Date Chartered: 5/20/2022
Purpose
The Section on Criminal Law promotes the communication of ideas, interests, and activities among members of the Section; with a primary focus on substantive criminal law and the policy implications of criminal regulatory approaches.
* Please be aware that Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure are now two separate sections with separate listservs. If you are currently not able to access one of the two sections, please join through this link for access: My Sections. For other information on how to navigate the new AALS portal, click here: Member Portal Guide • AALS
Awards
Junior Scholars Paper Competition Award
The competition is the Section’s way of recognizing and encouraging scholarship by junior members of the legal academy. Honorees will be recognized at the AALS Annual Meeting.
We welcome both single-authored and co-authored submissions, but please be mindful of the following considerations. We will consider papers where: 1) the author has been teaching six years or fewer as of September 1, 2024 and has not entered the competition more than six times; 2) the paper has not yet been published or posted to the internet before Mid November; 3) the author is a member of the AALS; and 4) the author has not previously won the AALS Criminal Justice Section (now known as the Criminal Law Section) Paper Competition.
Only one single-authored submission per author is permitted, though individuals may submit a single-authored piece, as well as a co-authored piece. When submitting co-authored papers, please note that each author must meet the qualifications listed above except the AALS membership requirement, where one membership will suffice.
We seek to maintain anonymity in the review of submitted papers. Please submit papers in electronic form, with all identifying information removed except for a cover sheet on a separate document with your name, the year you began teaching, and a confirmation that the paper will not be posted to the internet prior to November 15, 2024. Starred footnotes thanking reviewers may be included but should be placed on the cover page. Please check the text and all footnotes to ensure that they do not contain details that might identify the author.
Paper submissions and the separate cover sheet should be sent to the Executive Committee at [email protected]. Please use the subject line “CLS Junior Scholars Paper Competition,” and be sure to submit papers by the deadline of mid-September.
Recipients
| Year | Award Name | Recipient | Law School |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Junior Scholars Paper Competition Award | Rebecca Talbott | University of San Diego School of Law |
| 2025 | Junior Scholars Paper Competition Award | Daniel Harawa | New York University School of Law |
| 2024 | Junior Scholars Paper Competition Award | Anna VanCleave | University of Connecticut School of Law |
| 2023 | Junior Scholars Paper Competition Award | Sheldon Evans | St. Johns University School of Law |
Runner Up’s
| Year | Award Name | Recipient | Law School |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Junior Scholars Paper Competition Runner Up | Jacob Schuman | Temple University, James E. Beasley School of Law |
| 2025 | Junior Scholars Paper Competition Runner Up | Joel S. Johnson | Pepperdine University Rick J. Caruso School of Law |
| 2024 | Junior Scholars Paper Competition Award | Daniel Harawa | New York University School of Law |
| 2024 | Junior Scholars Paper Competition Award | Renagh O’Leary | University of Wisconsin Law School |
| 2023 | Junior Scholars Paper Competition Award | Alexis Hoag-Fordjour | Brooklyn Law School |
| 2023 | Junior Scholars Paper Competition Award | Kathryn Miller | Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law |
| 2023 | Junior Scholars Paper Competition Award | Roseanna Sommers | University of Michigan Law School |