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LL.M. Essays & Theses

Establishing state responsibility in mitigating climate change under customary international law.

Vanessa S.W. Tsang , Columbia Law School

Document Type

Degree name.

Master of Laws

As acknowledged in the Paris Agreement’s Preamble, climate change is a “common concern of humankind.” To tackle the anthropogenic greenhouse gases (GHGs) at source, State governments played a pivotal role in implementing climate change policies. It thus justifies the approach of looking into the solutions to climate change from a state responsibility perspective. As mentioned by James Crawford, “[a]ny system of law must address the responsibility of its subjects for breaches of their obligations.” The finding of state responsibility in mitigating climate change will complement the treaty-based climate change regime, providing grounds for climate change litigations and policy formulation.

More than 50 years ago, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) stated that there are two types of state responsibility in Barcelona Traction : a state-to-state duty and obligations erga omnes (i.e., duties owed to the international community as a whole). Later, the International Law Commission (ILC) codified the state responsibility principles in the Articles on the Responsibility of States for Internationally Wrongful Acts (ARSIWA). In the context of climate change, the issue is that there is currently no international authority directly recognizing the state responsibility to mitigate climate change, except in climate change treaties and soft law. Thus, this article seeks to broaden such state responsibility by drawing inferences from general principles and establishing new legal grounds. States owe an obligation not to cause harm to one another under the no-harm principle. There is also a due diligence obligation to prevent climate change harm. The joint-and-several duties and common-but-different-responsibility (CBDR) principles emphasize that such duties are shared collectively by States. By adopting the human rights approach, it argues that States’ climate change obligations are erga omnes. The recent trend of creating rights for nature will further contribute to state responsibility’s jurisprudence to mitigate climate change.

For the structure of this article, Part II will explain the background and motivation of research. Part III will briefly introduce the law of state responsibility. Part IV will discuss the details of the duty to mitigate climate change. There is a conclusion in Part V.

Disciplines

Environmental Law | Human Rights Law | International Humanitarian Law | International Law | Law | Natural Resources Law

Recommended Citation

Tsang, Vanessa S.W., "Establishing State Responsibility in Mitigating Climate Change under Customary International Law" (2021). LL.M. Essays & Theses . 1. https://scholarship.law.columbia.edu/llm_essays_theses/1

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Sat / act prep online guides and tips, how to write a stand-out "why columbia" essay.

College Essays

One of the essays you'll have to write when applying to Columbia University is the "Why Columbia" essay. In this essay, you'll need to convince the admissions committee that Columbia is your dream school and that you'd be a great fit on the campus.

The "Why Columbia" essay question can be intimidating for students. You might be wondering: what should I mention in it? What does the admissions committee want to hear from me?

In this article, we'll break down the "Why Columbia" essay, explaining what the prompt asks and what the committee wants to hear. We'll also show you a real, successful "Why Columbia" essay example and explain why it works. Finally, we'll suggest potential topics for your essay and offer tips on how to write your own college admissions essays.

The 411 on the "Why Columbia" Essay Prompt

Here's the current "Why Columbia" essay prompt for the 2023-2024 application cycle :

Why are you interested in attending Columbia University? We encourage you to consider the aspect(s) that you find unique and compelling about Columbia. (150 words or fewer)

As you can see, the "Why Columbia" essay prompt asks a specific question: why do you want to attend Columbia University over any other school?

The admissions committee wants to see that you are genuinely interested in attending Columbia specifically and that you value it more than all other colleges out there.

As an applicant, you might be thinking that everyone applies to Columbia for the same reason: it's an Ivy League school and one of the best universities in the world.

The admissions committee knows all these facts about Columbia and knows that all applicants will know these facts, too.

What the Columbia admissions committee wants to learn is why you specifically want to go to Columbia rather than another amazing university.

From their perspective, students who really want to go to Columbia are more likely to enroll when they're accepted. This increases the university's yield rate and ensures that the freshman class will be full. If you can show in your essay that you’ve carefully considered the unique things about Columbia that make it the perfect school for you, you’ve got a good shot at getting an acceptance letter!

What Is the Purpose of the "Why Columbia" Essay?

Why does Columbia require applicants to answer this essay question? And what is the admissions committee really looking for in your answer? Let's analyze the "Why Columbia" essay prompt.

No matter which schools you're applying to, "Why This College" essays are perhaps the most common essay prompts you'll find on college applications because colleges want to see that you really want to attend their school.

But why exactly do colleges care that you want to go to their school?

Students who are passionate about their college or university are more likely to feel that the school is a good fit for them. They'll be more likely to commit to their studies, participate in on-campus activities, and become an active alum after graduation.

Therefore, if you show in your essay that you really love Columbia, it will make admissions officers feel more confident that you're going to have a significant and positive impact on their school.

If your reasons for attending Columbia are vague or even plain wrong (for instance, say you claim you'd like to take a major that isn't actually offered at Columbia), the admissions committee will think that you don't care about the school and aren't really interested in it.

Basically, the purpose of the essay is to suss out whether your interest in Columbia is genuine and to see whether you're ready to take advantage of Columbia's many opportunities.

What Should You Write About in Your "Why Columbia" Essay?

There are a number of different topics you can pursue for your "Why Columbia" essay. Ideally, you'll want to explore specific topics that you can talk about in-depth.

Here are some suggested topics for your essay:

• Majors or classes you're interested in (look for class names in the online course catalog)
• Professors whose research you're interested in
• Extracurriculars that you'd be interested in joining (you can likely find these online, too)
• Current and past Columbia students you've met before and whom you admire
• Volunteer opportunities  you'd like to get involved in 
• Financial aid opportunities Columbia offers that make it possible for you to attend
• Professional development opportunities Columbia offers

When it comes down to it, make sure to choose something about Columbia that no other school offers.

For instance, Columbia is in New York City and therefore has relationships with lots of businesses and organizations in the area. You could use your essay to examine how these Columbia-specific opportunities in New York will positively affect your education.

What you don't want to do, however, is wax on about how you love city-living— you need to make sure to describe how Columbia's specific relationship with NYC will help you to further your goals.

Match opportunities at Columbia to specific goals you have. For example, you could talk about how a particular professor's course aligns with your career objectives.

You need to be very specific in your answer: every single thing you say should relate back to a certain feature of Columbia. The entire focus of your essay should be what Columbia offers and how you'll take advantage of the school's academics and activities to get the best college education possible.

4 Tips for a Great Response to the "Why Columbia" Essay

Regardless of how you decide to answer this prompt, there are four tips everyone should keep in mind to ensure that they are fully answering the question, giving the information Columbia wants to see, and standing apart from other applicants.

