NACDL Diversity Essay Competition Call for Entries

The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers invites law students from accredited law schools in the United States to submit essays for a chance to be published in The Championmagazine.

2012 Essay Topic
Recently, many states have amended their voting laws to implement registration regulations, identification requirements, and voter-roll purges. In the name of “electoral reform,” proponents of these measures argue that they are necessary to improve the “security” and “integrity” of elections, which, in their view, have been compromised. Opponents of these efforts assert that there is scant evidence of nationwide voter fraud, and in reality, these efforts are mere pretext to disenfranchise qualified citizens from exercising their fundamental right to vote. Do these laws promote secure and fair elections? If so, what are the specific problems they address and how do they address them? Are these laws just pretextual efforts to disenfranchise voters? If so, are there any legitimate ways to regulate elections and guard against fraud?

Eligibility
The contest is open to all students who are enrolled in the 2012-2013 academic year and in good academic standing at an accredited law school in the United States.

Prizes
There will be one first prize winner, one second prize winner, and one honorable mention.

• The first prize winner will have his or her winning essay published in a forthcoming edition of NACDL’s magazine, The Champion; receive a $200 cash prize; receive a free one-year student membership; and receive a certificate of recognition.
• The second prize winner will have his or her essay published in NACDL’s magazine, The Champion; receive a $100 cash prize; receive a free one-year student membership; and receive a certificate of recognition.
• The entrant who receives an honorable mention will have his or her essay published in NACDL’s magazine, The Champion; and will receive a certificate of recognition.

Deadline
Entries must be received by 5 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time) on December 31, 2012. Entries must be submitted by email to Daniel Weir at [email protected]. All entries must be accompanied by the Essay Competition Entry Form. To confirm receipt of submission, contact Daniel Weir. Other questions? Contact Geneva Vanderhorst at [email protected].

Award Date
Winning entrants will be notified on February 1, 2013 and winners will be announced at www.nacdl.org/essaycompetition/.

Rules
STUDENTS: Please review the full contest rules below and make the entry form, also below, the first page of your submission. 

1. Each entry must address the topic.
2. Joint entries are not permitted and are void.
3. Multiple entries by a law student are not permitted and are void.
4. Entries must be the law student’s original work created for this competition. Entries previously published elsewhere will not be accepted and are void.
5. The essay must be submitted by e-mail only. No entry will be accepted if submitted by any other means.
6. The essay entries must be no less than 600 words and no more than 1200 words in length. An entry form must accompany each entrant’s essay.
7. Entries will be judged on their originality, creativity, and overall quality.
8. Entries must be received by 5 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time) on December 31, 2012.
9. The winning entries will be published in a forthcoming edition of NACDL’s The Champion magazine.
10. By submitting an entry to the contest, each entrant gives NACDL all rights, including copyright, to the entry and express permission to edit and publish the entry in all media without limitation and without any other notice.
11. NACDL, as sponsor of the competition, will be the final arbiter of all questions regarding entries, judging, interpretation of the rules, and any other a spect of this contest. In the event that there is an insufficient number of qualified entries or if the judges determine in their absolute discretion that no or too few entries meet the quality standards established to award the prizes, NACDL reserves the right not to award the prizes. NACDL will not be responsible for typographical printing or other inadvertent errors in these rules or in other materials relating to the competition. NACDL will not be responsible for incomplete, lost, late, misdirected, or illegible entries or for failure to receive entries due to transmission failures or technical failures of any kind.

Additional Terms and Conditions

1. All federal, state, local, and municipal laws and regulations apply. Void where prohibited.
2. By entering, entrants acknowledge compliance with these rules, including all eligibility requirements.
3. Except where prohibited, participation in the competition constitutes an entrant’s consent to the publication of his or her name and image in any media for any commercial or promotional purpose, without limitation or further compensation.
4. Winners agree that the NACDL and its employees and agents shall not be liable for injury, loss, or damage of any kind resulting from participating in this competition or from any acceptance or use of any prize awarded.
5. The prize is non-transferable.