Submission Guidelines

LAWYERS JOURNAL

The MBA's monthly newspaper has three options for submitting articles. You do not need to be a current member of the MBA to submit an article, but priority is given to members.

• Section Review runs practice area-specific articles from January through June, generally, with each section designated a specific month. If you have a proposal or a finished article, check with the appropriate section council about its deadline and word limits, which can range from 500 to 2,500 words (with minimal citations).
• The For Your Practice section runs each month on a variety of topics relevant to a specific practice area, or several, including analysis of recent cases, recent or pending legislation and advice. Articles are generally 500 to 750 words and include few, if any, citations. Contact Liz Kennedy at [e-mail lkennedy] with submissions, proposals and questions.
• The Viewpoint section runs opinion pieces of 500 to 750 words, depending on a particular month. Contact Liz Kennedy at [e-mail lkennedy] with submissions, proposals and questions.

MASSACHUSETTS LAW REVIEW

The longest continually published law review in the nation, the Massachusetts Law Review is published quarterly by the MBA and includes articles, case comments and book reviews of interest to MBA members.

The editorial board comprises lawyers, judges and academics representing a variety of legal disciplines and specialties. The Law Review board is always looking for submissions from members of the bar and invites proposals either in outline form or completed manuscripts.

Whether an article or case comment, we are looking for pieces offering a deeper analysis of a legal issue, rather than a bare description.

Articles should discuss applicable case law, statutes, rules or regulations. Articles may run anywhere from 5,000 to 15,000 words. We look for topics that are timely and likely to be of interest to Massachusetts practitioners. In judging submissions, we particularly value those that are insightful and well-written.

Case comments are confined to a discussion of a recent civil or criminal case with relevant cites and a brief description of related cases. The comments run 2,500 to 3,000 words.

Book reviews discuss recent books of interest to practitioners and run about 2,000 words.

All article submissions are subject to peer review and to a vote by a majority of the editorial board members at the monthly meeting. If accepted for publication, an editor is assigned and the editing process begins. Authors may either submit proposals or full articles to the editorial board by sending them to Liz Kennedy at [e-mail lkennedy].

In evaluating submissions, the editorial board considers several factors, including, but not limited to:

• Will the article be of interest to our membership?
• Is the topic relevant to Massachusetts practice?
• Is the topic timely?
• Does the author offer new insight?
• If the article attempts a balanced explanation of the law, does it offer critical insight? That is, does it have depth or is it too superficial?
• If the article offers a specific point of view or argument, does it educate the reader about all points of view, giving legal and, if appropriate, historical or social context? If not, should it reflect other points of view?
• Is the article well-written? Logical? Accurate?