#1: Do Your Research

Before you begin writing your response to this essay prompt, you should know exactly why you want to attend Columbia University. There are multiple ways you can do this research:

• Visit the school website or browse the list of departments, programs, and courses
• Check out the school newspaper, schedule a campus visit (virtual or in-person!), or set up a meeting with an alum, current student, or professor to get a feel for the campus

Every college campus has its own vibe, and visiting is the best way to get a sense of how Columbia might work with your personality as a student.

#2: Be Specific

From your research, you should have come up with specific reasons why Columbia is a great school for you. The more specific you can be when answering this prompt, the better.

Don't say Columbia has great academics, caring professors, and an interesting student body. The vast majority of schools have that!

Instead, try to mention opportunities only Columbia can provide, such as specific professors, courses, extracurricular activities, or research opportunities.

The things you discuss should be things your other top schools don't offer—things that really make Columbia stand out.

#3: Show Your Passion

Columbia wants students who care a lot about their studies and their school, so be sure this comes across in your response.

A bland statement such as "I am impressed by Columbia's strong engineering program" doesn't tell the school anything about you or help you stand apart from other applicants. Show your passion by naming specific professors or features of the program.

You've done your research to mention certain qualities Columbia has that have enticed you, and now it's time to discuss specific qualities about yourself, too. Why does the engineering program make you so excited? What do you want to get out of it? Be detailed, specific, and honest.

#4: Proofread

Your Columbia essay should be the strongest possible example of your writing skills. Before you turn in your application, take time to edit and proofread your essays.

Your work should be free of spelling and grammar errors. Make sure to run your essays through a spelling and grammar check before you submit.

It's a good idea to have someone else read your "Why Columbia" essay, too. You can seek a second opinion on your work from a parent, teacher, or friend.

Ask them whether your work represents you as a student and person. Have them check and make sure that you haven't missed any small writing errors. Having a second opinion will help your work be the best it can be.

Here's a little taste of what a good "Why Columbia" essay looks like.

"Why Columbia" Essay Example

If you're stuck on what to write for your own essay, looking at "Why Columbia" essays that actually worked can be helpful. Below, we examine one "Why Columbia" essay that got a student accepted to Columbia and talk about what specifically made this piece of writing so strong.

The following essay comes to us from an accepted Columbia 2020 student via AP Study Notes :

At a college visit this year, I met a Columbia alumnus named Ayushi, whose stories helped me develop a thorough understanding of Columbia. Ayushi told me that Columbia funded both her summer trip to Syria to interview refugees and her seed money for a start-up she launched. As an aspiring entrepreneur, I'm impressed by a university that encourages students to pursue their own independent creations instead of simply offering the option to work on faculty projects. Columbia's four entrepreneurship organizations, among them the Columbia Organization of Rising Entrepreneurs, provide a dynamic start-up community for me to launch my own business.

In addition, when I explored Columbia online, the emphasis put on interdisciplinary studies particularly excited me. The Columbia Engineering website is rich with stories of engineering students who are also involved in Shakespeare troupes, service projects, and multicultural groups. In my opinion, diverse experiences are the foundation of creative thinking. At Columbia, I will continue to diversify my experience by not just joining the Parliamentary Debate Team, but also by making new friends on the intramural soccer field and starting a cultural club for Italian heritage students who wish to learn more about Italian history, language, food, and current events.

Columbia Engineering stands uniquely apart from other programs by incorporating several in-depth humanities and writing classes into the graduation requirements. I believe that looking at critical issues with an open mind and sophisticated grasp of the humanities is extremely important to being an engineer. For example, I could not imagine exploring the future of quantum cryptography without considering the political ripple effects of Edward Snowden, the moral ramifications of the quantum encryption revolution, and the relationship between technology and income inequality. I am confident that I will thrive in the Columbia culture of passionate engagement and vibrant, energetic conversation.

Why does this essay work?

It answers the prompt specifically.

This essay gives examples of personal experience with the school and proves that the applicant did their research: they present clear evidence as to how engineering students are involved on campus and talk about specific academic courses.

There are many impressive details in this essay, and the section that addresses extracurriculars is cleverly written to showcase the applicant's diverse interests. This student's mention of certain extracurriculars they want to do indicates that they looked at many facets of Columbia University, not just the engineering department.

It's clear from this essay just how the author views their fit at Columbia. They've talked about specific organizations they would like to be a part of, such as the Columbia Organization of Rising Entrepreneurs, while also showing why they want to join that organization.

Additionally, the applicant mentions a Columbia University student they spoke with, which means they took getting to know the student body seriously and really wanted to find out what Columbia students were like to see whether they, too, would fit in.

The conversation with the Columbia alum also emphasizes the applicant's initiative: they're willing to go above and beyond to learn about the school.

Conclusion: Writing a Great "Why Columbia" Essay

The purpose of the "Why Columbia" essay is for you to prove to the admissions committee that Columbia is the best school for you

In your essay, you could write about multiple topics that are specific to Columbia, such as academics, the student body, extracurriculars, and research opportunities.

When writing your "Why Columbia" essay, make sure to research the school extensively and be specific about activities and opportunities that really make you want to attend.

If you're stuck on how to proceed, analyzing a successful "Why Columbia" essay example might help you get inspiration for what to write.

What's Next?

How tough is it to get into Columbia? For answers, read our expert guide on how to get into Columbia and the Ivy League , written by a Harvard alum!

Should you apply early or regular decision to college? Find out the pros and cons of early decision .

Want to see some more college essay examples? We have links to 100+ great college essays that includes our expert analysis on how you can write a stand-out essay of your own.

Hayley Milliman is a former teacher turned writer who blogs about education, history, and technology. When she was a teacher, Hayley's students regularly scored in the 99th percentile thanks to her passion for making topics digestible and accessible. In addition to her work for PrepScholar, Hayley is the author of Museum Hack's Guide to History's Fiercest Females.

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Columbia Law School Law School Application Essays

These Columbia Law School college application essays were written by students accepted at Columbia Law School. All of our sample college essays include the question prompt and the year written. Please use these sample admission essays responsibly.

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College Application Essays accepted by Columbia Law School

Diversity lessons laura stafford, columbia law school.

In the past, whenever I have been confronted with a question on an application asking about “contributions of your cultural or ethnic background”, I have always thought that such essay prompts were not written for me. Such topics, I facilely...

The Third Tunnel Yoon K Choi

Recently, I found myself seventy-two meters underground, in a North Korean invasion tunnel discovered not fifty kilometers from Seoul. The tunnel is wide enough for ten thousand armed soldiers to pass through in an hour, but not so high that...

