Comment Guidelines for Topic Selection, Source List, Outline & Drafts 

  • A. Topic Selection

    • Topics must be both international and legal in scope..

    • Seek out members of JIL, professors, LLM students, practitioners, law clerks, and judges who may be able to help shape your topic into a discrete legal issue.  

    • Keep in mind that the topic needs to be narrow enough that you can really analyze a discrete legal issue, but also broad enough that you can fill at least thirty pages with exceptional research and writing.  

    • Make sure the topic is something you are interested in. Writing and researching your Comment will be much more rewarding and enjoyable, and it is more likely that you will produce something worthy of publication, if you are interested in what you are writing.

  • B. Preemption Check

    • A Comment must contain the AE’s original thoughts and arguments. You must ensure that your topic has not been directly written on previously.  

    • To ensure that a piece on your topic has not already been published, check HeinOnline, Legal Trac, Indexes to Legal Periodicals, Current Contents to Legal Periodicals, Indexes to Foreign Legal Periodicals, Lexis, Westlaw, etc. You are required to meet with Gabriela Femenia and/or representatives from Lexis/Westlaw throughout the comment-writing process to conduct preemption checks and update your sources.  

    • If, while checking these sources, you find that something has been directly written on your exact topic, you are likely preempted.  

    • But, a topic is only preempted if nothing valuable remains to be said about it. A proposed Comment can be preempted by:

      • a recently published article on the same subject which covers essentially the same ground you intend to cover; OR

      • a recent judicial opinion which, together with concurring or dissenting opinions, covers your ground thoroughly or moots the thrust of your argument; or

      • a thorough discussion of the relevant law in recent literature to which nothing significant can be added.

    Your topic is not necessarily preempted merely because other articles have been written on the same subject. If, after reading all such articles, you find that your article argues something significantly different, approaches the topic from another perspective, or examines the topic in another locality or context, you may not be preempted. Talk to your Senior Editor or Comments Editor if you think you might have a problem with preemption.

C. Topic Submission

  • 1. Abstract

    This should include, in no more than 200 words, (1) the general topic; (2) a thesis statement; and (3) the basic argument you will advance in your Comment. This is your chance to pitch your topic to JIL. Footnotes do not need to be included in the abstract.

  • 2. Comprehensive Source List  

    • Minimum number of sources: 25.

    • Sources must be in proper Bluebook form.

    • Ensure that sources are varied and come from different places, such as newspapers, magazines, books, law reviews, legal and non-legal journals, treaties, legislation, internet, etc.  

    • List sources by type (e.g., “Newspapers,” “Journal Articles,” “Books,” “Internet,” etc.).  

    • Provide a brief explanation (approximately two sentences) explaining why the source is relevant to your comment (e.g., gives background information, supports a certain point you are making). Do this for at least 15 of the 25 sources you have already bluebooked.

  • 3. Outline  

    Your comprehensive outline should precisely and logically present your Comment’s arguments and analysis, providing an in-depth treatment of what your abstract presented. By organizing and concretely relating your research and ideas, the outline will help both you and your Senior Editor (or Faculty Advisor) detect weaknesses, enabling them to provide useful feedback.  

    As you may be aware from your editing work, JIL has a standard practice of numbering sections and subsections throughout both Articles and Comments. When formulating your outline, think about the sections and subsections that you will need in your Comment to form a coherent argument and use the sections/subsections to guide you. You may have as many sections and subsections as needed.  

    The outline should be thorough and precise, reflecting the arguments and sub-arguments you intend to write about in your Comment.

  • 4. Drafts  

    Submission: Only hard copy printouts are valid submissions! If you will not be able to submit your Comment on the due date, you will need to mail in your draft as early as possible to make sure it arrives on time or get permission from the Comments Editor to submit it at a later date.

    1st Draft: This should be the first attempt at a complete comment. Requirements:

    • Minimum Text: 25 pages (12 pt. Courier New, double-spaced; footnotes 10 pt. Courier New, single-spaced)

    • 100 Footnotes

    2nd Draft: This is a revision that reflects the feedback that was given based on the 1st Draft as well as any further thoughts or research. This is the draft that will be reviewed to determine JIL credits, SWR credit and, if you choose to participate in the Spring Review, this is the draft that will be reviewed for possible publication. Requirements:

    • Minimum Text: 30 pages (the average number of pages in a published Comment is approximately 35–40)

    • 100 footnotes (the average number in a published Comment is 150–200 Footnotes)

    For those Comments awarded a conditional offer of publication from the Fall Competition, the 2nd draft must conform with JIL’s minimum publication requirements of 30 pages and 100 footnotes.

    3rd Draft: If chosen for publication in either the Fall Competition or the Spring Review, a 3rd Draft of the Comment may be submitted to JIL.

    • If not chosen for publication by JIL, you may submit your Comment to other journals.

D. FORMAT

  • 1. Text

    • Introduction: The introduction should state the problem to be analyzed and its significance, as well as the thesis and structure of the Comment.  

    • Conclusion: The conclusion should be a brief one or two page summary of the Comment. Analysis should be done in the body of the paper and not in the conclusion. Generally, the conclusion does not include footnotes.  

    • Definitions: Be sure to define all terms that may not be clear to the reader.

    • Formatting:

      • Double-spaced

      • 12 point, Courier New font

      • Make sure the text is spell-checked and you have formatted it so that there is correct use of italics, capitals, small capitals, etc.

    • Numbering: Number your sections and subsections according to the following format:

      1. Introduction

      2. Section Headings

      1. Section

      1.1 Subsection

      1.11 Subsection to Subsection to Section

      ……Continuing

      3. Conclusion

  • 2. Footnotes

    • Bluebooking: All footnotes must be properly bluebooked. See your Senior Editor or the Comments Editor if you have any questions.

      • Parentheticals

      • Pin-point cites

      • HELPFUL HINT: if you are unsure of how to bluebook a citation, try to find an example of it in a prior volume of JIL or in another journal on HeinOnline, Westlaw, LexisNexis, etc.

    • Formatting:

      • Single-spaced

      • 10 point, Courier New font

      • Make sure the text is spell-checked and you have formatted it so that there is correct use of italics, capitals, small caps, etc.

    • Things to Avoid:

      • Overreliance on secondary or tertiary sources for statements that require primary sources. For example, “the statute provides” requires a direct citation to the statute, not a law review article. Congressional intent should cite to legislative history.

      • Outdated sources: Make sure your sources are current.

      • Unofficial sources: Make sure official sources are used, especially when citing to foreign materials.