Future Voices of the Legal Profession: 2026 D.C. Bar Communities Essay Writing Contest
Calling all law students! The D.C. Bar Law Student Community invites law students, enrolled full-time or part-time at any law school in the United States, to compete in an essay writing contest for the chance to win $500 and get published in the D.C. Bar’s award-winning Washington Lawyer magazine.
Submission Deadline: August 7, 2026, 11:59 p.m. ET.
Contest Guidelines
Topic: Essays must respond to a D.C. Bar-provided prompt. The prompt and submission form will be available on this page starting July 1, 2026.
Eligibility: Open to law students enrolled at any law school in the United States for the 2026–2027 school year. One submission per entrant.
Length: 800-1,000 words, excluding title.
Format: Submissions should be in a Word document, single-spaced, in 12 pt. Times New Roman font.
No endnotes or footnotes; cite sources within the text.
Content Requirements:
- Essays must present original thought and analysis supported by research, not personal opinions.
- Essays must be written entirely by the student without the assistance of artificial intelligence tools.
- Entrants must comply with their law school’s Honor Code against plagiarism. Any violation will result in disqualification.
- Submissions should be nonpartisan and meet the D.C. Bar’s editorial standards for originality and accuracy.
Judging Criteria: Essays will be evaluated on originality of thought, clarity and structure, legal accuracy and quality of research or factual support, and relevance to the prompt.
Announcement of Results: The winning essay will be selected in mid-September and published in the November/December 2026 issue of Washington Lawyer. The winner will also receive $500.
For questions or more information, contact [email protected].
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