George Mason Law Review Constitution (pdf format)
George Mason Law Review Constitution
ARTICLE I - Name and Object
The name of this Association shall be the George Mason Law Review (“Law Review”). Its object shall be to publish a legal periodical; to serve as a teaching vehicle by providing means for the students of the George Mason University School of Law (“GMUSL”) to enhance their research and writing abilities; and in general to advance the study and development of law.
ARTICLE II - Membership and Faculty Advisors
SECTION 1. Membership. The membership of the Law Review shall consist only of the Board of Editors, Associate Editors, and Members. All Law Review Members shall be students in good standing at GMUSL.
SECTION 2. Faculty Advisors.
A. Selection. The Law Review Board of Editors will work with the GMUSL Administration to designate one or more faculty members as Faculty Advisors. Faculty Advisors must be affirmed, however, by a three-fourths vote of each new Board of Editors. There is no limit to the number of terms the Faculty Advisor(s) may serve.
B. Duties. Faculty Advisors may work closely with the Board of Editors to aid in the execution of the goals of the Law Review.
ARTICLE III - Board of Editors
SECTION 1. Definition. The Board of Editors (“Editors”) shall consist of the Editor-in-Chief, Executive Editor, Managing Editor, Articles Editors, Notes Editors, Research Editors, Productions Editor(s), and Symposium Editor. The Board of Editors shall serve as the officers and governing body of the Law Review. There shall be no fewer than eight or more than seventeen editors serving on any one Board of Editors.
SECTION 2. Terms of Office. The Editors shall take office no later than June 1 subsequent to their selection and shall serve no later than the following June 1. In its discretion, the outgoing Board may turn over management of the Law Review to the incoming Editors prior to June 1.
SECTION 3. Voting Power. The members of the Board of Editors shall be of equal rank and, except as hereinafter provided, shall be entitled to votes of equal weight on any matter on which the Editorial Board may vote. A quorum of the Editorial Board shall consist of at least three quarters of the Editorial Board membership. Unless otherwise specified in this Constitution, votes by the Board of Editors shall be decided by a simple majority vote. In the event of a tie, the Editor-in-Chief's vote shall serve as the tiebreaker.
SECTION 4. Editorial Selections.
A. Time of Election. The election of a new Board of Editors shall be conducted at a special meeting of the current Board of Editors called for that purpose to be held between January 15 and April 1.
B. Eligibility. Eligibility for selection to the Board of Editors shall be limited to those who have fulfilled the duties of a Member and have become Full Members and, after selection, will have at least two but not more than four full semesters (not including summer sessions) remaining before graduation.
C. Method of Selection. Selection for a Board of Editors position shall be based on an application and interview process.
D. Vacancies. Vacancies on the Board of Editors shall be filled for the remainder of the unexpired term of the vacating Editor by a majority vote of the incumbent Board of Editors.
E. Removals. Any Editor may be removed for failure to perform the duties of the Editor's office. Removal may be initiated by any two Editors who believe an Editor is not performing adequately. The two Editors shall call a conference of the Editors with the Editor who is subject to removal. Showings of cause for removal may be made by any Editor. After the Editor in question has been given the opportunity to rebut showings of cause for removal, a vote by secret ballot shall be taken of the Editors. If all Editors, excluding the Editor subject to removal, unanimously vote to remove, the Editor shall be removed.
ARTICLE IV - Powers and Duties of the Board of Editors
The powers and duties of the Board of Editors are as described in the Law Review Policy Manual.
ARTICLE V - Associate Editors
SECTION 1. Selection. Any Full Member fulfilling the requirements in Article III, Section 4(B) shall be eligible for an Associate Editor position. Selection shall be made by a majority vote of the Board of Editors.
SECTION 2. Duties. Associate Editors shall be assigned to work with individual full editors. Associate Editors shall commit to working approximately twice the work requirement of a Full Member in Article VII, Section 2.
SECTION 3. Term. The term of office for an Associate Editor shall coincide with the term of office of the Board of Editors that makes the selection.
SECTION 4. Voting. The Associate Editors shall not have voting privileges in decisions reserved for the Board of Editors.
SECTION 5. Vacancies. Vacancies among Associate Editors shall be filled for the remainder of the unexpired term of the vacating Associate Editor by a majority vote of the incumbent Board.
