Patrick Barry

Barry is the author of several books, including Good with Words: Writing and Editing, Notes on Nuance, and The Syntax of Sports. He has also created multiple online courses for the educational platforms Coursera, Michigan Online, and FutureLearn. 

An All-American soccer player in college, Barry earned his law degree from the University of Chicago, where he was a member of the University of Chicago Law Review and won both the Thomas R. Mulroy Prize in Appellate Advocacy and the Ann Barber Watson Prize for Outstanding Service. After law school, Barry completed a PhD in English at the University of Michigan, with a special focus on the theatrical aspects of Supreme Court confirmation hearings. During that time, he worked with other Michigan faculty to create Clinnect, a global network of legal clinics devoted to combatting human trafficking. He then completed a dual clerkship in Las Vegas for the Hon. Jennifer A. Dorsey and the Hon. Andrew P. Gordon on the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada. 

Among Barry’s teaching awards are the Wayne Booth Prize for Excellence in Teaching, the Provost’s Teaching Innovation Prize, and the Outstanding Research Mentor Award. In addition, he was recently selected as a faculty fellow by U-M’s Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion's Center for Educational Outreach and as a Public Engagement Fellow by U-M’s Center for Academic Innovation. Barry also teaches at the University of Chicago Law School and regularly works with law firms, state governments, and nonprofit organizations to improve their written and spoken advocacy. He is also a member of the California Bar.