Ruth A. Cross

Ruth Cross is the Director of the Legal Research, Writing, and Advocacy program and also teaches courses in Texas Pre-Trial Procedure and Texas Trial and Appellate Procedure. She taught legal research and writing as an adjunct at SMU from 1984 until 1999, before joining the faculty on a full-time basis. Prior to SMU, Ms. Cross worked in the Dallas offices of Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer, & Feld and Arter & Hadden as a litigator, with a special emphasis on appellate practice.  Ms. Cross also served as Associate Dean for Administration for the law school from 2008 until 2015. In addition, Ms. Cross has made presentations to various groups regarding legal writing and legal education, including the Legal Netlink Alliance, the U.S. Attorneys Office, The Forensic Group of Dallas, and the Dallas Area Paralegals Association. She has also served as a writing coach for several large law firms.