Recent Questions about Columbia Law School

The Question and Answer section for Columbia Law School is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Identify and explain the figures of speech in the first to stanzas. What impression does each create? How is the mood established enforced by the rest of the poem ?

Most all of your questions have been labeled "The Battle" by Simpson but have related to other works. Are you sure of your title for this question?

What is the significance to Laura? Why is the unicorn single out? What are its symbolic implications?

Laura admits that the unicorn is her favorite glass animal. She singles the unicorn out because its horn makes it different. This is symbolic because she sees the unicorn as being similar in this way to herself. They are both different.

what is the difference between the lessons from nature learnt by duke senior and those learnt by jaques

http://www.gradesaver.com/as-you-like-it/q-and-a/give-the-difference-between-the-lessons-from-nature-learnt-by-duke-senior-and-those-learnt-by-jacques-64035/

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The Reddit Law School Admissions Forum. The best place on Reddit for admissions advice. Check out the sidebar for intro guides. Post any questions you have, there are lots of redditors with admissions knowledge waiting to help.

Why Columbia

There seems to be common wisdom on this reddit that the T6 law schools don't need Why X essays. When looking at Columbia's FAQ page a second ago, I stumbled upon this:

*"* Can I submit an addendum or additional written materials along with my application?

Yes. The Admissions Committee believes that candidates should be able to expand upon aspects of their candidacy that are otherwise not represented in the required materials. Some examples include diversity statements, statements of strong interest in Columbia Law School, explanations of undergraduate and/or LSAT/GRE performance, etc. We strongly suggest that applicants use their best judgment, in terms of content and length, when considering the submission of supplemental materials."

I was surprised to see Columbia list a "statement of strong interest." This is making me reconsider my decision not to write a Why Columbia. Anyone have any thoughts on this?

Columbia Law School: How to Get In

Wondering how to get into Columbia law school? You're not the only one. Columbia is not only one of the most famous I vy league schools in the world, but it is also home to a world-renowned program at the top of law school rankings . With a reputation of that magnitude comes a lot of competition for admission. If you want to attend Columbia law school, you need to know what the school is looking for and ensure that your application is competitive. In this blog, we will go over how you can do that. We'll also discuss Columbia's admissions statistics, requirements, tuition, and everything else you need to know to get into Columbia.

>> Want us to help you get accepted? Schedule a free strategy call here . <<

Article Contents 9 min read

Available programs.

Columbia Law School offers several degree options. Starting with the Juris Doctor (JD) program, which is the traditional degree associated with going to law school in the US, and the one we will be focusing on in this article. However, In addition to the JD degree, Columbia offers a one-year Master of Laws (LL.M.), which is recommended for JD graduates looking to specialize in a particular area of the law, and an ambitious Executive LL.M program for business executives. This intensive program only lasts six months and is designed to provide its graduates with a foundational understanding of U.S. corporate law. Columbia also offers the Doctor of the Science of Law (JSD) degree, which prepares students for careers in legal scholarship. Additionally, Columbia Law School offers students ten joint or dual degree programs, including the popular J.D./M.B.A. program which is offered in conjunction with Columbia Business School.

Columbia Law School’s JD program is world-renowned for a reason. Much like Columbia’s undergraduate curriculum, the JD program is designed to give students a strong foundation during their first year and then build on it during the rest of their time at Columbia law school. The aim is to ensure that Columbia Law School students graduate with the tools and experiences needed to successfully practice law in today’s fast-paced, globalized society.

It is a three-year, full-time program that provides its students with the opportunity to work with top-tier scholars and practitioners to tackle real-world challenges, using creative combinations of data science, litigation and advocacy. Students are required to participate in a broad range of clinics, externships, simulations, policy labs, moot courts, and other public service opportunities so that they can get an insider’s view into how the law operates in practical settings. Additionally, Columbia law school students are taught to think critically about the law and its impact on individual lives, judicial institutions, and international affairs.

During the upper-class years, students get to choose one of the fourteen different areas of study to focus on. Each area of study involves learning experiences inside and outside of the classroom to ensure that students are prepared to work in the private sector, government, public interest, and beyond. These are the areas of study currently being offered:

Social Justice and Human Rights "}]" code="timeline1">

Unclear on how the law school application process typically works? This video is for you:

Admission Statistics

Acceptance rate: 11.3% Accepted

Columbia law school is consistently ranked among the top law schools in the United States, so it is not surprising to find out that the competition to get in is quite fierce. Last year, the law school's acceptance rate into the JD program was 11.3%. For the admitted students, the median GPA and LSAT scores were 3.84 and 174, respectively. We're not saying that it isn't possible to get into law school with a low GPA . Still, Columbia's latest first-year class profile tells us that if you do not have a strong academic background, you will need to have an outstanding LSAT score, or the rest of your application must be very compelling. If you want to improve your LSAT score, hiring an LSAT tutor or enrolling in an LSAT prep course is a wise idea.

In terms of demographics, Columbia law school’s first-year classes have gotten increasingly diverse over the years. 48% of the most recent group of first-year students was women, 50% were men and 2% were non-binary or gender non-conforming. 45% of the students identify as students of color, 18% identify as members of the LGBTQ community, and 13% of the class is made of international students.

To be eligible for the JD program at Columbia Law School, you must have earned a bachelor's degree from an accredited institution or its equivalent by matriculation. If you did not study in the US or are unsure of your bachelor's degree status, you should consult the Law School Admissions Council (LSAC) as they determine if your degree is equivalent to a bachelor.

Columbia law school does not state a requirement or preference for an applicants' education before law school, and the current class has students who majored in a variety of different fields. The most popular major was political science, followed closely by social sciences. Furthermore, we know that over half of Columbia's entering class was out of college for over a year before applying to law school, and about 11% of the entering students have earned at least one graduate or professional degree. This tells us that although having a graduate degree or professional experience is not required, having one of the two can work in your favor.

The Application Process

Applicants to Columbia law school have two different application methods to choose from. They can apply through the Early Decision method or the Regular Decision method. Early decision candidates have to submit their applications in November, and they typically receive a decision from the admission committee by December. The process is considerably expedited for them. You should only use this option if Columbia is your top choice for law schools, as if successful, you will need to withdraw all pending applications to any other law schools and enroll at Columbia. If you fail to do so, Columbia law school can revoke its offer of admission. The process starts in September for Regular Decision candidates, and the deadline to submit applications is in February. 

The admissions committee does not prefer one application method over the other. However, it’s important to remember that Columbia law school reviews applications on a rolling basis, meaning that you want to submit your application as early as possible. Additionally, Regular Decision applicants who submit their completed application by December 31 receive a decision by March. Those who submit all the materials by the application deadline in February are notified by the end of April.

