To apply to the writing contest, please make sure you have read the rules thoroughly below and then submit your application via the online form here between April 1 and July 1.
Overview
The Federal Circuit Bar Association is pleased to announce the 2025 George Hutchinson Writing Competition, named in honor of the first Chief Clerk of the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit was established in 1982 by Congress as the first Article III appellate court to have exclusive jurisdiction over certain defined subject areas. Specifically, the Court’s jurisdiction includes appeals from all patent litigation (nationwide), Patent and Trademark Office decisions, government contract claims, the International Trade Commission, the Merit Systems Protection Board, and the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.
Entries to the contest may address any topic that lies within the procedure, substance, or scope of the jurisdiction of the Court. The contest rules and further information appear on the next page. The competition is open to all law students enrolled in ABA-accredited law schools. We permit and encourage students to base their entries on papers that they prepared for law school courses and seminars during the 2024/2025 school year. Because the competition is open for the entire school year, papers prepared during the most recent Fall or Spring semester can be eligible.
Three thousand dollars ($3,000.00) will be awarded to the entry, if any, deemed by the judges to merit an award. Second and third place cash prizes also may be awarded at the discretion of the judges. In addition, the winner will receive significant favorable publicity among all members of the FCBA.
Rules
- Students enrolled for the 2024/2025 school year in any law school accredited by the American Bar Association are eligible to enter. Pre-registration is not necessary. Submission of a paper in accordance with these rules constitutes registration.
- All papers shall be prepared during the 2024/2025 school year. Papers shall be the sole work product of the student. Normal comment and guidance by law school faculty is permitted.
- Papers are typically about 20-30 pages in length. Papers shall not exceed 50 pages, including footnotes. They must be typed, double-spaced, on 8-1/2 x 11 inch paper. All citations and footnotes should be in accordance with the current edition of The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation.
- Papers must deal with a topic that lies within the substance, procedure, or scope of the specialized jurisdiction of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
- The writing competition is judged by selected members of the FCBA. The papers will be judged generally on their substance, clarity, timeliness, and quality of argument, although details of form will not be ignored.
- Papers are judged anonymously. The entrant’s name and school should not appear on the uploaded document or file name. Rather, contact information for the entrant will be requested on the submission form itself.
- Submissions must be submitted no later than July 1, 2025, at the link above.
- A cash prize of at least three thousand dollars ($3,000.00) will be awarded for the entry deemed by the judges to be the best entry that merits the award. Second and third place cash prizes may also be awarded at the judges’ discretion. Winners will be publicly announced at the FCBA’s November 2025 Annual Dinner in Washington, D.C. The prize-winning paper may be considered for publication in the Federal Circuit Bar Journal. All decisions of the judges are final.
- Submission of a paper grants the FCBA the right to consider publication of the paper in the Federal Circuit Bar Journal. Previously published submissions will not be accepted. The FCBA reserves the right to publish the paper first, at which point the author may proceed with publication elsewhere. Failure of the student to preserve this grant may result in disqualification.
- The FCBA reserves the right to screen entries and to limit the number of papers submitted to the judges for final decision. The Association also reserves the right to not award a prize, should there be no entry that, in the discretion of the FCBA, merits the award.