Legal Writing Program
Legal Writing Overview
Our dedicated staff of experienced professors is committed to making every student a better writer. We have developed a rigorous, three-semester program that engages students with real-world assignments.
These assignments—and the detailed feedback from the professors—are designed to make students “practice ready” for their summer internships or post-JD positions. Through this effort, VLGS students have a regional and national reputation for excellence in legal writing. We encourage you to explore these pages to learn how our program can help you master the art of legal writing.
VLGS is One of the Top Law Schools for State Court Clerkships – Law360 and The Princeton Review
Resources
Student Writing Competition Portal
Law Journals
Vermont Law Review
The Vermont Law Review is a student-edited legal journal published quarterly under the guidance of five senior student editors and in collaboration with Vermont Law and Graduate School faculty.
Vermont Journal of Environmental Law
The Vermont Journal of Environmental Law is a student-run organization that seeks to provide an accessible forum to discuss contemporary environmental issues and environmental justice.
Professor Accomplishments
Professor Greg Johnson had a recent publication in The Vermont Bar Journal: Fall 2017, Volume 43, No. 3. His piece is titled “Is Neil Gorsuch a Role Model for Legal Writing? Yes and No”. Greg Johnson was elected to the Executive Committee of the AALS Section on Legal Writing, Reasoning, and Research for the 2025-26 academic year. Greg served as co-chair of the Awards Committee for the AALS Section in 2024. Greg is currently co-chair of the Distinguished Speakers Committee of the Association of Legal Writing Directors.
Claire Andrews’s fourth novel, A BEAUTIFUL AND TERRIBLE MURDER will be published August 5th, 2025 from Little, Brown Young Readers.
This past summer, Professor Brian Porto was busy publishing a book which is titled May It Please the Court, Third Edition. You can purchase the book here. He also had an article featured in The Vermont Bar Journal: Summer 2017 Volume 43. His article is titled The Rhetorical Legacy of Antonin Scalia.
Anna Connolly published two articles:
- Anna F. Connolly, Context Matters for Deep Knowledge: What Cognitive Science Can Teach Us About Legal Writing, 68 St. Louis U. L.J. 475 (2024).
- Anna F. Connolly, Match Mindsets for Better Communication (Vermont Bar Journal, Summer 2024)
Anna Connolly presented at a conference: Legal Writing Institute Biennial Conference(Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law, July 18-20, 2024).
Michael Kovac:
- An article published in the Georgia Criminal Law Review – https://digitalcommons.law.uga.edu/gclr/vol2/iss2/2/
- An article he wrote ended up being the cover story for the Pittsburgh City Paper’s Black History Month edition – https://www.pghcitypaper.com/arts-entertainment/the-extraordinary-life-and-death-of-pittsburgh-basketball-legend-john-brisker-27420971
Student Accomplishments
VLGS Students Excel in National Moot Court Competitions
“It was an honor to represent Vermont Law and Graduate School in the National Moot Court Competition. The experience was invaluable. Our group was given the opportunity to hone legal research, writing, and oral advocacy skills that will benefit us throughout our professional careers.” – Allyson Cohen JD’25
VLGS Student Is Nominated For The Burton Award
We are delighted to announce that we have chosen Chester Harper to be Vermont Law and Graduate School’s official nominee for the Burton Award for Distinguished Legal Writing. We chose Chester Harper’s article, Citizen or Soldier? An Originalist Response to District of Columbia v. Heller and the Intellectual Origins of the Second Amendment. We have high hopes that Chester’s article can carry on this great tradition.
Chester has spent most of his life living in northern New England. Currently, he is a student at Vermont Law and Graduate School focusing on Constitutional Law and Legal Writing. Before deciding to study law, Chester studied intellectual history at Marlboro College where his area of focus was Early-Modern European military theory. He also spent a number of years working at a museum of the Upper-Connecticut River Valley’s history in the Colonial period. Chester is excited to bring an interdisciplinary approach to constitutional analysis by combining academic history with legal analysis. Chester and his wife, Theresa, look forward to permanently settling in central Vermont after graduation.
Vermont Law and Graduate School students consistently win the award. VLGS students have now won the award five times in the last eight years (Benjamin Leoni (2011); Garrett Chrostek (2012); Lizzie Tisher (2014); Carrie Scrufari (2017); Andrew Rome (2018)). This is a high honor and a tremendous recognition of how accomplished our students are.
Jaclyn Belczyk, executive editor at jurist.org, presents this info session on JURIST; the history, what it is, and how you can participate. View the video here
Faculty
Jared Carter
- Professor of Law
- First Amendment Law
Anna F. Connolly
- Associate Professor of Law
Tenielle Fordyce-Ruff
- Professor of Law in Legal Writing
- Director of Online Legal Writing
Catherine Fregosi
- Professor of Law
- Assistant Director of Legal Writing
Greg Johnson
- Director, Legal Writing Program
- Professor of Law
Michael Kovac
Brian Porto
- Professor of Law Emeritus
Grant Smith
- Assistant Professor of Law
Claire Andrews
- Program Coordinator
Legal Writing News and Events
From the Trouble with AI to Climate Superfund Bills: Vermont Journal of Environmental Law Stories to Watch
January 30Student-Run Journal’s Annual List Highlights Pressing Issues SOUTH ROYALTON, Vermont (Jan. 30, 2025) — The Vermont Journal of Environmental Law, a publication from Ver…
VLGS Students Excel in National Moot Court Competitions
January 29Vermont Law and Graduate School (VLGS) celebrated a series of successes during the fall 2024 semester, showcasing the skill and dedication of our students in the competitive w…
National Expert in Legal Writing Joins Vermont Law and Graduate School
August 5Tenielle Fordyce-Ruff to Lead Online Legal Writing Program SOUTH ROYALTON, Vermont (August 5, 2024) — Vermont Law and Graduate School (VLGS) has named Tenielle Fordyce-Ruff …
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