The UNLV Health Law Program encourages students who examine health law and/or bioethics topics in their seminar papers, capstone papers, law journal notes, directed research papers, and other writing assignments to submit their papers to the following writing competitions, as appropriate:

The Adam A. Milani Disability Law Writing Competition, sponsored by the American Bar Association Commission on Mental and Physical Disability Law and Mercer University School of Law. Prizes range from $300 to $1000. Submission deadlines are typically in June.

The H. Thomas Austern Memorial Writing Competition, sponsored by the Food and Drug Law Institute. Prizes range from $250 to $750. Submission deadlines are typically in May or June (June 11 in 2021).

The Annual National Health Law Writing Competition sponsored by American University Washington College of Law (WCL). Prizes range from $1,000 to $1,500 and possible publication in the WCL Health Law and Policy Brief. For the next competition cycle, the submission portal will open on December 9, 2021 and will close on April 27, 2022.

The Annual Health Law Student Writing Competition sponsored by the Health Law Section of the American Bar Association. Prizes include publication in the Health Lawyer, travel funds to attend the Annual Emerging Issues in Healthcare Conference, and a $500 honorarium. The next deadline is December 1, 2021.

The American College of Legal Medicine Student Writing Competition in Law, Medicine & Bioethics. Prizes range from $250 to $1000 and presentation of the winning paper at the Annual ACLM Meeting. Submission deadlines are typically in January. The 2022 deadline is on January 28.

The American College of Legal Medicine Loletta M. Orr Postdoctoral Student Writing Competition. Prizes range from $500 to $1000 and presentation of the winning paper at the Annual ACLM Meeting. Submission deadlines are typically in January. The 2022 deadline is January 28.

The Annual Epstein Becker Green Health Law Writing Competition, sponsored by Epstein Becker Green. Prizes range from $500 to $4000.  Submission deadlines are typically in January or February (February 25 in 2022).

The Sarah Weddington Writing Prize for New Student Scholarship in Reproductive Rights. Prizes range from $250 to $750, and the winning paper is granted a “presumption of publishability” and receives expedited review by the Berkeley Journal of Gender, Law & Justice. Submission deadlines vary, some years as early as January, other years as late as March. 

The Roy Snell Health Care Regulatory and Compliance Writing Competition sponsored by the Health Law Institute and Mitchell-Hamline School of Law. The next registration deadline is February 1, 2023, with a submission deadline of March 15, 2023. Cash prizes range from $1,500 to $5,000 plus expenses to attend the 2024 HCCA Annual Compliance Institute.

The Annual Anti-Racism Student Writing Competition of the American Society of Law, Medicine & Ethics. The winning paper will be invited for publication in a special issue of the Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, and first prize winner(s) will receive $500 and a 1-year ASLME membership. The current year deadline is June 1, 2022.