comment (e.g. organizational vs. grammatical) before reading the substance of the comment, allowing for better comprehension of the comment. In addition, color coded comments can help …

The Joy Of Collaboration: Reflections On Teaching With Others, Richard Strong, Sarah Morath, Elizabeth A. Shaver

Akron Law Faculty Publications

Three legal writing professors who have worked collaboratively for several years describe why their experience collaborating with one another worked so well. In particular, this essay outlines the many personal benefits that can be experienced as part of a collaborative process. This essay also describes several benefits that students and law schools can experience. For those interested in collaborating with others, the essay concludes with some useful tips.

Motions In Motion: Teaching Advanced Legal Writing Through Collaboration, Elizabeth Shaver, Sarah Morath, Richard Strong

Akron Law Faculty Publications

Legal education is at a crossroads. Practitioners, academics, and students agree that more experiential learning opportunities are needed in law school.

In 2007, the Carnegie Foundation report, Educating Lawyers: Preparation for the Profession of Law (Carnegie Report), called for law schools to provide apprentice experiences to better prepare prospective attorneys for the world of practice. That same year, the Best Practices in Legal Education advocated for “experiential education” and “encourage[d] law school[s] to expand its use.” More recently, in August 2011, the American Bar Association adopted a resolution sponsored by the New York Bar Association summoning law schools to “focus …

Motions In Motions: Teaching Advanced Legal Writing Through Collaboration, Sarah J. Morath, Elizabeth Shaver, Richard Strong

Akron Law Faculty Publications

Legal education is at a crossroads. Practitioners, academics, and students agree that more experiential learning opportunities are needed in law school.

In 2007, the Carnegie Foundation report, Educating Lawyers: Preparation for the Profession of Law (Carnegie Report), called for law schools to provide apprentice experiences to better prepare prospective attorneys for the world of practice. That same year, the Best Practices in Legal Education advocated for “experiential education” and “encourage[d] law school[s] to expand its use.” More recently, in August 2011, the American Bar Association adopted a resolution sponsored by the New York Bar Association summoning law schools to “focus …

It's Not All Statistics: Demystifying Empirical Research, Sarah J. Morath

Akron Law Faculty Publications

Although Oliver Wendell Holmes was touting the merits of empirical research over one hundred years ago, only recently have legal academics created a journal and conference dedicated to empirical legal studies. Interestingly, topics of interest to legal writing professors have been a source for empirical research well before the emergence these specialized journals and conferences. For example, empirical research comparing the use of legal prose to plain English in appellate briefs was taking place over 25 years ago. In 1996, the second volume of The Journal of Legal Writing Institute included an empirical study evaluating which professors’ comments students found …

Motions In Motion: Teaching Advanced Legal Writing Through Collaboration, Richard Strong, Elizabeth Shaver, Sarah Morath

Akron Law Faculty Publications

Legal education is at a crossroads. Practitioners, academics, and students agree that more experiential learning opportunities are needed in law school.

In 2007, the Carnegie Foundation report, Educating Lawyers: Preparation for the Profession of Law (Carnegie Report), called for law schools to provide apprentice experiences to better prepare prospective attorneys for the world of practice. That same year, the Best Practices in Legal Education advocated for “experiential education” and “encourage[d] law school[s] to expand its use.” More recently, in August 2011, the American Bar Association adopted a resolution sponsored by the New York Bar Association summoning law schools to “focus …

Lrw's The Real World: Using Real Cases To Teach Persuasive Writing, Elizabeth Shaver

Akron Law Faculty Publications

Today’s law students approach their legal education with a clear focus on acquiring the skills needed to succeed in the “real world” of lawyering. Legal writing professors can leverage this focus on the real world by using real cases to teach the principles of persuasive writing. This article describes a “case-study” method in which students analyze materials from real cases to learn the most critical components of persuasive writing – development of a theme, organization of legal arguments, and best use of case authority. As part of this exercise, students step into the role of the practitioner and construct arguments …