Kathleen Dillon Narko
Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
I am a Clinical Professor of Law at Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law, where I have been teaching legal writing since 1999. My legal writing columns are featured in the Chicago Bar Association’s flagship publication, the *CBA Record*. Over the years, I have taught a range of legal writing courses, including Communication and Legal Reasoning for first-year JD students, Common Law Reasoning for international LLM students, and Advanced Legal Writing for upper-level law students.
I have had the opportunity to present at national legal writing conferences hosted by the Legal Writing Institute and the Association of Legal Writing Directors, two leading academic organizations in the field. I also serve as a speaker and writing coach, training judges, judicial clerks, government attorneys, and practicing lawyers. Since 2002, I have presented an Advanced Legal Writing seminar annually at the Chicago Bar Association, which remains one of the most popular and highly rated Continuing Legal Education programs in the association’s history. Additionally, I was one of five individuals selected to present in the American Bar Association’s Law Library of Congress program on legal writing, with my presentation preserved in the Law Library of Congress collection.
Before transitioning to academia, I worked in litigation at an international law firm based in Chicago. During my time there, I became known for my writing skills and served as the primary author of briefs submitted to state and federal courts. I also gained trial experience in both state and federal courts and have maintained strong connections with the practicing legal community. My teaching is deeply informed by my practical experience as a litigator.
I earned my J.D. from Cornell University, where I served as an articles editor for the *Cornell International Law Journal*. I graduated cum laude with a B.A. from Yale University.
- Legal Research
- Legal Writing
- Zoom
- Illinois
- Supreme Court of Illinois
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- English: Spoken, Written
- Clinical Professor of Law
- Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
- - Current
- Principal
- Independent Legal Writing Consultant and Trainer
- - Current
- Attorney
- Seyfarth Shaw
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- Cornell Law School
- J.D. (1989)
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- Yale University
- B.A. (1985) | History
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- Honors: cum laude
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- Nominee, Outstanding Professor of a Small Class
- Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
- Fellows of ADA 25 Advancing Leadership
- ADA 25 Advancing Leadership
- Nominee, Outstanding First Year Professor
- Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
- Dean’s Teaching Award Honorable Mention
- Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
- Dean’s Teaching Award Honorable Mention
- Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
- National Immigrant Justice Center
- Leadership Board
- Current
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- Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago
- Board of Advisors
- Current
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- ADA 25 Advancing Leadership
- Member
- - Current
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- Chicagoland Business Leadership Network
- Advisory Committee
- - Current
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- Everyone Has a Story: Using Storytelling to Engage Your Reader
- CBA Record
- AI Benchmark: Thoughts on Generative AI and Legal Writing
- CBA Record
- Keep It Together: Clear Writing Follows Subject-Verb-Object Order
- CBA Record
- Local Chicago Favorites: “Our” Kind of Town!
- CBA Record
- Plain Language Pays: The Second Edition
- CBA Record
- The Power of Plain Language: Say Less, Win More (Part 2), Justia Webinars
- Justia
- The Power of Plain Language: Say Less, Win More (Part 1), Justia Webinars
- Justia
- Persuading Your Audience with Clear and Concise Writing
- Chicago Bar Association, Litigation Committee
- Plain Language: Writing Clearly and Concisely for Everyone, Illinois Judicial Conference
- Advanced Legal Writing
- Chicago Bar Association
Advanced Legal Writing: Communicate Effectively with Plain Language, Part 2 (Preview)