Both Regular Decision and Early Decision candidates have to submit the following components to be considered for admission: 

Academic transcripts  "}]">

Selection Factors

Columbia law school has a holistic admissions process. The admissions committee looks for students who are "curious and resourceful, committed to excellence, and motivated to effect change and serve as leaders in their fields." In order to find students who fit this bill, the admissions committee assesses the following.

Want to see a summary of what's covered below? Check out this infographic:

Columbia Law School uses your undergraduate transcripts (if applicable, graduate), as well as your Law School Admission Test (LSAT) or Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores to assess this. There is no minimum LSAT/GRE score or GPA requirement, but we recommend aiming for a high score if you want your application to be competitive. That said, Columbia Law School does look at more than just the numbers. The admissions committee also considers applicants' entire transcripts to try and identify trends in performance and other factors that could help them figure out if the applicant would do well at Columbia Law School. 

Your resume

The admissions committee focuses on applicants' resumes because they are essentially a snapshot of your academic and professional background. It tells the admissions committee how you chose to spend your time outside the classroom, what opportunities you took advantage of, and what interests you. Applicants can list their work experience, extracurricular involvement, fellowship opportunities, community service, honors and awards, publications, professional contributions, and more on their resume. You should look at law school resume examples if you're unsure how to create your own resume.

Your writing ability

According to Columbia, evidence of superior writing ability is one of the trademarks of any potential candidate for admission to their Law School. In other words, you need to nail your law school essays. Columbia requires a law school personal statement, and it also allows applicants to submit a law school optional essay.

The personal statement

The Columbia law school personal statement is the mandatory essay that all applicants must submit. It should be two pages long, double-spaced, and written in an 11 or 12 pt font. While there is no specific prompt or question that you are required to answer, the application form encourages applicants to reflect on the contributions they hope to make to the Columbia community and the legal profession while considering their personal, intellectual, and professional background.

The optional essay

Applicants may submit an optional essay such as a law school diversity statement or a law school addendum as part of their application to Columbia law school. You will need to decide what to address in your optional essay based on your background. It is important to remember that this optional essay should provide relevant information that may not have otherwise been conveyed through your other application materials. For example, if your grades suffered due to an external factor in undergrad, you can address that in your addendum. Columbia law school does not have a specific word count or page limit for this essay, so we recommend sticking to the same guidelines that the school provided for the personal statement.

Your recommender’s thoughts

How other professionals view you is important to Columbia law school. Third-party commentary can help the admissions committee figure out if you have the potential to succeed in legal study and the legal profession as a whole. This information is obtained in two main ways. 

First, Columbia law school requires two letters of recommendation. For applicants who are still completing their undergraduate degree or who graduated less than two years ago, those letters need to be written y faculty members. Preferably individuals who taught the applicants in the classroom or evaluated them in a significant academic capacity. On the other hand, applicants who graduated over two years ago or have substantive work experience may submit professional references but having at least one academic letter of recommendation is strongly encouraged. 

You should remember that the most impactful letters of recommendation come from someone who knows you well enough to discuss your skills, abilities, work ethic, and character using specific examples. So, make sure to select writers who have worked with you directly and who support your candidacy for law school. It would be best if you also asked them for a reference in advance so that they have the time to write a compelling letter. 

Additionally, some candidates are called for an interview. Columbia Law school maintains that the interview does not carry any particular weight relative to other application components. Still, your performance during the interview will be a factor in the admission committee’s decision. If you're not sure how to prepare for a law school interview, you are encouraged to start by reviewing common law school interview questions. 

Acceptance and Waitlist

If you apply to Columbia law school using the Early Decision method, you will receive a decision from the admissions board by December. You will either be offered admission, in which case you have to withdraw your application from all other law schools. Or, your application could be deferred, meaning that the admissions committee will revisit it in February with the Regular Decision applicant pool. Lastly, your application could be rejected, and unfortunately, this means that you can't reapply that same year because the JD program only has one intake in the fall of every year.

Regular Decision applicants will start getting responses from the admissions board in late January, and this continues through the end of April. Applicants will either be offered admission, a place on the waiting list, or their application will be rejected altogether. If you are offered a spot on the waiting list, do not despair. Instead, we encourage you to write a letter of continued interest to reiterate that you want to attend Columbia Law school. 

Does your personal statement still need some work? You want to miss these tips:

Tuition and Funding

The table below shows the current yearly cost of tuition for the Columbia Law School JD program. This does not include additional expenses like room and board, food, or books. When you factor in those additional charges, you could be looking at close to $100 000 per academic year.

Columbia Law School offers financial aid on a demonstrated need basis, in the form of a partial tuition waiver. They also provide several fellowships that are not based on financial need. These fellowships are awarded by the admissions office when an applicant is admitted to the Law School. Law school applicants do not need to submit a separate application for these fellowships.

Additionally, eligible Columbia law students may borrow from a variety of loan programs to finance part or all of their educational expenses.

Contact Information

Columbia Law School Website

E-mail: [email protected]

Mailing address: 435 West 116th St.

New York, NY 10027

It’s pretty hard to get into Columbia law. The school has an acceptance rate of approximately 11%, meaning that for every 100 applicants, only 11 get in.

Yes, it does. In fact, 13% of the current first-year class are international students.

Admission to Columbia law school is very competitive. A 3.0 GPA could actually be considered low when you factor in the fact that 50% of the current first-year class have a GPA of 3. Or higher. That said, getting in is not impossible. If you ace the LSAT, and write a compelling addendum essay, you can maximize your chances of admission.

While Columbia law school itself does not have a minimum LSAT score requirement, the median score of the current first-year class is 174 so you will need a similar score or higher to get into Columbia law school.

You don’t need to apply for one separately! When you apply to Columbia law school as a student, the admissions office will review your application and award any internal scholarships that you meet the requirements for. You can contact the financial aid office for additional information on this process.

Yes. Some applicants may be called for an interview by the admissions office. The school is unable to interview all applicants, but not getting an interview will not affect your application negatively.

Columbia law school can cost up to $100 000 per academic year when you factor in living expenses, textbooks and tuition. It is worth noting that most students at Columbia law school are receiving some form of financial aid from the school.

You can improve your chances by making sure you study for the LSAT or GRE, have a high GPA, and give yourself the time to write compelling admission essays and a strong law school resume. If you need some help with these documents, you should consider hiring a law school admissions consultant.

