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BYU Law School Launches New Writing Center

Brigham Young University (BYU) Law School is taking a significant step towards cultivating the writing prowess of its students with the establishment of a new writing center. Scheduled to open for the fall semester in 2025, this initiative serves as part of BYU Law’s broader commitment to developing proficient writers and communicators within the legal field.

The upcoming BYU Law Writing Center is designed to be a state-of-the-art facility, anticipated to become one of the most extensive writing centers available at law schools across the country. Dean David Moore emphasizes the importance of writing in the legal profession, stating, "Writing is a critical skill for lawyers. BYU Law is dedicated to helping students develop their writing skills throughout the law school experience, preparing them to be effective at the highest levels of legal practice."

Comprehensive Resources for Students

The writing center will offer a variety of resources aimed at fostering superior writing abilities among students. These include seminars, weekly writing tips, and one-on-one consultations with trained writing fellows available for scheduled appointments. This initiative focuses not merely on correcting papers but aims to engage students in the entire writing process. Through this, the writing center intends to equip aspiring legal professionals with the essential knowledge and techniques necessary for enhancing their writing quality significantly.

One of the standout features of the BYU Law Writing Center is its intention to provide extensive support for students in their second and third years (2L and 3L) of law school. Unlike many law schools, which typically provide writing support primarily for first-year (1L) students, BYU Law is expanding its focus. The aim is to improve the overall writing capability of upper-division students while simultaneously encouraging them to publish legal scholarship. Research illustrates that many legal publications accept submissions from students outside their own institutions, and the center plans to assist BYU Law students in capitalizing on these opportunities to achieve publication and success.

Recognizing the Importance of Writing

Recent studies, such as “Building a Better Bar: The Twelve Building Blocks of Minimum Competence,” highlight the necessity of effective communication in writing as pivotal for successful legal practitioners. One of these essential skills, now part of the newly designed bar exam, underscores the lawyers' need to communicate proficiently in writing.

In tandem with setting up the writing center, BYU Law has undertaken various measures to enhance writing skills across its curriculum. This includes the integration of writing labs in conjunction with intensive writing courses and a dual focus on litigation and transactional legal writing. The writing curriculum features advanced courses in litigation writing, transactional legal drafting, appellate writing, substantial writing workshops, and a theoretical perspective on legal writing that addresses aspects from grammar and word choice to style, tone, and pacing, even analyzing the writing styles of Supreme Court justices.

Moreover, BYU Law’s Teaching Committee and Deanery have invited all faculty members to incorporate writing assignments and feedback mechanisms in their courses starting from the winter semester of 2025. This commitment reflects a school-wide dedication to enhancing students’ writing, which serves not only as an academic necessity but also as a pivotal skill sought after by potential employers.

Conclusion

Catherine Bramble, the director of the BYU Law Writing Center, succinctly encapsulates the ethos of this initiative by stating, “Good writing is good, clear thinking.” The establishment of the writing center signifies BYU Law’s collective effort to make writing a serious focus in legal education. By offering multiple avenues for improvement, the center hopes to boost students’ employability and proficiency in the legal field.

BYU Law School, founded in 1971, is widely recognized for its innovative research and teaching, contributing to various critical areas such as social change, entrepreneurship, and criminal justice, among others. With over 7,000 alumni making their mark around the globe, the law school consistently ranks as one of the best-value law schools in the nation.

For further information, please visit BYU Law School's official website.