Section awards are presented during the APSA annual meeting awards ceremony. To learn more about any award listed, contact the award committee chair for the award.

All section 02. Law and Courts awards to-date »

Law and Courts Best Conference Paper Award

The Law and Courts Best Conference Paper Award (formerly the American Judicature Society Award) is given annually for the best paper on law and courts presented at the previous year’s annual meetings of the American, International, or regional political science associations. Single- and co-authored papers, written by political scientists, are eligible. Deadline for nominations: March 1, 2027

Award Committee

Name	Affiliation	Email
Anna Gunderson (Chair)	University of Texas at Austin	anna.gunderson@austin.utexas.edu
Albert Rivero	University of Virginia	kpb5gs@virginia.edu
Paul Gardner	Queens University	pg73@queensu.ca
Martín Gandur	Texas Christian University	m.gandur@tcu.edu

Law and Courts Best Graduate Student Paper

This award (formerly the CQ Press Award) is given annually for the best paper in the field of law and courts written by a graduate student. To be eligible, the nominated paper must have been written by a full-time graduate student. Single- and co-authored papers are eligible. In the case of co-authored papers, each author must have been a full-time graduate student at the time the paper was written. Submitted papers may have been written for any purpose (including papers written for seminar, scholarly meetings, and for potential publication in academic journals). This is NOT, however, a dissertation or thesis prize. Papers may be nominated by faculty members or by the students themselves. The papers must have been written during the twelve months previous to the nomination deadline. Deadline for nominations: March 1, 2027

Award Committee

Name	Affiliation	Email
Matthew Montgomery (Chair)	Texas Christian University	m.d.montgomery@tcu.edu
Robin Taboni	University of Texas at Austin	robin.taboni@austin.utexas.edu
Christine Bird	Oklahoma State University	christine.bird@okstate.edu
Michael Romano	Shenandoah University	mromano@su.edu

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Best Journal Article Award

This award recognizes the best journal article in the field of law and courts written by a political scientist and published during the previous calendar year. Pre-prints published in the previous calendar year are also eligible, but no article may be nominated in more than one year. The committee chair each year will forward a list of nominated articles to the next year’s committee chair to avoid accidental re-nomination of the same article. Articles published in all refereed journals and in law reviews are eligible, but book reviews, review essays, and chapters published in edited volumes are not eligible. Journal editors and members of the section may nominate articles. (This award was previously known as McGraw Hill Award and as the Houghton-Mifflin Award for the Best Journal Article in the Field of Law and Courts). Deadline for nominations: March 1, 2027

Award Committee

Name	Affiliation	Email
Lydia Tiede (Chair)	University of Houston	lbtiede@central.uh.edu
Ezgi Yildiz	Bowdoin College	e.yildiz@bowdoin.edu
Michael Salamone	Washington State University	michael.salamone@wsu.edu
Rachel Schoner	Tulane University	rschoner@tulane.edu

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C. Herman Pritchett Award

The C. Herman Pritchett award is given annually for the best book on law and courts written by a political scientist and published the previous year. Please note that case books and edited books are not eligible for consideration. Books may be nominated by publishers or by members of the Section. Deadline for Nominations: March 1, 2027

Award Committee

Name	Affiliation	Email & Mailing Address
Joseph Mello (Chair)	Depaul University	jmello1@depaul.edu 990 W. Fullerton Avenue, Suite 2200 Chicago, IL 60614
Jessica Schoenherr	University of Georgia	jaschoenherr@uga.edu 305D Baldwin Hall Athens, GA 30605
Whitney Taylor	University of Toronto	w.taylor@utoronto.ca Department of Political Science Sidney Smith Hall, Room 3018 100 St. George Street Toronto, ON M5S 3G3 Canada
Andrew O’Donahue	Princeton University	odonohue@princeton.edu Louis A. Simpson International Building, #138 Princeton University, PIIRS Princeton, New Jersey 08544

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Law and Courts Lifetime Achievement Award

Given for a lifetime of significant scholarship, teaching and service to the Law and Courts field. Nominees must be political scientists who are at least 65 years of age or who have been active in the field for at least 25 years. Nominations from previous competitions will be carried forward to the current year’s competition. The committee will retain nominations for 3 years, but you are invited to re-nominate an individual and renew the materials in the file during each cycle. Nominations may be made by any member of the Section and should consist of a statement outlining the contributions of the nominee and, if possible, a copy of the nominee’s vitae.  Deadline for Nominations: March 1, 2027

Award Committee

Name	Affiliation	Email
Wendy Martinek (Chair)	Binghamton University	martinek@binghamton.edu
Eileen Braman	Indiana University	ebraman@iu.edu
Brett Curry	Georgia Southern University	bcurry@georgiasouthern.edu
Todd Collins	Western Carolina University	tcollins@wcu.edu

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Law and Courts Lasting Contribution Award