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Columbia Law Review

IN MEMORIAM: JUSTICE RUTH BADER GINSBURG

A series of tributes honoring the life and legacy of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Vol. 124 No. 4

The abortion exception: a response to “abortion and religious liberty”, toward nakba as a legal concept, toward distributed nature: the afforestation easement and a regenerative land ethic.

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Columbia Law Review Refused to Take Down Article on Palestine, So Its Board of Directors Nuked the Whole Website

The students who edit the journal sought out the article by a Palestinian scholar who was censored by Harvard Law Review last year.

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Last November, the Harvard Law Review made the unprecedented decision to kill a fully edited essay prior to publication. The author, human rights lawyer Rabea Eghbariah, was to be the first Palestinian legal scholar published in the prestigious journal. 

As The Intercept reported at the time, Eghbariah’s essay — an argument for establishing “Nakba,” the expulsion, dispossession, and oppression of Palestinians, as a formal legal concept that widens its scope — faced extraordinary editorial scrutiny and eventual censorship. 

When the Harvard publication spiked his article, editors from another Ivy League law school reached out to Eghbariah. Students from the Columbia Law Review solicited a new article from the scholar and, upon receiving it, decided to edit it and prepare it for publication.

Harvard Law Review Editors Vote to Kill Article About Genocide in Gaza

Now, eight months into Israel’s onslaught against Gaza, Eghbariah’s work has once again been stifled — this time by the Columbia Law Review’s board of directors, a group of law school professors and prominent alumni that oversee the students running the review. 

Eghbariah’s paper for the Columbia Law Review, or CLR, was published on its website in the early hours of Monday morning. The journal’s board of directors responded by pulling the entire website offline. The homepage on Monday morning read “Website under maintenance.” 

According to Eghbariah, he worked with editors at the Columbia Law Review for over five months on the 100-plus-page text.

“The attempts to silence legal scholarship on the Nakba by subjecting it to an unusual and discriminatory process are not only reflective of a pervasive and alarming Palestine exception to academic freedom,” Eghbariah told The Intercept, “but are also a testament to a deplorable culture of Nakba denialism.”

Website Takedown

Seven editors who had worked on the article told The Intercept that, over the weekend, members of the board of directors pressured the law review’s leadership to delay and even rescind publication. Most of the CLR editors spoke to The Intercept on the condition of anonymity, fearing the backlash that others have faced for speaking out for Palestine.

Numerous editors stressed that the editorial input had been extensive, and that the text was more widely circulated among a greater number of people than is the case prior to the publication for most CLR articles.

After a back-and-forth with the board and fellow editors, the members of CLR responsible for the Eghbariah article said they feared that the draft had been leaked and decided to preempt outside pressure by publishing the issue online in the early morning hours of June 3. After the editors declined a board of directors request to take down the articles, the board pulled the plug on the entire website.

The CLR board of directors told The Intercept in a statement that there were concerns about “deviation from the Review’s usual processes” and said it had taken the website down to give all CLR members the chance to read the article and that the decision was not a final decision on publication. 

“I don’t suspect that they would have asserted this kind of control had the piece been about Tibet, Kashmir, Puerto Rico, or other contested political sites.”

“We spoke to certain members of the student leadership to ask that they delay publication for a few days so that, at a minimum, the manuscript could be shared with all student editors, to provide them with a chance to read it and respond,” the board said. “Nevertheless, we learned this morning that the manuscript had been made public. In order to provide time for the Law Review to determine how to proceed, we have temporarily suspended its website.”

The apparent intervention by the board of directors surprised some Columbia Law School faculty. 

“I don’t suspect that they would have asserted this kind of control had the piece been about Tibet, Kashmir, Puerto Rico, or other contested political sites,” Katherine Franke, a professor, told The Intercept.

“When Columbia Law Professor Herbert Weschler published his important article questioning the underlying justification for Brown v. Board of Education in 1959 it was regarded by many as blasphemous, but is now regarded as canonical. This is what legal scholarship should do at its best, challenge us to think hard about hard things, even when it is uncomfortable doing so.” 

“Completely Unprecedented”

The article significantly expands on Eghbariah’s argument for Nakba as its own legal concept in international law. The scholarship is aimed at creating a legal framework for the Nakba similar to genocide and apartheid, which were concretized as crimes in response to specific atrocities carried out by Nazi Germany and white minority-ruled South Africa, respectively. 

“The piece fills a conspicuous gap in legal literature with doctrinal, historical, and moral clarity,” said Margaret Hassel, Columbia Law Review’s previous editor in chief until last February. “I am tremendously proud of the work, care, and thought that Eghbariah and the Review’s editors have poured into the piece.”

“I was just sick to my stomach and disgusted that, once again, this was happening.”

The Columbia Law Review is a separate nonprofit from Columbia University, but the editors are Columbia Law students and its oversight includes law school faculty. The board of directors consists of established faculty members and eminent alumni of the law school. Among the most well-known of the board members are Columbia Law School Dean Gillian Lester; Columbia law professor Gillian Metzger, who also serves in the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel; and Department of Justice senior counsel Lewis Yelin.

Board interventions in editorial content are, the editors said, extremely rare. (The board of directors did not immediately respond to a request for comment on how often it gets involved in editorial processes.)

All of the law review editors who spoke to The Intercept said that Eghbariah’s text went through an extensive editorial process, with extra caution taken due to concerns over potential backlash. 

“I was just sick to my stomach and disgusted that, once again, this was happening, seven months later after Harvard had just gone through that debacle,” said Erika Lopez, a CLR editor and its diversity, equity, and inclusion chair.

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Members of CLR’s production team told The Intercept that the board of directors reached out in recent days, pressuring editors to delay the publication of Eghbariah’s piece. According to the students, Metzger and former Assistant to the U.S. Solicitor General Ginger Anders, another alumnus, called Sunday requesting that the piece first be reviewed by the 100-plus members of CLR. The board members told editors they had been made aware that the paper had not gone through appropriate procedures.

The students who spoke with The Intercept said that in their time at CLR, they had never received a request from the board to distribute the text of an article to the entire membership of the review — nor had they heard of the board being aware of an article’s text before publication.

A procedure was in place, said the CLR staffers, and it was followed. 

“What we were doing had precedent in processes used in the past,” said Jamie Jenkins, a CLR editor who helped shepherd the piece toward publication. “Distributing the piece to the entirety of law review was completely unprecedented.”

No Palestinians

Lopez initially proposed soliciting a piece on Palestine in the context of human rights law in October.

“I remember searching Columbia Law Review’s website in October, and there’s only one other mention of the word Palestine in the entire online existence,” said Lopez — in a footnote from 2015. As would have been the case with the Harvard Law Review, Eghbariah is the first Palestinian scholar to publish in the Columbia Law Review. 

