Campbell Law Spotlight: Alexandra Macey Davis ’15

Alexandra Macey Davis ’15 knew that she did not want to be a traditional attorney, but she recognized that attending law school was the right step forward for her.
 
After graduation from Campbell Law School in 2015, Davis took and passed the North Carolina bar exam and landed a job at a boutique law firm in Raleigh. Though this job provided a great work environment, it confirmed her suspicions that the traditional practice of law was not necessarily her ideal career path.
 
While working at the firm, Davis found herself immediately in the courtroom practicing civil litigation and trying cases. Although the practice of law failed to excite her, Davis used her time at the smaller firm to gain insights into managing a small business. She actively participated in business development for the firm, including reviving the firm’s blog and working on content for the website.
 
While spending hours in the gallery awaiting a jury verdict, Davis began researching whether freelance writing could be a viable career option; one that would draw upon her past experience as a writer and editor. She discovered a niche in the market for freelance writers who could contribute to law firms’ blogs and websites. During this time, Davis also met with the Campbell Law Career Center and was able to connect with other alumni in the community who were practicing in J.D.-adjacent roles. Leveraging her legal knowledge, Davis decided to pivot her career into the freelance legal writing space.
 
As freelance legal writing involves working with multiple law firms, Davis made the decision to leave her firm job to focus on building her writing business. To help bridge the financial gap, Davis also did document review. She noted how document review is often overlooked as a viable option, but it gave her the freedom and flexibility to start her own business and grow it slowly and intentionally. Within a year, her writing business grew to replace her firm salary, which allowed her to stop document review and concentrate full time on her business.
 
Over the next five years, Davis expanded her writing business, growing it to include a small team of attorney-writers and designers. Her services ranged from ghostwriting blog posts and articles for different firms and publications to crafting white papers and ghostwriting books for clients. During this period, Davis also authored her own book, “Pivot: The Nontraditional J.D. Careers Handbook,” showcasing profiles of nearly two dozen attorneys who used their legal education and experience to craft fulfilling J.D.-adjacent careers.
 
While Davis’ business was growing, so was her family. With two children, she decided to scale back her business to focus on this new season of life. During this transition, Davis had a conversation with her husband, noting that she would always work for herself unless one of her favorite publications had an open position. A year later, while scrolling through social media, Davis stumbled upon a managing editor position posting for one of those very publications. Reading the job description, she felt that it encompassed everything she had been doing throughout her career.
 
Despite initially thinking she would never completely leave legal practice, the managing editor position felt right for Davis. As the manager of a journal publishing daily long-form essays, her legal knowledge and soft skills acquired during law school — attention to detail, managing large amounts of information, thinking analytically and creatively — proved invaluable.
 
Reflecting on her journey, Davis emphasizes a J.D. education is never wasted. Davis notes that the purpose of attending law school is not about limiting opportunities but rather opening doors to diverse opportunities. Davis’ story is a testament to the versatility of a legal education and the potential for growth and fulfillment by pursuing one’s passion outside the traditional legal realm.