Animal Justice is pleased to announce its first-ever annual Student Research Paper Contest! The contest is designed to encourage student scholarship on the growing field of animal law, and support students who have done outstanding research into the pressing legal issues facing nonhuman animals. The contest is part of Animal Justice’s work to support animal law clubs at Canadian law schools and foster the next generation of animal lawyers.
The contest is open to all Animal Justice student club members. Prizes will be awarded during the Student Animal Law Conference planned on Friday, September 11, 2020 in Toronto as part of the broader Canadian Animal Law Conference. (Note that Animal Justice is monitoring government rules and recommendations regarding public gatherings. If the conference is unable to proceed in person, Animal Justice will make alternate arrangements to honour contest winners. Please visit www.canadiananimallawconference.ca for the most up-to-date information about the conference.)
Topic: Papers must be at least 3,000 words in length, and focus on a topic related to Canadian animal law. Essays should be academic in nature. Students are welcome and encouraged to submit papers that they have prepared as part of their academic studies.
Prize: The first place winner will be awarded a $300 cash prize, and runners up will also receive prizes. The first place winner and any runners-up may be featured on the Animal Justice website.
Requirements:
- All submissions must be sent to Student Coordinator Samantha Skinner by email at [email protected] by Friday, June 5, 2020 by 11:59 pm ET. The subject line of the email should read “Animal Justice Student Paper Contest Submission.” Confirmation of receipt will be provided within two days.
- Authors must be law students at the time of submission. (In other words, authors are submitting in the summer after 1L, 2L, or 3L. Papers prepared as part of graduate-level coursework are not eligible.)
- Entries must be a minimum of 3,000 words, exclusive of footnotes and bibliographies, and should not exceed 10,000 words.
- Entries must be submitted as a Microsoft Word document.
- Authors must be members of Animal Justice student clubs at Canadian law schools, although an exception will be made if a student attends a law school with no active club.
- Please include your full name, school, year in school, details of Animal Justice student club membership, and email address and phone number.
Judging
Winners will be selected in the sole discretion of Animal Justice, with the assistance of a judging committee representing scholars, practitioners, and other experts in animal law. Papers will be judged anonymously, based on factors including practical relevance, clarity, insight, and overall quality.
Happy paper writing!
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