Rate My Professor Jim Dimitri

James D. Dimitri is a Clinical Professor of Law at the Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law in Indianapolis. He earned a B.S. from Indiana University in 1990 and a J.D. summa cum laude from Valparaiso University School of Law in 1993. Prior to joining the faculty in 1998, Dimitri worked in private practice at the Indianapolis firm Frank & Kraft, served as staff counsel for the Indiana Department of Correction, and spent three years as a deputy attorney general in the Indiana Attorney General’s Office, where he litigated civil and criminal appeals, post-conviction relief proceedings, federal habeas corpus cases, and matters under the Indiana Tort Claims Act.

Dimitri teaches legal analysis, research, and communication, intramural moot court competition, and advanced persuasive writing and oral advocacy. His academic interests include teaching trial and appellate advocacy, best practices in typography and document design for legal writing, using technology for legal research and writing, and applying neuroscience to lawyers' editing processes. He has co-authored The Moot Court Advisor’s Handbook (2d ed. 2023, with Melissa E. Love Koenig and Susie Salmon) and published articles such as “Writing Engaging, Realistic, and Balanced Appellate Advocacy Problems” (2008), “Stepping Up to the Podium with Confidence: A Primer for Law Students on Preparing and Delivering an Appellate Oral Argument” (2008), and “Brutal Choices in Curricular Design: Reusing Writing Assignments” (2003). As faculty advisor to IU McKinney’s Moot Court Society for two decades, he coached championship national teams and contributed to the Legal Writing Institute’s Moot Court Committee as a founding member and past co-chair. Dimitri has delivered numerous presentations on legal writing topics at regional and national conferences, including the Rocky Mountain Regional Legal Writing Conference and the Legal Writing Institute Biennial Conference. His excellence in teaching is recognized by two Indiana University Trustees’ Teaching Awards, the American Association of Law Schools’ Teacher of the Year Award, and selection as Dean’s Fellow for 2024–25.