SECTION 6. Removal. Any Associate Editor may be removed by a decision of the Board of Editors for failure to perform the duties of the Editor's office. Removal may be initiated by any two Editors who believe an Associate Editor is not performing adequately. The two Editors shall call a conference of the remainder of the Board of Editors with the Associate Editor who is subject to removal. Showings of cause for removal may be made by any Editor. After the Editor in question has been given the opportunity to rebut showings of cause for removal, a vote by secret ballot shall be taken of the Editors. If all Editors unanimously vote to remove the Associate Editor, the Associate Editor shall be removed.
ARTICLE VI - Member Selection
SECTION 1. Students at GMUSL at the End of First Year.
A. Eligibility.
Students who have completed exactly two semesters of study at GMUSL shall be eligible for Membership on the Law Review if they both submit an entry in the writing competition and have maintained a minimum cumulative grade point average equivalent to the mean determined by the GMUSL Office of the Recorder at the end of the second semester prior to the selection process.
B. Writing Competition.
The Notes Editors of an incoming Board shall develop each year a Writing Competition topic and assemble a closed research package to accompany the topic. These packages shall be available to eligible law students at some time prior to June 1. Papers shall be returned to the Board of Editors by a date established by the Editors.
C. Member Selection.
(1) Review Committee: All eligible students shall have their Writing Competition entries evaluated by a committee of Editors (the “Review Committee”), which the Board of Editors will appoint to review writing competition entries. The Review Committee will recommend making offers of Membership in accordance with the procedures set forth in this Article. The membership of the Review Committee is to be determined by the Board of Editors.
(2) Pool 1: Eligible Writing Competition Participants Finishing in the Top 15%. All eligible students who are ranked in the top 15% of the first year class based on Grade Point Average shall constitute Pool 1. The Review Committee will extend an offer of Membership to the two-thirds of Pool 1 who submit the highest quality entries in the Writing Competition, as judged by the Review Committee. Entries in Pool 1 that are not deemed to be in the top two thirds of entries received shall then be included and evaluated with all other entries in Pool 2, discussed in Section 1.C.3.
In the event any Pool 1 offerees decline Membership, additional offers shall be made
to Pool 1 students who submitted good faith writing competition entries. The number of
additional offers made shall equal the number of Pool 1 students who decline
Membership. If there are not enough good faith Pool 1 entries to meet this number, the
remaining additional offers may be made to Pool 2 students not selected under the procedure
outlined in 1.C.3.
(3) Pool 2: Eligible Writing Competition Participants Not in the Top 15% and Eligible Writing Competition Participants from Pool 1 Not Invited Under Section 1.C.1. The Review Committee shall select the best eligible writing competition entries in Pool 2 and propose inviting their authors to join the Law Review as Members. The number of offers of Membership made from Pool 2 is at the discretion of the Review Committee and the Board of Editors.
(4) Approval of Board of Editors Required. Before any offers of Membership are made, the offers must be approved by a majority vote of the Board of Editors.
SECTION 2. Transfer Students. Students transferring to GMUSL from other ABA accredited law schools shall become Law Review Members only if:
A. Upon enrollment at GMUSL, the GMUSL Administration considers them a second year student; and,
B. They successfully participate in a write-on competition under such rules and regulations as the Board of Editors shall establish at its discretion. “Successfully participate” means that the student’s write-on submission is approved by a vote of a majority vote of the entire Board of Editors.
ARTICLE VII - Requirements for Full Membership
SECTION 1. Writing Requirement. All Members shall complete a Note or Comment of publishable quality in order to achieve Full Membership status. The Board of Editors shall provide a written policy statement to all Members at the time of the topic selection outlining all requirements, including all deadlines, involved in creating a Note or Comment of publishable quality.
A. Full and Part time students. Students shall select a Note or Comment topic during September of their second year. The final product shall be due to the Board of Editors on a date designated by the incumbent Board of Editors, but no later than the end of January of the Spring Semester of their second year.
B. Failure to meet writing requirement. Members who fail to meet the requirements established by the Board of Editors for the writing requirement may have their status on the Law Review terminated by a three-fourths vote by the Board, notwithstanding any provisions in Article VIII.
SECTION 2. Member Duties.
A. Office hours. All Members shall perform the necessary office hours required for the satisfactory completion of projects assigned by the Board of Editors.
B. Committee Assignments. At the discretion of the Board of Editors, all Members may be assigned to committees sequentially during the semester of their candidacy. Satisfactory completion of projects assigned by the Editor chairing an assigned committee is required for full membership.
C. Other Assignments. Board members may assign Members additional assignments as required to ensure the timely production of the Law Review.
