The Bencher
The Bencher is the flagship publication of the
American Inns of Court. Circulated to all members, it is published
six times a year. The purpose of The Bencher is to provide
a regular communication link among the national office, Inns, and
members of the American Inns of Court.
Each issue features articles written to a central theme such as
legal ethics, professionalism, civility or mentoring. Also included
are reports on the activities of American Inns of Court from around
the country, information about Inn programs, and profiles of
prominent individuals in the legal profession.
Current circulation is more than 28,000 by mail or electronic
PDF.
Contributions are welcome. Feature articles or news items for
publication in The Bencher must be submitted to the editor
and will be reviewed for suitability. If a submission is chosen for
publication, it may be edited for content or to fit in the space
available.
The Bencher Editorial Policy
Article submissions to The Bencher are reviewed by
members of the editorial board who are or have been affiliated with
the American Inns of Court. Editorial and publication decisions are
based on the board's judgment. The views expressed in The
Bencher are those of the authors and do not necessarily
reflect the views of the American Inns of Court or the editorial
board.
The editorial board welcomes comments and suggestions. Letters,
especially those that contribute to furthering discussions of
professionalism, may be published at the discretion of the
editorial board. By submitting a letter, you are authorizing its
publication. Letters may be modified to meet space and content
restrictions.
Submission Guidelines
All submissions should be e-mailed to the editor, Rita
Zimmerman. Please cc: your Chapter Relations Director
when submitting Inn the News items.
- Feature Articles: Authors are invited to
submit original feature length articles on the topics of
professionalism, legal ethics, civility, mentoring, and other
subjects that advance the cause of excellence in the practice of
law. Please reference our schedule for a listing of current themes
and deadlines for our upcoming issues. Recommended article length
is 1000-2000 words and MS Word or WordPerfect files are preferred.
Please avoid the use of footnotes or endnotes.
- Inn the News: Inns are invited to submit
Inn-related news items for inclusion in the "Inn the News" section
of The Bencher. Recommended word count is 350 words or
less. Longer articles will be considered, but may be subject to
substantial editing. Inns are also encouraged to submit photos
related to their news item(s). Please refer to the photo and image
submission guidelines below. Please note that The Bencher
does not publish "congratulatory" news.
- Photographs and Images: Please submit ".jpg"
or ".tif" files with a minimum resolution of 300 dpi
(high-resolution). Head shots should be 300dpi and at least 2"x3".
Please note that photos and images posted or saved from
the internet are low resolution and not suitable for commercial
printing. Original photographic prints are accepted,
but will not be returned.
Copyright
Before publishing an article, authors will be sent a copyright
confirmation and release authorizing us to publish or use the
article as we choose free of any claims against us for its use. If
a previously published work is submitted, you are required to
certify that you have retained publication rights and/or obtained
consent from any other author(s) or entities that have previously
published the article or any substantial portion thereof.
Style Guide
The American Inns of Court uses and recommends that authors
refer to The Chicago
Manual of Style (16th Ed.). If using citations, refer to
The Bluebook A Uniform System of
Citation.