The Journal of Medicine and Law
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TYPES OF MEMBERSHIP

General Membership

General Members make up the majority of the Journal staff. Their main responsibility is to gather sources, cite-check, and copyedit articles in preparation for publication.

  • Senior Article Editors

    The board reserves the right to designate certain exceptional Editors, Editorial Associates, and/or Acquisitions Assistants as Senior Articles Editors. Senior Article Editors are responsible for the solicitation and recruitment of authors, but are not required to complete cite-checking assignments. In order to be eligible for this position, members must have completed at least one semester of cite-checking and must have satisfied all other obligations of Journal membership.


  • Editors

    Returning Editorial Associates in good standing automatically become Editors upon entering their third year of law school. Editors must fulfill the same requirements as Editorial Associates, but they have greater seniority.


  • Editorial Associates

    Most new members will begin their membership on the Journal as Editorial Associates. Editorial Associates are responsible for completing two to three cite-checking assignments each semester. They are also required to keep office hours each week, and to research and solicit at least one article each semester.


  • Acquisitions Assistants

    The Board reserves the right to designate some members as Acquisitions Assistants. Acquisitions Assistants are responsible for source gathering, and may be promoted to Editorial Associates upon successful completion of their first source gathering assignment and a showing of Blue Book proficiency.

The Editorial Board

The Editorial Board is a small group of senior Journal members who are committed to ordering and directing the publication process. Candidates interested in these positions should be dependable, self-motivated, and hard-working. They should take great personal and professional pride in their work. They must be able to devote at least twenty hours each week to their positions, and ideally will not be participants in any collateral organization, activity, or employment that consumes a substantial amount of time. Candidates must be able and willing to meet deadlines, work some evenings and weekends, and generally do whatever it takes to get the job done. Ideal candidates will also be able to spend several hours a day, most days of the work week, in the Journal office. Benefits of these positions include resume and network building, collegiality, fun, and the satisfaction of a hard job well done. Only serious candidates need apply.

  • Editor-in-Chief

    The position of Editor-in-Chief requires full knowledge and understanding of the Journal's objectives, and all of the duties of the Journal editorial and staff members. The Editor-in-Chief is responsible for overseeing all Journal activities and maintaining the goals set out in the By-Laws. Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to: resolving all personal matters; overseeing the selection of articles for publication; verifying the eligibility of incoming Journal members and working with the Administrative Editor to prepare the write-on competition; preparing and delivering the agenda for staff meetings; reviewing and approving invoices from the printer and other creditors of the Journal; establishing the annual budget during each spring semester; reviewing all three sets of page proofs and the assembly and update of the introductory pages of the Journal; and reading and editing all Editor compilations and page proofs for accuracy.


  • Managing Editor of Production

    The Managing Editor of Production oversees the entire publication process of the Journal. Specific responsibilities of the Managing Editor of Production include, but are not limited to: establishing a production schedule with the Editor-in-Chief to ensure timely production of the Journal; consistently tracking the progress of the Journal through the stages of publication; providing feedback to all Journal members in order for them to maintain high standards in their production and writing assignments, along with each member of the Editorial Board; reading and editing all page proofs of all articles in each issue to ensure that the issue is free of errors; entering all corrections on disc before the Journal is sent to the Printer; providing the Chief Editor of Articles with each author's first page proofs so that they are timely sent to the outside author; writing brief notes to each author; suggesting further research in specific areas as well as encouraging students to approach their editors for feedback; and evaluating the editing of other editors and providing constructive feedback.


  • Administrative Editor

    The Administrative Editor is responsible for organizing and updating documents. Specific duties of the Administrative Editor include, but are not limited to: sending emails to the membership to update them on meetings and events; updating the Journal's TWEN site; updating the Journal's website; updating the Journal's Masthead; organizing and administering the Fall and Summer Write-On Competitions; compiling the New Member Orientation Manual for New Member Orientation; keeping track of member office hours and other member obligations; drafting disciplinary correspondence; and creating and maintaining various spreadsheets and databases that the Editor-in-Chief may deem necessary.


  • Chief Editor of Articles

    The Chief Editor of Articles, in conjunction with the Editor-in-Chief, helps to determine the content of each issue of the Journal. The Chief Editor of Articles solicits articles and/or book reviews or other specialized information from authors; communicates with authors regarding the review status of their article; executes the Author-Publisher Agreement when necessary, compiles outside articles and book reviews; maintains a separate file of the name, address, telephone number and biographic information of each outside author for each Journal issue; and provides the managing editor of production with author addresses in order to send reprints; maintains and updates discs with the following information: a. law reviews and medical journals; b. undergraduates and graduate schools with medical schools and/or medical concentrations; and c. area corporations with interest in medical legal issues (specifically, those with interest in the symposium topics will be compiled each year according to the symposium topic).


  • Business Editor

    The Business Editor, in conjunction with the Editor-in-Chief, manages the financial affairs of the Journal. Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to: maintaining and updating a disc of all the Journal's current subscribers and their payment status; maintaining and updating a disc of all potential subscribers; mailing introductory letters to all potential subscribers; keeping in contact with Western, Hein, and Ebsco to ensure that all subscribers are accounted for and have received their Journals; planning and administering at least one fundraiser each semester; working closely with the leaders of committees on events in order to keep track of all events, guests, invites, and donors; making sure that the Deans and Faculty have copies of the Journal's budget in conjunction with the Editor-in-Chief; keeping an account of the Journal's debits and credits as they pertain to each arena in which funds have been allocated in the Journal's private account; checking the Journal's mailbox located on the third floor by the faculty mailboxes; and responding to requests for back issues, missing issues, and complimentary copies.


