Words matter.I have spent my career using the power of storytelling to advocate, entertain, and teach.
Long before deciding to write my first novel,I built my professional career around my fascination with the written word. In law school,I was as articles editor for the University of Louisville Journal of Law and Education. Then, my first year out of law school, I became a regular writer for Ms. JD.org, a national community devoted to the voices and professional development of women in the law. My column, Savvy Shopper-At-Law was the most read column in 2009. I later served on the board of directors as the very first chairperson of Writers in Residence program. I have also partnered with MothersEsquire and Above the Law, as part of their series on balancing practice and motherhood. My personal narrative, “The Toddler Tango: Managing Childcare with a High Volume Legal Practice” was published in October 2019. I am also published in professional journals across the country on various topics, including trial wardrobe, work-life integration, litigation, and federal court practice.
I am also a teacher at heart. Early in my career, I taught criminal procedure courses at a local community college. I have also taught continuing legal education courses all over the country in the areas of trucking litigation, personal injury law, and law office management.
I have a B.A. in Management from Marshall University, and I received my Juris Doctorate from the University of Louisville. I moved to Columbus, Ohio in 2007, and I completed the final year at The Ohio State University. I am a former Mrs. Ohio America, and I placed top 15 and Mrs. America 2016.
I took a break from full-time practice in 2023 to spend time with my three children and write my first novel. When I’m not working, coaching, or writing, I’m chauffeuring my kids — while listening audio books, of course! I now run a boutique labor and employment law firm, with my husband.
ABout me
Speaking and Publications
Fundamental Law Office Management – Getaway CLE New Lawyer Training, 2023
Being the Superhero of Soft Tissue Injuries: Using Trucking Industry Knowledge to Maximize Value - Ohio Association for Justice 2021 Spring Convention
Is Covid-19 the End of the Work-Life Balance Myth? - Ohio Association for Justice Quarterly, July 2020
Entrepreneurship and Law Office Management – MyLawCLE.com, Miami, Fl, 2020
Broker-Shipper Liability and the Savage Rule – Colorado Trial Lawyers Association Ferrer & Trucking Seminar, Denver, Colorado October 2019
The Toddler Tango: Managing Childcare With a High-Volume Practice, Above the Law, https://abovethelaw.com/2019/10/the-toddler-tango-managing-childcare-with-a-high-volume-practice/
Practical Tips for Finding and Preserving Evidence in Trucking Cases – Ohio Association for Justice Quarterly October 2019
Broker Shipper Liability and the Savage Rule –Colorado Trial Lawyers Association Ferrer & Trucking Seminar, Denver Colorado
Fashion Forward: Has Women’s Professional Attire Really Changed?– Ohio Association for Justice Quarterly, April 2019
The Truck Driver as a Plaintiff – Ohio Association for Justice Trucking Safety CLE 2018
Fundamental Law Office Management – Getaway CLE New Lawyer Training, 2018, 2019
Basic Personal Injury Law – Getaway CLE New Lawyer Training, 2018, 2019
Removal to Federal Court: How to Identify, How to Attack, and How to Remand, Ohio Association for Justice Quarterly, April 2014
Preparing a Winning Trial Wardrobe – ABA Tort Trial & Insurance Practice: Trial Techniques Committee Newsletter, Winter 2011
Now Querying:
southern Homestead
83,000 Words, Southern Thriller Noir
Attorney Sutton Stanford drinks to escape. She was sixteen when her sister, Madeline, was discovered floating in the family pond after the infamous annual holiday gala. After the discovery, Sutton left town. She never returned. But when her boss and mentor suffers a heart attack, Sutton is forced home for an important hearing on the twentieth anniversary of Madeline’s death. Emotionally unequipped, Sutton sinks into a vodka and pills-induced spiral, and she makes a series of regrettable decisions.
Sutton attends the estate’s annual gala to confront her estranged mother, Caroline. After a brief altercation, Caroline is found dead. Two deaths. One night. Two decades apart. With such commonality, Madeline’s case is reopened as a potential homicide. Sutton, the only remaining heir, is the prime suspect. Her only allies are the friends she left behind, including her high school rival, a quirky coffee shop owner with a morbid curiosity, and Sutton’s former crush turned town detective.
With their help, Sutton investigates both Madeline’s demise and Caroline’s past. She finds her mother’s old journals (Caroline narrates). They reveal a dark legacy involving abuse, Sutton’s origin, and the town’s most prominent players. As the bodies pile up and timelines intertwine, Sutton questions her memory and how well she actually knew her family. But can she put together the pieces before being charged with murder or becoming the next victim?
