Wayne Law Review staff (left to right) Managing Editor Michael Serra, Editor-in-Chief Katharine McCarthy, and Technology Editor Steven Helton made creating a new website for the publication a top priority when the new Editorial Board was selected. Photo courtesy of Wayne Law
Wayne Law Review, the primary scholarly journal of Wayne State University Law School, has a brand new website—http://www.waynelawreview.org—featuring cutting edge articles, interviews and updates.
“When the new Editorial Board was selected, we wanted the creation of a brand new, functional website to be our first priority,” said Katharine “Kate” McCarthy, editor-in-chief of Wayne Law Review. “We ultimately hope that the website will expand the reach of the Wayne Law Review and Wayne Law generally.”
Technology Editor Steven Helton built the new site from “the ground up,” she said.
“I started out with a few different platforms in mind, and built a few different prototype sites,” Helton said. “We all talked about the options and content that we wanted the site to include, which helped us narrow it down to the current platform. Over the summer, I tweaked the visual appearance based on input I received from other board members, and began uploading and cataloging hundreds of articles.”
The website is still “a work in progress,” he said, but already it offers viewers the ability to browse articles by areas of the law.
“This allows readers who don’t know exactly what they’re looking for to find something that will be of interest and use to them,” Helton said. “Most major newspapers have this feature, but I haven’t seen any other law reviews that have this functionality on their website. I think this feature really sets the Wayne Law Review’s site apart from other law review sites.”
The new site also includes interviews with authors. For instance, Managing Editor Michael Serra interviewed novelist Allison Leotta, a former assistant U.S. attorney who prosecuted sex crimes in Washington, D.C., and now writes popular legal thrillers, including recently released “Discretion.”
“It is exciting that we are now being contacted by authors for interviews because this allows readers to get to know the author on another level,” Serra said. “Furthermore, the website allows patrons to comment on interviews and articles, giving authors a chance to connect with readers and hopefully encourage scholarly discourse.”
More changes and improvements to Wayne Law Review’s website are coming soon, Helton said.
“Our online ordering system will go live pretty soon, and will be a big improvement,” he said. “We also will begin selling ebooks that cover a single area of Michigan law, which practitioners will hopefully find to be a valuable resource.”
McCarthy said, “We also are looking forward to expanding opportunities for students looking to publish. We hope to publish student comments, blogs and short articles on current issues on the website.”
Wayne Law Review is published four times a year. Law students fully operate the publication and are responsible for its content. A faculty member oversees the general operation.
Review members get two credits for each year of membership. During their first year on staff, members are required to write a publishable Note and complete weekly source-checking assignments, spending 10 to 15 hours a week on that work.
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