D. Representation of Membership. Member status on the Law Review permits a student to represent such status to the legal and professional community. This includes listing on one’s resume either “George Mason Law Review” or “George Mason Law Review – Member,” as the Member chooses. The representation of simply “George Mason Law Review - Member” is allowed to avoid any confusion for legal employers as to your status on the Law Review. However, a Member may never affirmatively represent himself or herself as a Full Member and must act in good faith to explain his or her status as a Member as the circumstances warrant. Failure to follow these rules will subject the Member to strict disciplinary action by the Board. A Member who resigns or is terminated by the Board of Editors for any reason should ensure that all resumes and biographies (including communications to current or prospective employers) indicate that the student served as a Member, and only for the period of time for which he/she maintained that status.
SECTION 3. Members Training Program. Each Member shall participate in an intensive training program at the beginning of his/her Member status period. Full membership is contingent on satisfactory completion of the training program. The training program shall occur prior to or shortly after the beginning of the Fall Semester of the Members’ second year.
SECTION 4. Selection for Full Member Status. The Board of Editors shall review all papers submitted by Members. If the Member has met all deadlines and other requirements associated with the drafting of the Note or Comment, the Board will vote concerning whether to admit the Member to the Law Review as a Full Member. A three quarters vote by the Board of Editors is required in order to grant Full Membership.
SECTION 5. Maintaining Full Member Status. If required by the Board of Editors, Full Members must continue to fulfill the office hour requirement provided in Article VII, Section 2(A), the committee membership requirement provided in Article VII, Section 2(B), and any other assignments as provided in Article VII, Section 2(C). Full members, however, will be required to serve on no more than one committee each semester. Committee designation is within the discretion of the Board, which shall state its policy at the beginning of the Fall Semester each year. Full Membership status may be revoked after proper disciplinary action as provided in Article VIII.
ARTICLE VIII - Disciplinary Action
SECTION 1. Academic Probation. Any Editor, Full Member, or Member who is placed on academic probation, according to the academic provisions of GMUSL, shall be dismissed from the Law Review. Such dismissal shall result in the granting of no academic credit for Law Review membership.
SECTION 2. Disciplinary Action for Cause. Any Editor, Full Member, or Member is subject to disciplinary action by the Board of Editors for failure to perform his or her duties and responsibilities under the Constitution, for any Honor Code violation(s), or for any misfeasance or malfeasance while on the Law Review.
A. Initiation of Disciplinary Proceedings. Disciplinary proceedings may be initiated by any Editor or any two Full Members or Members who submit a written petition to the Board. The Board shall fully investigate all grounds of the complaint.
B. Warning Procedures. The Board shall issue warnings to Full Members and Members who are not completing their respective membership requirements. The form of such warnings shall be designated in the Law Review Policy Manual or by the Board of Editors.
C. Removal Procedures. Any Full Member or Member may be removed from his or her position by a three quarters vote of the Board of Editors, after completion of all warning procedures.
ARTICLE IX - Material for Publication
SECTION 1. Articles. Each issue of the Law Review shall contain one or more articles, essays, or book reviews, written by persons of professional standing.
A. Selection. The Articles Committee shall select all professional articles for each issue. The Committee shall consist of the Editor-in-Chief, the Executive Editor, the Research Editor, and the Articles Editors. A three-fifths vote is required in order to accept an article for publication in the Law Review.
B. Copyright. The Board of Editors shall obtain a copyright agreement from each professional author.
SECTION 2. Student Notes and Comments. Each issue of the Law Review shall contain up to four student-written Notes or Comments.
A. Selection. Selection for publication of student written work is made by a three-fourths vote of the Board of Editors. The Board selects and ranks the student work during the voting process for Full Membership provided in Article VII, Section 4.
B. Copyright. The Board of Editors shall obtain a copyright agreement from each student author.
ARTICLE X - Academic Credit
Editors and Full Members of the Law Review who have satisfactorily completed their duties as provided in this Constitution shall be eligible to receive one academic credit, or more as the Administration allows, in their final semester at GMUSL. The Board has discretion to award that academic credit to Editors and Full Members.
ARTICLE XI - Amendments to the Constitution
Any Board Member, Full Member or Member may propose, in writing, amendments to the Constitution. Proposed amendments shall be submitted to the Board. Proposed amendments or changes to the Constitution shall become effective if approved by a majority of the Board and ratified by a majority of the Full Members.
ARTICLE XII – Ratification
Ratified this day, August 27, 2001, by the George Mason Law Review. Amended April 5, 2002. Amended July 16, 2004. Amended October 29, 2004. Amended June 26, 2005. Amended April 30, 2006. Amended November 17, 2006. Amended March 1, 2007. Amended July 15, 2008.