The Houston Journal of Health Law & Policy is a growing student organization at the Law Center. The Journal provides candidates with outstanding opportunities to advance their legal research and writing skills, to author a paper for potential publication, to learn about the health law and policy issues at our nation’s forefront, to network with local health law attorneys, and to enjoy the benefits of an internal mentor program.

What is the HJHLP?

• The HJHLP is one of the nation's preeminent peer-reviewed scholarly journals devoted exclusively to health law and policy issues.
• The HJHLP publishes two issues of professional and student-authored pieces each year, generally in the fall and spring semesters.

About the Health Law Journal:

• You do not need to be interested in health law to join the Journal!

• As you probably already know, health law is a broad field that touches everyone’s lives and interests; it encompasses everything from criminal law to corporate law to tax law. You can put a health law spin on virtually any area of law you like.

• HJHLP is a smaller journal. This provides 2Ls with two advantages: (1) they have greater opportunities for leadership positions in their third year than some of the other larger Journals (this year, every candidate received some sort of editorship), and (2) they have a greater chance of being published in a Journal.

• Students can earn up to 6 hours of credit for participation; you have to complete your 2L candidacy year AND your editorial board position in your 3L year.

• Completing your comment or case notes for the Journal satisfies the UHLC’s writing requirement.

• Candidates have greater freedom to choose paper topics than they generally do in seminar courses, even if the topic is not directly related to health law.

• Alternatively, you can take a seminar in the fall of your 2L year and submit the paper from that seminar to be considered for publication instead of going through the 100%-HJHL&P-run notes and comments process.

• Journal track—you get a wider topic choice vs... Seminar track—supervision by a professor.

• HJHL&P requires candidate papers to be 40 pages, while other journals (LR, HJIL, & HBTJ) require 60 pages.

Why join the Health Law Journal?

• Participation on the Journal will sharpen your legal writing and researching skills, which gives you an advantage in law classes, summer internships, and future employment.

• Many employers want Journal experience; HJHLP is a good one to have.

• HJHLP is the only Journal affiliated with the consistently #1-ranked Health Law Institute at UHLC, and your affiliation to the Institute as a Journal member is great to have on your resume.

How do I join?

There are two ways students can become members of the HJHLP:

1. Students who earn an A or A- in either semester of LRW or are ranked in the top 33% of their 1L class will receive an automatic invitation to join the HJHLP this summer. (Students in these categories should expect to receive invitations in late June or early July).

2. Because we recognize that GPA does NOT reflect legal research and writing aptitude, all 1L students may participate in the summer write-on competition sponsored by the Houston Law Review, and the Health Law Journal will select members from the competition based on the merits of their papers.

Full time students must commit for a two year term. Part time students are eligible for candidacy following the same criteria as full time students, but have the option to serve for either a two year or three year term. Upon successful completion of all requirements, members are eligible for academic credit. The Journal welcomes students to contact any of the current members for more information and to tour our offices.