NEWS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 11, 2010

CONTACT: ERIKA MARZORATI
517/432-6848, marzorat@law.msu.edu

Michigan State Law Review Continues Its Rise in National Journal Rankings

East Lansing, MI — The Michigan State Law Review continued its ascent in the annual law journal rankings by Washington & Lee University School of Law, the leading source for data on legal periodicals.

This marks the sixth straight year the Law Review has climbed in the W&L Law rankings. The publication now ranks 62nd out of 250 ranked flagship journals, representing an eight-point boost from last year. "This is a landmark year for the Michigan State Law Review," said Megan Hard, editor-in-chief of the publication. "In just five years, our journal has risen 100 spots among law school law reviews."

The Law Review also gained ground in the broader category of student-edited journals. It is currently placed 95th in a field of 575 such journals, including those covering specialty subjects—a 14-point increase over last year.

Hard attributes the publication's rising status in part to successful symposia the Law Review has hosted with MSU Law professors in recent years. The events have brought together leading experts on innovative legal topics, culminating in highly-publicized and highly-cited issues. Upcoming symposia publications will include Administrative Law and Statutory Interpretation; Business Law and Narrative, a novel topic receiving much attention after a 2009 Law Review conference; and a Book Review Symposium based on Barry Friedman's The Will of the People.

"Our Law Review members have worked extraordinarily hard to earn this respect and recognition," observed Professor Daniel Barnhizer, faculty advisor to the journal. "The dramatic improvement in rankings over the last few years is simply incredible."

W&L Law's ranking system is based on a composite of each journal's impact factor—the average annual number of citations to the journal's articles—and the total number of citations to the journal in the preceding eight years. Complete rankings and a detailed description of the methodology are available at http://lawlib.wlu.edu/LJ/index.aspx.

The W&L Law rankings are considered the authority on journal quality and are used by authors to select journals in which to publish. "With our rising rank making us a more attractive journal to authors and our issues garnering increasing citations, we are hopeful that the Law Review will continue its rise in the coming years," stated Hard. "This will definitely give us a huge push to finish out the year strong."

Founded in 1931, the Michigan State Law Review is edited and published entirely by students at MSU Law. It publishes four issues per year and sponsors symposia examining current legal topics. For more information about the Law Review, visit www.msulawreview.org.

Michigan State University College of Law is a leading institution of legal education with a long history of creating practice-ready attorneys. As one of only a few private law schools affiliated with a major research university, MSU Law offers comprehensive interdisciplinary opportunities combined with a personalized legal education. After 100 years as a private and independent Law College, the affiliation with MSU has put the Law College on an upward trajectory of national and international reputation and reach. MSU Law professors are gifted teachers and distinguished scholars, its curriculum rigorous and challenging, and its facility equipped with the latest resources—all affirming MSU Law's commitment to educating 21st-century lawyers.

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