Welcome to Ink & Advocacy, a space where legal writing, mentorship, and career development converge with clarity, purpose, and heart.

When I coach attorneys or law students on legal writing, I often start with one of the most deceptively simple lessons I’ve learned in my career as a litigator: Always consider the audience behind the audience.

Your goal as a legal writer is not just to persuade, but also to guide. You want to make the judge’s path to ruling in your favor as smooth, clear, and effortless as possible. One of the most effective tools for achieving this is the use of a roadmap early in your writing process.

When I started practicing law, I thought being an effective litigator meant sounding like someone else. Tough. Unyielding. Sharp-edged. I assumed that “good lawyering” meant projecting a voice that wasn’t mine.