The American Bar Association’s flagship magazine, the ABA Journal, and the University of Miami’s Schools of Law and Arts & Sciences are proud to announce the launch of the inaugural Scott Turow Prize for Excellence in Legal Fiction. Named in honor of pioneering attorney and international bestselling author Scott Turow — the “father of the modern legal thriller” — the Turow Prize seeks to unearth compelling works of fiction that illuminate the dynamics of law, the justice system and the human experience and highlight and reward novels that best exemplify the role of lawyers in society and their power to effect change.
The Turow Prize is a successor to the Journal’s prior literary prize, the renowned Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction, established in 2011 and awarded 10 times (2011–2020) to authors including Michael Connelly, John Grisham and James Grippando.
The winning author will receive a cash prize and a signed copy of Presumed Innocent at the award ceremony and reception, and the exclusive right to feature the prestigious Turow Prize logo on their winning book’s cover. The winner will also be featured in a print edition of the Journal, profiled in an ABAJournal.com online article and highlighted in promotional campaigns across the Journal's platforms.
The Turow Prize will be awarded on November 19, 2026 at a ceremony at the University of Miami. Deadline for entries is August 1, 2026. Submissions must be book-length works of fiction published in 2025-2026 that best illuminate the role of lawyers in society and their power to effect meaningful change.
The winning author will receive a cash prize and a signed copy of Presumed Innocent at the award ceremony and reception, and the exclusive right to feature the prestigious Turow Prize logo on their winning book’s cover. The winner will also be featured in a print edition of the Journal, profiled in an ABAJournal.com online article and highlighted in promotional campaigns across the Journal's platforms
The work must be:
• A published book-length work of fiction;
• Published originally in 2025-2026;
• Readily available to readers via commercial sources (retail or online bookstores such as Barnes & Noble, Amazon, or iTunes)
• An electronically published work with an ISBN may be submitted but unpublished manuscripts may not;
• Written by an author who has not previously won the prize.
To enter, please submit 5 copies of the book (or for titles published as e-books only, a digital file we may duplicate for the judges), along with the name and full contact information of the author (or their representative) to:
The Scott Turow Prize for Excellence in Legal Fiction
ABA Journal
321 N. Clark St. Chicago, IL 60654
The deadline to receive entries for the 2026 prize year is Aug 1, 2026
There is no entry fee.
Scott Turow is a celebrated author and attorney known for essentially creating the legal thriller genre. His 13 fiction and two nonfiction books, including Presumed Innocent and the current Presumed Guilty, have sold over 30 million copies worldwide and been adapted for film and television. He also frequently contributes to publications such as the New York Times, Washington Post, Vanity Fair, and the Atlantic.
The ABA Journal is the flagship magazine of the American Bar Association, covering the trends, people, and finances of the legal profession from Wall Street to Main Street to Pennsylvania Avenue. The Journal has been the trusted voice of the legal profession for more than 100 years.
The University of Miami School of Law is celebrating its own centennial this year. With more than 23,000 alumni practicing in over 95 countries, it is focused on training principled, practice-ready leaders in law, has been lauded nationally for its innovation, its faculty, and its campus culture, and draws students and scholars from across the globe.
The University of Miami College of Arts & Sciences, the intellectual heart of the University, is a powerful engine for scholarship, research, and innovation. Distinguished by its academic excellence and interdisciplinary approach, it is where breakthrough discoveries and transformative ideas emerge. More than 45,000 of its alumni are making a difference around the world.
