Florida Law Review
Abstract
Law reviews sit at the center of American legal scholarship, but their role is widely misunderstood. They are not peer-reviewed, yet the academy treats their placement decisions as markers of scholarly merit. This Essay argues that law reviews function as participants in a prestige economy—one in which reputation, familiarity, and institutional brand often matter more than substantive judgment. Tracing the student-edited model from its pedagogical origins to its modern professional consequences, this Essay shows how prestige became currency, how that currency shapes editorial and authorial behavior, and why the system strains under political and methodological pressure. It concludes by urging a reframing of the editorial role: law reviews should be understood not as certifiers of quality, but as conveners of debate—surfacing ideas for scrutiny rather than conferring scholarly legitimacy.
Recommended Citation
Jeffrey A. Katz and Jacob Sandler,
The Prestige Economy of Legal Scholarship,
77 Fla. L. Rev.
2307
(2025).
Available at: https://scholarship.law.ufl.edu/flr/vol77/iss6/11