“Every single piece that we publish goes through an incredibly, incredibly rigorous publication process.”

A large majority of the administrative board — the student editors in charge of the publication process — took part in a vote, and voted unanimously 23-0 to create a committee for pursuing a piece on Israel–Palestine. A smaller, voluntary committee of 11 editors proceeded to select and then shepherd Eghbariah’s piece. While editors are typically selected and assigned pieces at random, the process in this case allowed for volunteer-based involvement, given the fraught nature of the subject matter. Some 30 members of the review ended up working on the piece throughout its production, editors said.

“Every single piece that we publish goes through an incredibly, incredibly rigorous publication process. We just have high publication standards,” said Jenkins, who noted the piece was given even more scrutiny because of the fraught subject matter. “So there was some additional work put into it, but in general, it was the same steps of production.”

The editors involved were concerned about leaks, they said, which could have put the editorial process at risk. Drafts of the piece were, for example, only available on a drive shared between the opt-in committee directly working on it, rather than all editors.

Once notified that the issue would be posted online, Metzger and Anders urged the students to not just delay publication, but also to send Eghbariah’s essay — though not the other six slated articles — to the rest of the law review. Editorial leadership initially heeded their demand, choosing to delay publishing of the May issue until June 7, and sending the entire masthead a draft of Eghbariah’s essay. 

Shortly thereafter, editorial leaders followed up again with the board, notifying the directors there was reason to believe the piece had indeed been leaked beyond CLR members. Editors told The Intercept that members of the law review had reached out to inform them that they had been speaking with professors and mentors about the article. Several said they had been told to resign as editors. A former member of the board of directors also reached out to a member of the production team requesting that his name be removed from the masthead.

In response to word of these leaks, the editors working on the piece decided to proceed with publication on June 3, at roughly 2:30 a.m.

Following the piece’s publication, the directors reached out to the editors again, according to a CLR editor, requesting the entire May edition to be taken down. Editorial leadership refused. Shortly thereafter, the entire CLR website was down — and remains that way as this article went to publication.

Rashid Khalidi , the celebrated Palestinian American professor of history at Columbia, who is on Eghbariah’s dissertation committee for his doctorate from Harvard Law School, said that Eghbariah “provides an entirely original and very intelligent analysis of a bunch of aspects of the legal system in Israel, which I think should be welcomed by any open-minded person in the legal profession.”

Not Just Coastal Elites: Here’s How Three Rust Belt Colleges Protested Israel’s War in Gaza

Both Eghbariah and numerous editors at the review remain committed to the importance of the legal scholarship in question. The author, who has tried landmark Palestinian civil rights cases before the Israeli Supreme Court, noted that in its current case charging Israel with genocide at the International Court of Justice, South Africa’s legal team referred to the Palestinian “ ongoing Nakba ” as the context for the current genocide case. 

“What we need to do is to acknowledge the Nakba as its own independent framework that intersects and overlaps with genocide and apartheid,” Eghbariah told The Intercept, while adding that the Nakba also “stands as a distinct framework that can be understood as its own crime with a distinctive historical analytical foundation structure and purpose.” 

Correction: June 4, 2024 This story has been updated to reflect that the unanimous vote by members of the administrative board was to form a committee to pursue a piece on Israel–Palestine, not to publish a piece.

Contact the author:

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Columbia Law Review Website Pulled Offline Over Essay by Palestinian

The Columbia Law Review website has been taken offline after an article by a Palestinian human rights lawyer was published there. As of this writing, the website URL leads to a page reading simply, "Website is under maintenance." The university's law review is, per the New York Times , "one of the United States' most prestigious student-edited law journals." Typically, its board of directors—consisting of alumni and faculty members—stays out of editorial matters, but in this case, it was the board that pulled the website for the 123-year-old journal offline. The Intercept spoke to multiple editors at the law review and has an extensive look at the timeline.

• The beginning: The genesis of the issue dates back to November, when the Harvard Law Review censored an essay by Rabea Eghbariah, who would have been the first Palestinian legal scholar published in the journal. Eghbariah's article, per the Intercept, was "an argument for establishing 'Nakba,' the expulsion, dispossession, and oppression of Palestinians, as a formal legal concept that widens its scope." It was fully edited, but killed by the Harvard Law Review before it was published.
• Columbia's involvement: The Columbia Law Review then reached out to Eghbariah asking for a new article, which Eghbariah says he and editors worked on for more than five months. Editors say that despite a much more extensive than normal editorial process, the board pressured them to delay publication of the essay. A letter from the board to the editorial staff accused staffers of handling the essay's publication with an "unacceptable" and unusual amount of secrecy.
• The publication and backlash: Amid discussions with the board, editors became concerned the essay had been leaked, so they published it online Monday. Board members asked them to take it down, they refused, and the entire website was then pulled. The board claims in a statement that not every student on the law review read the essay before it was published, and that editors refused to delay its publication to Friday so that more people could read it first. It says the temporary yanking of the website will give the law review "time ... to determine how to proceed."
• A quote from the essay: In the essay, Eghbariah accuses Israel of crimes against humanity, arguing that Palestinians are living under a "brutally sophisticated structure of oppression." Per the Intercept, the essay "significantly expands on Eghbariah's argument for Nakba as its own legal concept in international law" in a manner "similar to genocide and apartheid, which were concretized as crimes in response to specific atrocities carried out by Nazi Germany and white minority-ruled South Africa, respectively."

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Columbia Law Review Website Is Taken Offline Over Article Criticizing Israel

The board of directors of the student-run publication said that the article, by a Palestinian human rights lawyer, had not been subject to sufficient review.

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By Sharon Otterman

The website of the Columbia Law Review, one of the United States’ most prestigious student-edited law journals, was taken offline Monday by its board of directors after its editors published an article that argues Palestinians are living under a “brutally sophisticated structure of oppression” by Israel that amounts to a crime against humanity.

As of Tuesday evening, visitors to the website of the 123-year-old journal saw only a blank page with the message “Website is under maintenance.”

The decision to suspend access to the website is the latest example of how American universities have sought to regulate expression that is highly critical of Israel amid concerns that it veers into antisemitism. That, in turn, has spurred complaints about censorship and academic freedom when it comes to Palestinian scholarship.

In a statement, the board of directors , which consists of faculty members and alumni, said it had decided to suspend the website on Monday after learning two days earlier that not all of the students on the Law Review had read the essay before publication.

The board said that it had asked the editors to hold the article until June 7, to give others time to read it but that they had published it on Monday instead. The board then decided to take the website down temporarily “to provide time for the Law Review to determine how to proceed.”

