THE PLAN AND HISTORY OF THE VIRGINIA LAW REVIEW
By Randolph Caskie Coleman, '21, M.A., Editor
Mr. Chairman, Alumni of the Law School, and Visitors:
It was intended, as appears on the program, that I should make you a
speech on the Virginia Law Review, but after the splendid address of Dean
Lile, I feel that any attempt at a speech on my part would be feeble indeed.
So I am going to tell you very simply and briefly a few things about the law
journal published by the students.
On March 5, 1913 an informal meeting was held in Minor Hall for the
purpose of considering the publication of a legal journal by the students of
the Law School. It was unanimously resolved to form an association to
issue the journal, and on April 23, 1913 a permanent organization of the
Virginia Law Review Association, with an editorial board and a business
management, was effected.
The first number appeared in October, 1913, and since that time the
Review has been published monthly eight times a year from October to May,
except during the year of 1918-'19, when owing to the late opening of the
Law School on account of the war, publication was necessarily suspended.
The current issue, which through the courtesy of Mr. Minor's committee
will be presented to each of you at the end of the meeting, marks the close
of Volume VII.
The plan of the Virginia Law Review is quite similar to that of the
Harvard, the Columbia, and the other leading Reviews. But it differs from
many of them in one important respect, that is, in being exclusively a
student publication. Some of the Reviews are published principally by
Law Faculties, others have both Faculty and student editors, and still others,
though having only student editors, have Faculty representatives who supervise
all the work that is done. It is entirely in accord with the spirit and
traditions of Virginia, with its liberal measure of student control in all its
activities, that the Law Review should be published by the students alone.
To that fact, we believe, is largely attributable the self-reliance, the interest,
and the fine esprit de corps which have always characterized the editorial board.
Each number of the Review contains leading articles of general interest
to the profession, Notes, Recent Decisions, Book Reviews, and a Virginia
Section. The articles and Book Reviews are prepared by prominent members
of the bench and bar and by law teachers, while the Notes and Recent
Decisions are entirely the work of the editors.
This year saw the inauguration of the Virginia Section. Due to the
insistent demand of many of our readers, we thought it well, although retaining
our character as a general rather than a local journal, to establish
a section devoted exclusively to comment upon the Virginia decisions and
statutory changes. While the material for this department is largely furnished
by students, yet in order to make it a real forum for the discussion of
Virginia law, we have decided to invite contributions to it from the bar of
the State and bespeak for it your interest and support.
From the first the Review has set a high standard, and we believe we
can say without undue pride that to-day it has attained a foremost rank
among the established law journals of the country. Dean Lile and Professor
Graves place it just after the Harvard and Columbia
Reviews and in the lead
of the others, and the superiority of those two, says Professor Graves, is to
be found in their leading articles, in obtaining which they possess distinct
advantages over us, and not in the student work. This classification reflects
the greater credit upon the Virginia
Law Review when we consider that at
Harvard and Columbia the enrolment far exceeds ours and, furthermore,
that a baccalaureate degree is required for entrance to the Law School.
The editors of our Review have been constantly encouraged by commendatory
expressions and requests, some from quite a distance. The other
day we received an order for the Review and the back volumes from the
League of Nations Library at Geneva. Recently a letter came from Regina,
Saskatchewan, asking permission to reprint in the Canadian Law Times one
of our articles, which was described as "admirable and world-wide in its
application." Some time ago Professor Isaacs of Pittsburgh and Professor
Schaub of Harvard asked leave to reprint in their coming volume on Commercial
Law some extracts from the Review, adding the statement that "in
the present state of our legal science, the law journals are the repositories
of the best thought in commercial law as well as in the other fields of jurisprudence."
Dean Wigmore has complimented the Review highly, laying
particular stress upon its form and appearance. I trust you will pardon a
reference to these things when you realize that they are due not only to the
work of the present board, but to that of all our predecessors.
While this is the story of what the Review has accomplished, we feel
that it should do a great deal more. In fact it has reached a critical stage
in its life. The present vastly increased cost of printing has made it a most
difficult matter to finance the Review with the limited subscription list we
now have. This condition has affected all the Reviews more or less seriously
according to their circulation and resources from endowment or otherwise.
Recently the Columbia Law Review issued a statement that unless it could
secure a thousand additional subscribers it might have to suspend publication.
The Virginia Law Review unfortunately has no endowment and is entirely
dependent upon income from subscriptions and a few advertisements.
Is it worth while to keep it alive and vigorous? That depends upon the
service it is performing. To the student here it is a constant incentive, since
election to the board is based upon the quality of work done in the Law
School. To the editors it is a very valuable—some of them consider it the
most valuable—part of their legal training. To the Law School it is a means
of expression, without which the School would be somewhat inarticulate,
and at the same time the best type of advertisement. Going into the offices
of hundreds of lawyers, especially in Virginia and the South, it should give a
far clearer and more vivid idea of the character of the work in our Law School
than any mere catalogue. Can it be doubted that if the
Review went to
several offices where it now goes to one it would be instrumental in bringing
many more students to this Law School? If a larger attendance is not to be
desired, then we would be enabled to take another forward step in the
important matter of raising our standards for admission.
But of what service is the Review to you, our alumni? It is a direct
means of communication, of contact with the Law School. It keeps alive
your interest and your memories. As it brings to those here, through the
articles you contribute, the results of your discoveries in the field of active
practice, so it carries to you the fruits of the researches of Faculty and
students in the legal laboratory of Minor Hall.
With your active coöperation the Review can not only perform this
service, but can steadily increase its usefulness. Without your support, it
will wither and die. There is no reason why we cannot make it the leading
organ of legal expression in the South, as the Harvard Law Review is in its
field, and a potent influence with our courts and legislators. It should be in
every way worthy of our great Law School, which for sound instruction in
fundamental principles we all believe to be second to none.
Our alumni are fully equal to the task. With your contributions in
articles embodying the product of your labors, your arguments in noteworthy
cases, your views on vital questions, and your suggestions as to
changes in our law and procedure, we could publish a Review that would
stand comparison in every respect with any law journal in the country.
So when you have the material for an interesting paper, prepare it and send
it to us, as well as discussions for the Virginia Section or Book Reviews.
In this way, through your loyal support in articles and subscriptions,
the Virginia Law Review can become a powerful, living force in our legal
world, informed with the noble spirit and standards of this institution, a
teacher of true doctrine in these times of false and dangerous theories, a
champion of what is sound and progressive in law and government. Thus
it can be made a source of just pride to the alumni and to the Law School.
The achievement of this purpose rests in principal measure with you, and
we have every confidence in your decision.
