How to Choose a Topic and Perform Research for the Advanced Writing Requirement: Picking a topic

Know your professor

Your professor is the most important resource for your paper topic.  Be absolutely sure you understand what your professor wants.

Some things to consider:

• Your professor is your audience. Unless instructed otherwise, keep them in mind as you put together your research.

• Your professor is the one grading you.

• If you have time, take a look at any articles that your professor has written.

  • See what kind of organization they use in their article.

  • What kind of resources do they cite to.

  • What topics has your professor written on?

  • What are they interested in?

  • Do they have a bias or agenda?

  • Is your professor working on something right now?

These things may help you choose a topic that your professor will connect with or help you to understand what they my be looking for.

Circuit Splits and Legal News

A good place to look for topics are circuit splits or legal news. These can be great places to find interesting or unique topics to discuss. Bloomberg offers many different resources to help you search or find resources. To find these, go to the Bloomberg homepage then click "Law Review Resources" under "Popular Link." From here you fill find links to circuit split charts ,opinion searches, news sources, and other helpful resources to do in depth research.

The SUNN Approach

As you think about possible topics it may help to use the SUNN approach to topic assessment.

SUNN stands for:

• Sound

• Useful

• Novel

• Nuanced

Is your topic:

• Sound: Free from logical inconsistencies or gaping omissions?

• Useful: Legally relevant and important to the legal community?

• Novel: Original and creative?

• Nuanced: Appropriately detailed and distinct for a sophisticated audience?

Using your Course Book

Your course book is another excellent resource for helping you pick a paper topic.

Some things to consider about your course book:

• Problems, notes, and comments that follow the cases
• Chapters that you don't have time to cover in class

Often editors of casebooks provide you with topics in the problems or in notes and comments that precede or follow a case.  These problems, notes, and comments often ask questions about undecided areas of the law or areas that have proven controversial.