A Noteworthy Absence

Abstract

In recent years, male law students at top-fifteen-ranked law schools have published nearly twice as many notes in their schools' general-interest law reviews as have their female counterparts. Although this disparity is common to virtually every top-fifteen-ranked school, it has received little attention in the scholarly literature. This article therefore strives to start a conversation. The article shares data demonstrating a sex-based publishing discrepancy. It also shares the results of a survey the author conducted with law review editors at the top-fifteen-ranked law schools. The article then proposes a variety of explanations for the discrepancy, recognizing the complexity of the causal story. Finally, the article points out some implications of the discrepancy, for women, for law reviews, for law schools, and for scholarly legal discourse.

Keywords: Gender, Women, Publication, Legal Education, Note, Law School, Law Student