Pitches wanted (courts, legal system) | ~50 cents per word

COMPANY/PUBLICATION: BALL & STRIKES

Balls & Strikes pays $500 for essays of around 1000 words and more for stories that involve in-depth research or reporting. You can find our pitch guidelines here: https://ballsandstrikes.org/contact-us/

WHAT MAKES FOR A GOOD STORY?

Balls & Strikes covers courts, the judges who preside over them, and the legal system they uphold. Specifically, we are looking for critical perspectives on these extremely powerful institutions, and for writers who do not think an outcome is necessarily good just because it is the product of an archaic process run by argumentative people with six figures’ worth of law school debt. Our coverage focuses on the real-world consequences of what judges do, and not on parsing the precise jurisprudential philosophy they did or did not apply in order to arrive at a given result.

We also look for people who like making jokes, because there is more than enough boring legal journalism in the world, and we do not need to play a role in making this crisis any worse.

HOW MUCH MONEY?

Typically, we pay $500 for essays of about 1000 words, and adjust both figures up or down based on a project’s scope, the depth of necessary research, your availability, and the like.

No deadline.

CONTACT INFORMATION (please do not share the email address publicly):

• Submissions: pitches@ballsandstrikes.org
• Website: https://ballsandstrikes.org/

TO HELP YOU CRAFT YOUR PITCH:

• Learn more about the publication: Balls & Strikes publishes original commentary and reporting about courts, the judges who preside over them, and the legal system they uphold. Its coverage is premised on the reality that interpreting the law is an inherently political act with real-world consequences. In addition to its coverage of the Court and the courts, Balls & Strikes also publishes analysis of the judicial nomination and confirmation processes, the ongoing debate over reform proposals, and other stories at the intersection of law, policy, and politics. More information here.
• Read through its selection of recent articles/stories, categorized into: Legal Culture, Ethics and Accountability, Supreme Court, Court Reform, Legal Culture
• Review the submission guidelines here.
• Check out our collection of pitch excerpts on this page and find more sample pitches at The Open Notebook Database and at SuccessfulPitches.com.
• Do not forget to end your pitch with (1) a short introduction about yourself; (2) a paragraph highlighting your writing experience, relevant credentials and publication credits; and (3) links to your strongest work or portfolio, and online profile.

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