About

JILL BARTON is a law professor and author of three books on legal writing. A former journalist, she has published thousands of news articles for The Associated Press and other news organizations. She currently serves as a professor and the legal writing director at the University of Miami School of Law.

Her latest book, The Supreme Guide to Writing, details her findings in a five-year study of the U.S. Supreme Court and describes a revolution in legal writing, with the justices casting aside formality in favor of approachable language. She previously authored So Ordered: The Writer's Guide for Aspiring Judges, Judicial Clerks, and Interns (Wolters Kluwer 2017). And she co-authored The Handbook for the New Legal Writer (Aspen 2023), a popular law school textbook now in its third edition, that aims to demystify the process of legal writing and inspire beginning and experienced legal writers.

Jill has won awards for her journalism from The Associated Press, Scripps Howard, and New York Times Co., and for her legal writing from the National Association of Women Lawyers. She has worked as an appellate judicial clerk, conducted workshops for regional and national law firms, and presented her work at conferences nationally, becoming a leading voice on the best practices in writing.

She started The Supreme Guide to Writing project in 2017 to find definitive answers to questions on grammar and writing style. She believes everyone can be a great legal writer by finding inspiration from today’s most accomplished lawyers—the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court.