RULES GOVERNING THE COMPETITION

1. Participating Law Schools:

All accredited law schools are invited to participate in the Competition.

2. Eligible Students:

Third-year students. In the discretion of the dean, second-year students may also compete. However, second-year students who receive awards may not compete in their third year.

3. Subject Matter:

Any aspect of Copyright Law.

4. Determination of Awards:

The prizes will be awarded to the eligible students who shall, in the sole judgment of the dean, or such other person or committee as the dean may designate, prepare the two best papers. The dean may, in his or her discretion, withhold the awards entirely, if in his or her opinion no worthy paper is submitted, or may award only the first or second prize. Students are not eligible for more than one prize in any Competition.

5. Amounts of Awards:

A first prize of $600 and a second prize of $250 at each participating law school, to be paid by The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers through the dean, upon his or her written certification.

6. Requirements as to the Length and Form of Manuscript:

Papers must strictly comply with the following requirements; failure to do so will disqualify a paper from receiving any award:

(a) Manuscript must be typewritten (double-spaced) on 8 ½" x 11" paper, 1" margin all around. All quotations exceeding four lines must be indented and single-spaced.

(b) Table of Contents must be included.

(c) Citations must be in approved law review form.

(d) Manuscript must not exceed 50 pages, including footnotes and endnotes, and excluding the Table of Contents.

(e) One hard copy of manuscript must be submitted along with a copy, in digital form, Microsoft Word format preferred. Email submissions will not be accepted.

(f) The hard copy of the manuscript must be bound in a stiff cover (e.g. three-ring binder, plastic binding, wire binding, strip binding, etc.) and labeled with the title of the paper, the author's name, permanent home address and telephone number; the floppy disk should bear a label with the same information.

7. Submission of Papers and Publication:

(a) Winning papers and accompanying disks will be forwarded by the Dean to the Society which may authorize publication in any form (including by electronic means). A cover letter, signed by the Dean of his or her designee, should accompany the submission, and clearly identify the first and second place winners, as necessary. All entry material should be sent to:

The ASCAP Building / Estates & Claims Department, One Lincoln Plaza, 6th Floor, New York, NY 10023.

(b) A paper that has been previously published in the same or substantially similar form is not eligible for the Competition.

(c) Subsequent to entry in the Competition, papers may be published in scholarly journals, provided their entry in the Competition is duly noted.

(d) Each student-author shall retain the copyright in his or her paper.

(e) Each student-author shall, by entry in the Competition and agreeing to comply with these Rules, grant to the Society a nonexclusive license to publish his or her paper in any form (including by electronic means).

(f) An original signed statement from the student-author shall be affixed to the inside back cover of the hard copy of his or her paper, as follows:

I, [student-author's name], certify that I have read the Rules Governing the Competition and agree to comply in all respects with those Rules.

[Signature of student-author]

8. Individual Study:

Papers must represent individual study and collaboration with others in their preparation is not permitted.

9. Closing Date:

Winning papers must be certified to the Society no later than June 30^th.

10. Questions/Contact Information:

Email the Nathan Burkan Memorial Competition:

NBMC@ascap.com
or phone ASCAP's Estates & Claims Department at (212) 621-6280

The Nathan Burkan Memorial Competition is administered by the ASCAP Estates and Claims department.
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