In a letter Tuesday to the editorial staff that was provided to The New York Times, the board charged that the article had been handled with unusual secrecy, calling that “unacceptable.”

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After publishing an article critical of Israel, Columbia Law Review’s website is shut down by board

FILE - A student protester parades a Palestinian flag outside the entrance to Hamilton Hall on the campus of Columbia University, Tuesday, April 30, 2024, in New York. The student-run legal journal, Columbia Law Review, was taken offline Monday, June 3, 2024, after its board of directors objected to the publication of an article that accused Israel of genocide. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, Pool, File)

FILE - Protesters demonstrate against the war in Gaza outside the entrance to the campus of Columbia University, Tuesday, April 30, 2024, in New York. The student-run legal journal, Columbia Law Review, was taken offline Monday, June 3, 2024, after its board of directors objected to the publication of an article that accused Israel of genocide. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)

FILE - Police stand guard as demonstrators chant slogans outside the Columbia University campus, on April 18, 2024, in New York. The student-run legal journal, Columbia Law Review, was taken offline Monday, June 3, 2024, after its board of directors objected to the publication of an article that accused Israel of genocide. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)

FILE - Student protesters camp on the campus of Columbia University, Tuesday, April 30, 2024, in New York. The student-run legal journal, Columbia Law Review, was taken offline Monday, June 3, 2024, after its board of directors objected to the publication of an article that accused Israel of genocide. (Pool Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)

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NEW YORK (AP) — Student editors at the Columbia Law Review say they were pressured by the journal’s board of directors to halt publication of an academic article written by a Palestinian human rights lawyer that accuses Israel of committing genocide in Gaza and upholding an apartheid regime.

When the editors refused the request and published the piece Monday morning, the board — made up of faculty and alumni from Columbia University’s law school — shut down the law review’s website entirely. It remained offline Tuesday evening, a static homepage informing visitors the domain “is under maintenance.”

The episode at one of the country’s oldest and most prestigious legal journals marks the latest flashpoint in an ongoing debate about academic speech that has deeply divided students, staff and college administrators since the start of the Israel-Hamas war.

Several editors at the Columbia Law Review described the board’s intervention as an unprecedented breach of editorial independence at the periodical, which is run by students at Columbia Law School. The board of directors oversees the nonprofit’s finances but has historically played no role in selecting pieces.

In a letter sent to student editors Tuesday and shared with The Associated Press, the board of directors said it was concerned that the article, titled “Nakba as a Legal Concept,” had not gone through the “usual processes of review or selection for articles at the Law Review, and in particular that a number of student editors had been unaware of its existence.”

“In order to preserve the status quo and provide student editors some window of opportunity to review the piece, as well as provide time for the Law Review to determine how to proceed, we temporarily suspended the website,” the letter continued.

Those involved in soliciting and editing the piece said they had followed a rigorous review process, even as they acknowledged taking steps to forestall expected blowback by limiting the number of students aware of the article.

In the piece, Rabea Eghbariah, a Harvard doctoral candidate, accuses Israel of a litany of “crimes against humanity,” arguing for a new legal framework to “encapsulate the ongoing structure of subjugation in Palestine and derive a legal formulation of the Palestinian condition.”

Eghbariah said in a text message that the suspension of the law journal’s website should be seen as “a microcosm of a broader authoritarian repression taking place across U.S. campuses.”

Editors said they voted overwhelmingly in December to commission a piece on Palestinian legal issues, then formed a smaller committee — open to all of the publication’s editorial leadership — that ultimately accepted Eghbariah’s article. He had submitted an earlier version of the article to the Harvard Law Review, which the publication later elected not to publish amid internal backlash, according to a report in The Intercept .

Anticipating similar controversy and worried about a leak of the draft, the committee of editors working on the article did not upload it to a server that is visible to the broader membership of the law journal and to some administrators. The piece was not shared until Sunday with the full staff of the Columbia Law Review — something that editorial staffers said was not uncommon.

“We’ve never circulated a particular article in advance,” said Sohum Pal, an articles editor at the publication. “So the idea that this is all over a process concern is a total lie. It’s very transparently content based.”

In their letter to students, the board of directors said student editors who didn’t work on the piece should have been given an opportunity to read it and raise concerns.

“Whatever your views of this piece, it will clearly be controversial and potentially have an impact on all associated with the Review,” they wrote.

Those involved in the publishing of the article said they heard from a small group of students over the weekend who expressed concerns about threats to their careers and safety if it were to be published.

Some alluded to trucks that circled Columbia and other campuses following Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel, labeling students as antisemites for their past or current affiliation with groups seen as hostile to Israel.

The letter from the board also suggested that a statement be appended to the piece stating the article had not been subject to a standard review process or made available for all student editors to read ahead of time.

Erika Lopez, an editor who worked on the piece, said many students were adamantly opposed to the idea, calling it “completely false to imply that we didn’t follow the standard process.”

She said student editors had spoken regularly since they began receiving pushback from the board on Sunday and remained firmly in support of the piece.

When they learned the website had been shuttered Monday morning, they quickly uploaded Eghbariah’s article to a publicly accessible website . It has since spread widely across social media.

“It’s really ironic that this piece probably got more attention than anything we normally published,” Lopez added, “even after they nuked the website.”

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Columbia law review website shut down by board after students publish article critical of israel.

NEW YORK — Student editors at the Columbia Law Review say they were pressured by the journal’s board of directors to halt publication of an academic article written by a Palestinian human rights lawyer that accuses Israel of committing genocide in Gaza and upholding an apartheid regime.

When the editors refused the request and published the piece Monday morning, the board - made up of faculty and alumni from Columbia University’s law school - shut down the law review’s website entirely. It remained offline Tuesday evening, a static homepage informing visitors the domain “is under maintenance.”

The episode at one of the country’s oldest and most prestigious legal journals marks the latest flashpoint in an ongoing debate about academic speech that has deeply divided students, staff and college administrators since the start of the Israel-Hamas war.

Several editors at the Columbia Law Review described the board’s intervention as an unprecedented breach of editorial independence at the periodical, which is run by students at Columbia Law School. The board of directors oversees the nonprofit’s finances but has historically played no role in selecting pieces.

In a letter sent to student editors Tuesday and shared with The Associated Press, the board of directors said it was concerned that the article, titled “Nakba as a Legal Concept,” had not gone through the “usual processes of review or selection for articles at the Law Review, and in particular that a number of student editors had been unaware of its existence.”

“In order to preserve the status quo and provide student editors some window of opportunity to review the piece, as well as provide time for the Law Review to determine how to proceed, we temporarily suspended the website,” the letter continued.