  • Consulting Editor

    The Consulting Editor is responsible for attending to the myriad tasks required to keep the Journal functioning both efficiently and effectively. Specific duties of the Consulting Editor include, but are not limited to: assisting the Business Editor to establish and administer fundraising activities; designing and organizing Journal t-shirts; organizing Journal social events; updating the bulletin board in the hallway on the second-floor of the law building; shopping for groceries and office supplies; and returning pop cans to retrieve deposit money.

MEMBERSHIP REQUIREMENTS

What requirements are necessary to "write-on" to the Michigan State University Journal of Medicine and Law?

  • Minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.5
  • Completion of 29 credit hours
  • At least two semesters remaining before graduation
  • Completion of RWA I and II
  • Successful completion of one 15 to 25-page (triple-spaced) competition comment
  • Successful completion of a sixteen-question Blue Book Examination

What requirements are necessary to "grade-on" to the Michigan State University Journal of Medicine and Law?

  • Minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0
  • Completion of 29 credit hours
  • At least two semesters remaining before graduation
  • Completion of RWA I and II
  • Submission of one legal writing sample of any length from a law school course (including RWA) or a law-related job
  • Successful completion of a sixteen-question Blue Book Examination

What is the "Write-On Competition"?

  • The write-on competition offers students a chance to become members of the Michigan State University Journal of Medicine and Law by submitting a sample of their writing ability and style.
  • The write-on competition materials include all of the research for the paper, instructions, formatting guidelines, and a Blue Book Examination.
  • The paper should be 15-25 pages of text, triple-spaced. This is a closed research assignment, which means that the only research materials you will use to write the paper will be provided in the write-on packet sent to you. No outside research is permitted.

Who should I contact with further questions?

  • Please direct all inquiries to the Administrative Editor, via email at msujml@msu.edu.

MEMBER RESPONSIBILITIES

In order to retain membership, all Journal members are required to fulfill a variety of obligations. These obligations include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Providing the Editorial Board with updated contact information upon request.
    • The Board maintains a Journal member contact list, and often needs to contact members regarding cite-checking assignments and Journal-related functions. Consequently, the Board may occasionally require updated contact information from members.
  • Attending a New Member Orientation consisting of the following events:
    • Medical-legal research training on the LexisNexis and Westlaw search engines;
    • A Blue Book Citation Lecture;
    • An "Introduction to Journal Membership" Lecture;
    • Library tours of both the Law College Library and the Main MSU Library;
    • An online resource training course administered by the research librarians at the Law Library; and
    • A New Member Dinner
  • Completion of a practice cite-checking assignment.
    • The practice cite-checking assignment is developed, administered, and scored by the Managing Editor of Production. The MEP will meet with each member to discuss the results of their practice test and to offer feedback within a reasonable time after the assignment's due date.
  • Maintaining regular office hours in the Journal office.
    • Members must perform at least two-hours of Journal-related work each week. One of these hours must be completed in the Journal office during the standard business week. The second hour may be completed anywhere. Tasks to be completed may include researching potential authors, reading articles, cite-checking, or any other reasonable task assigned by an Editorial Board member.
  • Completing two to three quality cite-checking assignments by the assigned deadline each semester.
    • Members will be assigned anywhere from 30 to 50 footnotes for which they will need to obtain the sources and review and edit each footnote to conform to Blue Book style. In addition, members are required to read the article in its entirety and complete above-the-line copyediting in regards to grammar, punctuation, and spelling. Members should allot at least ten hours of work per cite-checking assignment.
    • Members have two to three weeks to complete each assignment.
    • Timely completion of cite-checking assignments is a requirement for continued Journal membership.
  • Attending mandatory Journal functions such as meetings, fundraising events, symposia, debates, lectures, discussions, and launch parties as necessary.
  • Being present for the Journal's group photograph.
  • Completion of a 20-page paper by the end of the member's last semester (optional—this is required only if you intend to apply for credit for your Journal work)
    • Paper topics must be approved by the Editor-in-Chief
    • In its final form, the paper must be at least 20 pages of text, triple-spaced, with at least 70 endnotes

MEMBER BENEFITS

We expect our members to work hard and to fulfill their obligations to the Journal as a prerequisite to enjoying the perks of membership. As Vince Lombardi once said, "The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary." Although we expect a great deal from our members, we also try to provide them with a fun, career-building learning experience. Consequently, students may derive the following benefits from their membership on the Michigan State Unviersity Journal of Medicine and Law:

  • They may earn up to two credit hours (pass/fail) in their final semester by completing the twenty-page paper mentioned above.
  • They gain experience with the legal publishing process, as well as exposure to a non-traditional career in the law.
  • They gain invaluable practice in research, writing, editing, and cite-checking.
  • They are given the opportunity to have their work published in a professional forum.
  • They are given the opportunity to network with academics, attorneys, physicians, legislators, judges, and other law students.
  • They are able to participate in social events such as dinners and launch parties.

For any questions regarding membership, please contact the Adminstrative Editor at msujml@msu.edu.