Candace Spencer is a legal consultant, mediator, and food justice advocate based in Washington, D.C. With a unique blend of legal insight and a lifelong passion for food, Candace has built a career at the intersection of environmental mediation, sustainable agriculture, and racial equity. In this episode, she shares how she’s using her legal background to support Black farmers, empower dairy-free living, and reshape the food system from the inside out.
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Candace Spencer is a lawyer by training, a mediator by profession, and a baker at heart. Although she doesn’t practice law traditionally, her legal background is woven into everything she does. After attending the University of Florida for both undergrad and law school, Candace began building a multifaceted career rooted in food systems, racial equity, and environmental sustainability. Today, she works with a nonprofit mediation firm supporting projects in environmental policy, including regenerative agriculture and food justice.
"I love being a lawyer, despite all the trash I talked about law school," shares Candace Spencer on You Are A Lawyer.
Candace is also the founder of Spilled Milk, a creative platform and YouTube series that brings humour, clarity, and empowerment to living dairy-free. Through her consultancy, she supports Black food entrepreneurs with legal guidance, like forming LLCs or understanding policy, ensuring they have the legal foundation to thrive in business. Her work is grounded, joyful, and unapologetically people-first.
For Candace, law school wasn’t about joining a firm, it was about creating change. Influenced by her dad, who told her as a child she should be a lawyer because she liked to argue, Candace developed a genuine fascination with the law as a tool for societal impact. She saw it as a structure everyone agrees to follow, and therefore a powerful way to protect the environment and support communities.
"The law is this man-made construct that we uphold… and it works only if we say it works," reflects Candace Spencer on Episode 37 of You Are a Lawyer.
Though law school was challenging, and at times alienating, Candace gained clarity on her passions while studying. It helped her understand where systems fall short and how she could play a role in reforming them. From systemic racism to rigid academic structures, she was quick to critique, but even quicker to ask how she could use her legal education to make things better.
Candace’s career is proof that a law degree doesn’t limit you, it liberates you. She uses her legal knowledge to make complex food policy accessible, develop resources for Black farmers, and run her own consulting business. Whether she’s helping someone navigate the Farm Bill or teaching them how to form an LLC, her law degree is central to her confidence and credibility.
"There’s no level of intimidation for me… I know, or I know I can figure it out," explains Candace Spencer, on this episode of You Are a Lawyer.
From contract basics to strategic problem-solving, legal training gives her the tools to lead, teach, and advocate. She wants others to know that even if you’re not in court, your JD can still create powerful ripple effects, especially when paired with lived experience and community commitment.
Candace’s side hustles are anything but side projects; they’re deeply aligned with her mission. Her YouTube series Spilled Milk educates and uplifts the dairy-free community with humour and heart. She also creates downloadable legal guides for small food entrepreneurs, helping people start businesses with confidence.
“It means so much to me when my friends include me with dairy-free options. That’s what Spilled Milk is about—making that kind of support easier for everyone,” shares Candace Spencer in Episode 37 of You Are a Lawyer.
Whether she’s consulting on food policy or baking allergen-friendly desserts, Candace is creating systems of care. Her legal and creative ventures work in harmony, bringing clarity, inclusivity, and joy to underserved communities.
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Candace is currently licensed to practice law in the state of Florida
Kyla Denanyoh hosts the You Are A Lawyer podcast.
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