Enter The Sovereignty Symposium XXVIII Chief Justice John B. Doolin Writing Competition
WHO? John B. Doolin was appointed to the Oklahoma Supreme Court in 1972, and he served as Chief Justice from 1987-1988. He loved to read and write, collect Indian art, and buy Navajo rugs. He recognized the need for a forum to address Native American issues as a result of his service on the Indian Affairs Committee at the National Chief Justices’ Conference. He authorized the formation of the Sovereignty Symposium in 1988.
WHAT? The Supreme Court of Oklahoma and the Sovereignty Symposium, Inc. are sponsoring a writing competition open to all students enrolled in an accredited law school in the United States, its territories or Canada.
WHEN? In conjunction with Sovereignty Symposium XXVIII, which will be held June 3-4, 2015 at the Skirvin Hilton Hotel, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, a scholarly collection of legal and historical writings will be presented to all participants. Legal libraries all over the United States regularly solicit copies of the publications for their collections. The subject matter of the paper may be on any area of the law relating to Native Americans or other indigenous peoples. First, second, and third prizes in the amounts of $750.00; $500.00; and $250.00 will be awarded. The winning entry will also be published in the 2015 Symposium compendium of materials. Second and third place entries will be published if space permits.
HOW? The entries in the writing competition must be not less than thirty (30) single-spaced pages nor more than fifty (50) single-spaced pages in length. The paper used shall be 8-1/2” x 11” in size. The title of the paper, the name of the author and a current mailing address and telephone number must be placed on a cover page. Only the title of the paper should appear at the top of the first page of the text. The author’s name should appear on the cover page only. Papers must be submitted in Word or Word Perfect format. E-mail the formatted version here. Use a 12-point font in Times New Roman format. Again, the document should be single spaced. The left and right margins must be 2”; the top and bottom margins must be 1.5”.
Papers are evaluated for: Timelines of Subject; Originality; Legal Analysis; Use of Authority; Creativity of Arguments; Strength and Logic of Conclusions; Grammar; Punctuation and Writing Style.
DUE? Entries must be received no later than April 15, 2015. Publication releases will be required prior to payment of prize money.
The Symposium was established to provide a forum in which ideas concerning common legal issues may be exchanged in a scholarly, non-adversarial environment. The Oklahoma Supreme Court espouses no view on any of the issues or any of the positions taken by the participants. All entries must conform to the Symposium standards. Entries that fail to do so in the opinion of the competition judges will be disqualified. For further information, contact (405) 556-9371, or email.