By Troy Cofie
Until recently Adelphi didn't have an undergraduate law review. But when senior criminal justice major Peyton DeRouen transferred here this semester, she wanted to change that. On October 29, she and sophomore political science major Samina Radia, who is part of Levermore Global Scholars, officially formed the Adelphi Undergraduate Law Review (AULR).
According to the mission statement from their constitution, they will offer an accessible platform for students interested in legal discussion and reflection to engage in scholarly discourse, enhance their research and writing skills, and contribute to the field of legal studies. AULR will have an undergraduate law journal to publish exemplary works submitted by undergraduate students on relevant and impactful issues, emphasizing legal scholarship. DeRouen said she wants AULR to provide opportunities for academic engagement and professional development for Adelphi students who want to pursue a career in law.
DeRouen explained that law reviews, managed and edited by law students, are often scholarly articles written by law professors, judges, legal experts and law students. They provide law students an opportunity to explore a topic of any scholarly interest and sharpen their legal research skills. Furthermore, they provide law students with opportunities to be known within legal spaces. Some US law schools offer undergraduate law reviews for any student interested in law. DeRouen was part of the undergraduate journal at her former school, the College of Saint Rose.
“I started the club [AULR] after months of pondering the idea,” she said. “During the summer, I saw various other universities have undergraduate law reviews of their own, and one day, I just said, `Let’s do it.’” With that experience and her desire to have a career in law, DeRouen decided to take a chance and start one at Adelphi.
DeRouen said that AULR also intends to invite alumni who are lawyers and speak about legal topics. They even plan trips to law schools to expose students to the environment. According to DeRouen and Radia, who is the public relations chair for Student Government, the club has gotten interest from Adelphi alumni, legal professionals, professors and campus departments who are interested in working with the club relating to the legal field. Overall, AULR platforms both scholarly and professional development for students.
DeRouen said that initially they struggled to get approval from the Center for Student and Community Engagement (SCE) due to the similarity with the Pre-law Society, an inactive club that focused on professional development for students interested in law. DeRouen said that SCE’s suggestion to combine the two groups “would not be wise because they are distinct groups with different goals.”
Furthermore, there was an issue with signatures where they were originally digital but had to be physical. “They allowed me to resubmit `physical’ signatures, which I did [in] the short time I had. AULR was denied again… the reasons again involved the signatures,” she said. “The process was simple but there were bureaucratic impasses that prevented AULR from starting its operations.”
With the Adelphi University Law Review overcoming this hurdle, DeRouen and Radia are eager for anyone–from any major– to join the club and explore any legal topic of their interest. If there are any questions related to the club students can email aminaradia@mail.adelphi.edu and peytonderouen@mail.adelphi.edu.
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