University of Pennsylvania Law Review

University of Pennsylvania Law Review The University of Pennsylvania Law Review is a student-edited law journal published at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School. Founded in 1852 as the American Law Register, the Review has evolved into one of the oldest and most cited legal periodicals in the United States. It publishes articles, essays, and book reviews by judges, scholars, and practitioners on topics ranging from the United States Constitution to federal and state statutory interpretation, administrative adjudication, and comparative adjudication.

History

The Review originated as the American Law Register in Philadelphia, where figures associated with the Philadelphia Bar Association, the Pennsylvania Bar Association, and the Pennsylvania Supreme Court contributed to early issues. During the late 19th century, editors engaged with developments shaped by the Civil War, the Reconstruction Era, and debates over the Fourteenth Amendment and the Fifteenth Amendment. Twentieth-century editorial boards responded to jurisprudential shifts prompted by the New Deal, the Warren Court, and decisions of the United States Supreme Court, including landmark cases such as Brown v. Board of Education and Miranda v. Arizona. In the late 20th and early 21st centuries, contributors addressed topics influenced by rulings from the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and jurisprudence involving the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

Organization and Publication

The Review is managed by a board of student editors drawn from the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School student body, with selection methods historically tied to competitors like the Harvard Law Review, the Yale Law Journal, and the Columbia Law Review. Each issue typically contains lead articles by scholars or jurists from institutions such as Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, Stanford Law School, Columbia Law School, and the New York University School of Law, accompanied by student-written Notes and Comments. The editorial office coordinates symposia and colloquia featuring speakers from the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the Supreme Court of the United States, the Federal Trade Commission, and state supreme courts such as the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. Publication frequency and citation practices align with norms established by the Bluebook and editorial traditions shared with the Michigan Law Review and the Virginia Law Review.

Influence and Notable Contributions

The Review has published influential pieces that have shaped doctrine debated before the Supreme Court of the United States and cited by jurists like John Marshall, Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., Antonin Scalia, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Sonia Sotomayor. Articles appearing in its pages have addressed landmark statutory interpretations of the Securities Act of 1933, the Bankruptcy Reform Act of 1978, and the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and have informed administrative law disputes involving the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Environmental Protection Agency. The Review’s scholarship has influenced scholarship at centers such as the Hoover Institution, the Brennan Center for Justice, the Brookings Institution, and the Heritage Foundation, and has been cited in opinions authored by judges from the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

Notable Alumni and Editors

Alumni and former editors include jurists, scholars, and public servants who later served on courts and in government: Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States and judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, attorneys general, state governors, and members of Congress. Notable individuals associated with the Review have included scholars from Harvard University, Yale University, Princeton University, and leaders who served at the United States Department of Justice, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Federal Reserve Board. Editors have gone on to clerk for justices of the Supreme Court of the United States and judges on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and have joined faculties at institutions including Columbia Law School, NYU School of Law, University of Chicago Law School, and Stanford Law School.

Awards and Symposia

The Review hosts symposia and awards recognizing scholarship that address pressing issues before the Supreme Court of the United States, the United States Congress, and administrative bodies such as the Federal Communications Commission and the Department of Health and Human Services. Past symposia have brought speakers from the American Bar Association, the National Association of Attorneys General, the ACLU, and the Cato Institute, and have examined topics ranging from constitutional interpretation to financial regulation under the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The Review also administers prizes for student scholarship and external contributions, reflecting traditions shared with the Yale Law Journal and the Harvard Law Review.

Category:Law journals Category:University of Pennsylvania