Writing Competition: On Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations and the American Constitutional Order

Posted on October 5, 2026
The Law & Economics Center (LEC) at George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School is organizing a nationwide law student writing competition celebrating the 250th anniversary of Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations and the American constitutional order.
The competition will award $7,500 for first place, $5,000 for second place, and $2,500 for third place, with possible additional honorable mentions. Beyond the monetary prizes, winning students will have the opportunity to:
  • Present their scholarship at a public conference at the Antonin Scalia Law School in Arlington, Virginia in April 2027, alongside academics who are developing new scholarship on Adam Smith and his influence on American law and policy;
  • Receive substantive feedback from a five-member “jury” of leading scholars in constitutional law, Adam Smith, economics, and related fields;
  • Network with leading scholars, federal judges, lawyers, government officials, and other members of the legal policy community; and
  • Revise their papers for potential publication as part of a collection of scholarship generated by the project.
Students may submit papers written specifically for this competition or that they’ve submitted for a class, law review, or other academic purpose, provided the paper addresses the competition’s overarching theme.

For more information and submission details, please click here.
Posted in: EXTERNAL OPPORTUNITIES, WRITING AND ADVOCACY COMPETITIONS.