Radiance Ward (JD ’07), far left, and Anne-Claire Cronin (JD ’22), far left in the second photo, coach the School of Law’s Corboy Fellows.

ALUMNI PROFILE Radiance Ward (JD ’07) and Anne-Claire Cronin (JD ’22)

Creating connections

Former Corboy Fellows Radiance Ward and Anne-Claire Cronin coach today’s teams

Anne-Claire Cronin (JD ’22) believes in the Loyola connection.

“When you run into someone else who’s competed in mock trials as a Loyola Corboy Fellow, you immediately find a willingness to network and lend a hand,” says Cronin, an assistant Cook County state’s attorney. “The Chicago trial lawyers’ network seems small when you get into it, so it’s great to have been part of a well-respected program that creates a strong bond among its alumni.”

Named for a 1949 graduate of the School of Law who was widely recognized as one of the greatest trial lawyers of his generation, the prestigious, highly competitive Philip H. Corboy Fellowship Program in Trial Advocacy chooses just 10 students each spring to compete throughout the year in mock trial competitions across the nation.

Cronin, who was a Corboy Fellow as a 2L and 3L, was influenced and inspired by her coaches, including Radiance Ward (JD ’07), a Cook County public defender and another former Corboy Fellow. Cronin and Ward are among scores of School of Law alumni who pay forward their valuable student competition experience by returning to coach the students who come after them. These days, Ward and Cronin co-coach Corboy Fellows in national competitions.

“Radiance is very consistent and collaborative,” says Cronin. “It’s been fun to flip sides from being coached by her to coaching with her.” Says Ward, “Anne-Claire is always prepared and knows what she’s doing. Because she’s younger, she’s closer to current students’ experience and perspective.”

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Radiance Ward (JD ’07) is a criminal defense attorney. “The two things that have most shaped the work I’m doing now were my clerkship in the public defender’s office and my time as a Corboy Fellow,” she says.

Practice makes powerful

Both Ward and Cronin say their time as Corboy Fellows significantly shaped their careers. “Practical experience is key—you learn by doing,” says Ward. “Even if you don’t want to be a trial attorney, even in transactional law, you need to get comfortable thinking and speaking on your feet, pivoting, and adapting. And the more you practice, the more comfortable you get. I tell people all the time that the two things that have most shaped the work I’m doing now were my clerkship in the public defender’s office and my time as a Corboy Fellow.”

“Practical experience is key—you learn by doing.”

Even now, Ward benefits from her Corboy connections. As a criminal defense attorney, she says, she rarely encounters some of the rules of evidence common in civil cases, but coaching keeps those concepts fresh. “And talking about the law to my students helps keep my explaining skills sharp for my clients,” she says.

Cronin says mock trial experience confers “fundamental life skills that apply in every area of the law. In my job now, I can really see the difference in people who had the opportunity to practice those skills before they actually had to be in a courtroom.”

Anne-Claire Cronin (JD ’22) was influenced and inspired by her coaches, including Radiance Ward (JD ’07).

Worth the time investment

How do two very busy criminal trial lawyers make time to keep coaching in the intensive Corboy program? “It’s something I want to be part of, so I make the time,” says Cronin. “Loyola is incredibly good at lifting up everybody, wanting everybody to succeed. I benefited from a great network of alumni, professors, and staff, and now I’m happy to be part of that team.”

“Loyola is incredibly good at lifting up everybody, wanting everybody to succeed.”

Helping others make the transition from law school to effective practice fuels Ward’s continuing commitment to coaching. “I like to watch students become good attorneys,” she says. “I always want to be an example for all women, but especially for Black women, who may say, ‘If she can do this, I can do it, too.’” –Gail Mansfield (January 2024)

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