Awarded annually to a book or journal article, 10 years old or older, that has made a lasting impression on the field of law and courts. Only books and articles written by political scientists are eligible; single-authored works produced by winners of the Lifetime Achievement Award are not eligible. Any member of the Section may submit a nomination. The nomination should include a statement outlining the nature of the contribution of the nominated work. Deadline for Nominations: March 1, 2027

Award Committee

Name	Affiliation	Email
Alison Merrill (Chair)	Susquehanna University	merrill@susqu.edu
Bill Myers	University of Tampa	wmyers@ut.edu
Sivaram Cheruvu	Michigan State University	cheruvus@msu.edu
Jake Truscott	University of Florida	jaketruscott@ufl.edu

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Law and Courts Service Award

The Law and Courts Service Award recognizes service to the section in the literal sense, as in service on committees and in leadership positions, as well as service within the Section, as in service to the profession within the field of law and courts in the form of archiving data, promoting infrastructure, representing the profession in the media, etc.  Deadline for Nominations: March 1, 2027

Award Committee

Name	Affiliation	Email
Teena Wilhelm (Chair)	University of Georgia	twilhelm@uga.edu
Alicia Uribe-McGuire	University of Illinois	aburibe@illinois.edu
Anna Fleming	Mercer University	fleming_a@mercer.edu

Journal of Law and Courts Article Award

This award recognizes the best journal article published in the Journal of Law and Courts during the previous calendar year. All articles published in that year will be eligible for the award, with the exception of an article that wins or has won the Best Journal Article Award. The award winner will receive a cash prize of $500.  Deadline for Nominations: March 1, 2027

Award Committee

Name	Affiliation	Email
Brent Boyea (Chair)	University of Texas-Arlington	boyea@uta.edu
Yu-Hsien Sung	University of North Texas	yu-hsien.sung@unt.edu
Andrew Stone	University of Mississippi	arstone@olemiss.edu
Matthew Martin	University of South Carolina	mattmartin@sc.edu

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Law and Courts Teaching Award

This award recognizes excellence in instruction and enhancing student learning in law and courts.  Examples that might be recognized by this award include (but are not limited to) pedagogical innovation in undergraduate or graduate teaching, directing experiential learning or community-based learning opportunities, and developing new courses or academic programs. Any one of these examples could be sufficient basis for receiving the award. Any member of the section may make a nomination for the Teaching Award by submitting a statement identifying the nominee and outlining the nature of the innovation and contribution made to achieving the purposes of the award (e-mail attachments, in the form of .pdf files, are acceptable). (This award was previously known as the Teaching and Mentoring Award). Deadline for Nominations: March 1, 2027

Award Committee

Name	Affiliation	Email
Claire Wofford (Chair)	College of Charleston	woffordcb@cofc.edu
Joshua Boston	Bowling Green State University	jboston@bgsu.edu
Alice Timken	Gettysburg College	atimken@gettysburg.edu

Student Mentoring Award

This award recognizes excellence in student mentoring in both formal and informal roles. Examples that might be recognized by this award include (but are not limited to) prelaw advising, supporting undergraduate research outside the classroom, directing dissertation and master’s theses, directing undergraduate theses, co-authoring with students, mentoring graduate student teaching, mentoring students with respect to post-graduate professional careers, assisting with national fellowships and award nominations, and continued mentoring of former students. Any one of these examples could be sufficient basis for receiving the award. Any member of the section may make a nomination for the Student Mentoring Award by submitting a statement identifying the nominee and outlining the nature of the innovation and contribution made to achieving the purposes of the award (e-mail attachments, in the form of .pdf files, are acceptable). (This award was previously known as the Teaching and Mentoring Award). Deadline for Nominations: March 1, 2027

Award Committee

Name	Affiliation	Email
Kirsten Widner (Chair)	University of Tennessee-Knoxville	kwidner1@utk.edu
Rachael Houston	Texas Christian University	r.houston@tcu.edu
Ethan Boldt	University of Massachusetts-Boston	Ethan.Boldt@umb.edu

Early Career Scholar Award

This award recognizes exceptional early-career scholars who have made significant contributions to the study of Law and Courts through innovative and rigorous scholarship. The award seeks to honor individuals who, within a defined period following their PhD, have demonstrated a strong publication trajectory, actively presented their work at conferences, workshops, and other public forums, and whose career to date shows extraordinary promise for future impact in the field. To be eligible, nominees must be members of the Law and Courts Section, not tenured at the time of their nomination, and no more than 10 years from the year of their PhD. Deadline for Nominations: March 1, 2027

Award Committee

Name	Affiliation	Email
Logan Strother (Chair)	Purdue University	lstrothe@purdue.edu
Morgan Hazelton	Saint Louis University	morgan.hazelton@slu.edu
Ben Kassow	North Dakota State University	benjamin.kassow@und.edu