Those involved in soliciting and editing the piece said they had followed a rigorous review process, even as they acknowledged taking steps to forestall expected blowback by limiting the number of students aware of the article.

In the piece, Rabea Eghbariah, a Harvard doctoral candidate, accuses Israel of a litany of “crimes against humanity,” arguing for a new legal framework to “encapsulate the ongoing structure of subjugation in Palestine and derive a legal formulation of the Palestinian condition.”

Eghbariah said in a text message that the suspension of the law journal’s website should be seen as “a microcosm of a broader authoritarian repression taking place across U.S. campuses.”

Editors said they voted overwhelmingly in December to commission a piece on Palestinian legal issues, then formed a smaller committee - open to all of the publication’s editorial leadership - that ultimately accepted Eghbariah’s article. He had submitted an earlier version of the article to the Harvard Law Review, which the publication later elected not to publish amid internal backlash, according to a report in The Intercept.

Anticipating similar controversy and worried about a leak of the draft, the committee of editors working on the article did not upload it to a server that is visible to the broader membership of the law journal and to some administrators. The piece was not shared until Sunday with the full staff of the Columbia Law Review - something that editorial staffers said was not uncommon.

“We’ve never circulated a particular article in advance,” said Sohum Pal, an articles editor at the publication. “So the idea that this is all over a process concern is a total lie. It’s very transparently content based.”

In their letter to students, the board of directors said student editors who didn’t work on the piece should have been given an opportunity to read it and raise concerns.

“Whatever your views of this piece, it will clearly be controversial and potentially have an impact on all associated with the Review,” they wrote.

Those involved in the publishing of the article said they heard from a small group of students over the weekend who expressed concerns about threats to their careers and safety if it were to be published.

Some alluded to trucks that circled Columbia and other campuses following Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel, labeling students as antisemites for their past or current affiliation with groups seen as hostile to Israel.

The letter from the board also suggested that a statement be appended to the piece stating the article had not been subject to a standard review process or made available for all student editors to read ahead of time.

Erika Lopez, an editor who worked on the piece, said many students were adamantly opposed to the idea, calling it “completely false to imply that we didn’t follow the standard process.”

She said student editors had spoken regularly since they began receiving pushback from the board on Sunday and remained firmly in support of the piece.

When they learned the website had been shuttered Monday morning, they quickly uploaded Eghbariah’s article to a publicly accessible website. It has since spread widely across social media.

“It’s really ironic that this piece probably got more attention than anything we normally published,” Lopez added, “even after they nuked the website.”

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Columbia University to Hire 'Safe Passage Liaison'

“This is the first time a university has negotiated with the students who’ve been pushed off campus by extreme protesters,” Jay Edelson said in an email to Law.com. “And the result we got makes clear what our priorities are: safety for students, and actually encouraging a dialogue rather than aimlessly hurling slogans at one another.”

June 06, 2024 at 03:44 PM

4 minute read

Legal Education

Christine Charnosky

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Columbia University is taking steps to ensure students’ safety on campus following a lawsuit filed during the Gaza war protests in April.

The university has created a new position, a Safe Passage Liaison, to ensure students have access to the university’s Public Safety Escort program.

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• Kontinental Hockey League

Gagarin Cup Preview: Atlant vs. Salavat Yulaev

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Gagarin cup (khl) finals:  atlant moscow oblast vs. salavat yulaev ufa.

Much like the Elitserien Finals, we have a bit of an offense vs. defense match-up in this league Final.  While Ufa let their star top line of Alexander Radulov, Patrick Thoresen and Igor Grigorenko loose on the KHL's Western Conference, Mytischi played a more conservative style, relying on veterans such as former NHLers Jan Bulis, Oleg Petrov, and Jaroslav Obsut.  Just reaching the Finals is a testament to Atlant's disciplined style of play, as they had to knock off much more high profile teams from Yaroslavl and St. Petersburg to do so.  But while they did finish 8th in the league in points, they haven't seen the likes of Ufa, who finished 2nd. 

This series will be a challenge for the underdog, because unlike some of the other KHL teams, Ufa's top players are generally younger and in their prime.  Only Proshkin amongst regular blueliners is over 30, with the work being shared by Kirill Koltsov (28), Andrei Kuteikin (26), Miroslav Blatak (28), Maxim Kondratiev (28) and Dmitri Kalinin (30).  Oleg Tverdovsky hasn't played a lot in the playoffs to date.  Up front, while led by a fairly young top line (24-27), Ufa does have a lot of veterans in support roles:  Vyacheslav Kozlov , Viktor Kozlov , Vladimir Antipov, Sergei Zinovyev and Petr Schastlivy are all over 30.  In fact, the names of all their forwards are familiar to international and NHL fans:  Robert Nilsson , Alexander Svitov, Oleg Saprykin and Jakub Klepis round out the group, all former NHL players.

For Atlant, their veteran roster, with only one of their top six D under the age of 30 (and no top forwards under 30, either), this might be their one shot at a championship.  The team has never won either a Russian Superleague title or the Gagarin Cup, and for players like former NHLer Oleg Petrov, this is probably the last shot at the KHL's top prize.  The team got three extra days rest by winning their Conference Final in six games, and they probably needed to use it.  Atlant does have younger regulars on their roster, but they generally only play a few shifts per game, if that. 

The low event style of game for Atlant probably suits them well, but I don't know how they can manage to keep up against Ufa's speed, skill, and depth.  There is no advantage to be seen in goal, with Erik Ersberg and Konstantin Barulin posting almost identical numbers, and even in terms of recent playoff experience Ufa has them beat.  Luckily for Atlant, Ufa isn't that far away from the Moscow region, so travel shouldn't play a major role. 

I'm predicting that Ufa, winners of the last Superleague title back in 2008, will become the second team to win the Gagarin Cup, and will prevail in five games.  They have a seriously well built team that would honestly compete in the NHL.  They represent the potential of the league, while Atlant represents closer to the reality, as a team full of players who played themselves out of the NHL. 

• Atlant @ Ufa, Friday Apr 8 (3:00 PM CET/10:00 PM EST)
• Atlant @ Ufa, Sunday Apr 10 (1:00 PM CET/8:00 AM EST)
• Ufa @ Atlant, Tuesday Apr 12 (5:30 PM CET/12:30 PM EST)
• Ufa @ Atlant, Thursday Apr 14 (5:30 PM CET/12:30 PM EST)

Games 5-7 are as yet unscheduled, but every second day is the KHL standard, so expect Game 5 to be on Saturday, like an early start. 

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