This started because we kept hearing, “You need to be a good writer to go to law school.” But what does that actually mean? I, Jackson, take a lot of inspiration from people like Scott Galloway – he’s incredibly transparent about the fact that writing doesn’t come easily, and that becoming a “good writer” takes real time and repetition. His answer to the question is simple: start. Just write, and let what you have to say take over. The first step is getting something down – the sauce is all in the edit. That mindset stuck with me, and this project became my way of putting it into action.

The Precedent isn’t tied to a strict posting schedule. It’s a space to explore legal stories that catch the writer’s interest – stories worth slowing down for, unpacking, and trying to explain clearly. It’s a way to develop the habit of reading the news closely, thinking about why it matters, and translating all that into writing that feels accessible and informed.

A big part of this project has also been the process of building the site itself. I didn’t have any experience with web design going in, but creating something from scratch, visually and structurally, has been a surprisingly rewarding challenge. In the same way that writing sharpens your thinking, designing a space for your writing makes you more intentional about how your ideas are presented and shared. Both processes are creative and extremely rewarding. 

And I’m not doing it alone. I invited two of my peers from Longhorn Legal Coalition to join me in launching this project – partly because I thought it would help them, and partly because I wanted to create something collaborative from the start. We’re figuring it out together: how to choose stories, how to edit each other’s work, how to take ownership of a process we’ve never been formally trained in. My hope is that as The Precedent grows, it’ll keep expanding as a space where other students can get that same experience – whether it’s their first time writing about the law or just another way to keep sharpening their voice.

This whole process is a work in progress, but I hope it reflects our creativity and desire to learn.