2019 Louis Jackson National Student Writing Competition Winners Named

The law firm of Jackson Lewis P.C. and the Institute for Law and the Workplace at Chicago-Kent College of Law at Illinois Institute of Technology have announced the winners of the 2018–19 Louis Jackson National Student Writing Competition in Employment and Labor Law. Awards were presented to the top three entries.

Caleb Peiffer, a student at UCLA School of Law, won top honors for his paper “Doubly-Unprotected Disparagement: Employee Voice on Product Quality Under the NLRA.” Peiffer will receive a $3,000 scholarship, and his paper has been published on the Institute for Law and the Workplace website.

This year, two students tied for second place. Jessica O’Brien of the University of North Carolina School of Law placed second for her paper “Invisible Discrimination: How Targeted Advertising Is Being Used to Circumvent the Age Discrimination in Employment Act.” Additionally, Shannon Warren of the University of Denver’s Sturm College of Law earned second-place honors for her paper titled “Left Out in the Cold: Exploring the Vulnerabilities of Seasonal Workers in the Ski Industry.” O’Brien and Warren will each receive a $1,000 scholarship. Their papers likewise have been published on the institute’s website.

Established in 1998, the writing competition is named for the late Louis Jackson, founding partner of Jackson Lewis P.C. The firm, which has more than 900 attorneys practicing in major locations throughout the United States and Puerto Rico, has represented management in the practice of employment, labor, and benefits law for more than 50 years.

“From 1958 until his death in 1997, Louis Jackson provided inspiration, guidance, friendship, and good humor to his colleagues,” says Felice Ekelman, of the law firm. “It is fitting that we honor his memory by carrying on his commitment to the future of the profession through this national student competition.”

“We are pleased to join with Jackson Lewis in encouraging scholarship by law students interested in careers in labor and employment law,” says Martin H. Malin, Chicago-Kent professor and co-director of the Institute for Law and the Workplace.

Chicago-Kent’s Institute for Law and the Workplace administers the annual competition. Entries are blind judged by an independent panel of law professors from across the United States. The determination of the judges’ panel is final, and neither Jackson Lewis P.C. nor the Institute for Law and the Workplace is involved in judging the competition.

Established in 1996 at Chicago-Kent, the Institute for Law and the Workplace is a national center for research, training, dialogue, and reflection on the law that governs the workplace. The institute also serves as an intellectual home for the labor and employment law community, both in the Chicago area and nationwide. It pools the resources of leading academic scholars and the practicing professional community to train students and professionals, monitor policies and trends, and reflect upon issues confronting the labor and employment law community in a neutral setting.

Please note: The name of the law firm is Jackson Lewis. The competition is named in honor of the late Louis Jackson.