Research Guide for Law Co-curricular Organizations: Write-on Competition

This guide presents resources primarily for Villanova University School of Law students participating in a Journal, Moot Court, Trial Team and the Sports Negotiations team.

• Quick Links
• Topic Selection
• Tips for Research and Writing
• Cite Checking
• Perma.cc
• Write-on Competition
• Bluebooking Resources
• Moot Court/Trial Team
• Sports Negotiation

Things to Do Before Competition Registration Opens

1. Complete the Procertas Bluebooking Modules 1 & 2 (list of all skills covered in each training module). Also suggest completing Bluebooking Module 3 if time allows.

Don't have a Procertas account or forget your password? Request one here.

Exercises don't have to be completed all at once, you can work on them over time and also refer back to them during the actual competition.

2. Watch recording of the Ready, Set, Write-on session held on April 11, 2024.

3. Watch the Journals + Competition Teams Information Session held on April 14th

4. Watch the How to Write a Casenote Session held on Friday, May 10th

5. Check out the Bluebooking Resources tab for more resources to get you ready for the Editing Test portion of the competition.

Casenote Examples

Example from a previous year, condensed to show only the portions required by the 2023 Summer Competition (Background and Critical Analysis) and tips for formatting titles, footnotes, and other aspects of the assignment. NOTE: this example is not completely free of errors.

Casenote Examples from Villanova Journals and Law Review:

Note that the published casenotes are full casenotes--for the Write-On Competition you are asked to draft only the Background and Critical Analysis sections.

Writing Resources

Older editions available on the 2nd Floor at KF250 .V6 2010. Required text for Separation of Powers course (Prof. Samahon)

The Grammar and Writing Handbook shows you precisely which rules need to be followed, how to choose the correct words, and the most effective way to structure every sentence to help you compose more persuasive, stronger material that's flawlessly written. The book includes a brief history of the English language, as well as comprehensive information on every thing from singular vs. plural, to composing a legal memorandum.

Covers formal legal writing (briefs, legal memoranda, judicial opinions) as well as correspondence including emails and letters. Also offers detailed advice on crafting sentences and paragraphs, word choice and other writing skills.