Category Archives: Bad Legal Writing

Legal Writing Benchslaps – Big Ouch!

05 Monday Jun 2017

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Benchslap, Judges, Legal Writing

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How Poorly Drafted Pleadings and Bad Writing Can Hurt Your Client and You, Online Writing Center, Writing Tools, PennState Law

http://bit.ly/2rrqfEr

There are some basic rules of legal writing that are fatal to ignore. This post illustrates some of the most common errors that cost the author dearly. When the court goes to the trouble to benchslap the lawyer’s writing, take the court’s criticism to heart and avoid making the same writing mistakes.

This post also has a bonus. Look at the bar on the left to find legal writing exercises and answers. -CCE

Why We Need Clear Legal Writing in Contracts.

20 Monday Feb 2017

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Contract Law, Legal Writing, Plain Language

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Sesquipedalianism and an Expatiation Upon Its Antithetical Impact on Interpersonal Communications: Big Words and Why They’re Bad, by Sherry Altshuler, Aird & Berlis, LLP (with hat tip to Louis J. Sirico, Jr., Legal Skills Prof Blog)

http://www.airdberlis.com/Templates/Blog/Entry.aspx?Page=71&ID=11120

This post on using plain English does what good legal writing should. Rather than telling you that big or complicated words are a sure way to lose your reader, it shows you with a wonderful example.  I love “show, don’t tell.” It also provides an excellent list of good legal writing tips. This one is worth a bookmark. -CCE

How Long Is Too Long For An Appellate Brief?

10 Tuesday Jan 2017

Posted by in 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, Appellate Law, Appellate Writing, Bad Legal Writing, Brief Writing, Legal Writing

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Posner criticizes ‘verbosity’ in appeals briefs in decision upholding closed voir dire, by Debra Cassens Weiss, Appellate Practice, ABA Journal.com (with hat tip to William P. Statsky)

http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/posner_criticizes_verbosity_in_appeals_briefs_in_decision_upholding_verdict

Judge Richard Posner is a well-known 7th Circuit jurist, legal writing scholar, and prolific author. Knowing this, it is puzzling why the appellate briefs for both sides were over 200 pages each. Yes, Judge Posner had something to say about it. -CCE

Plain English Legal Writing – Proof Positive That It Works.

12 Monday Dec 2016

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Editing, Judges, Legal Argument, Legal Writing, Legalese, Persuasive Writing, Plain Language, Readability

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The Proof is in the Reading, Plain Language Works Best, by Joseph Kimble, 52 Mich. B J. (Oct. 2016)

http://www.michbar.org/file/barjournal/article/documents/pdf4article2972.pdf

Joseph Kimble has long been recognized as one of the top legal writing scholars. In this Plain English column of the Michigan Bar Journal (every Bar Journal should have one!), Professor Kimble offers evidence once again that readers, including judges, prefer plain language and why. -CCE

To help round out this plain-English theme issue of the Bar Journal, I offer the evidence of four studies. These four are among 50 that I collect and summarize in my book Writing for Dollars, Writing to Please: The Case for Plain Language in Business, Government, and Law. Of the 50 studies, 18 involved different kinds of legal documents—lawsuit papers, judicial opinions, statutes, regulations, jury instructions, court forms and notices, and contracts. And they included readers of all sorts—judges, lawyers, administrators, and the general  public. The evidence is overwhelming: readers strongly prefer plain language to legalese, understand it better and faster, are more likely to comply with it, and are more likely to read it to begin with. —JK

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The Plain Language Argument Against Using Latin Legal Terms of Art.

30 Sunday Oct 2016

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Legal Writing, Legalese, Plain Language, Terms of art

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Curiouser and Curiouser Excuses for Legal Jargon, by Chadwick C. Busk & Michael Braem, 95 Plain Language, Mich. B.J. 30 (2016)

http://www.michbar.org/file/barjournal/article/documents/pdf4article2967.pdf

Earlier today, I posted about the use of Latin for legal terms of art, although legal writing scholars usually advise against using them. This article addresses that very subject. -CCE

I don’t know the meaning of half those long words, and I don’t believe you  do either.” —Eaglet, Alice in Wonderland (1865), Chapter III

“Some lawyers and academicians attempt to justify legal jargon and “traditional” legal writing—legal writing that’s ‘wordy, unclear, pompous, dull1’  and even “wretched.’2 But legal jargon in contracts burdens all those who must deal with it: the parties to the agreement who try to understand it, lawyers who mistakenly think they must use it, and judges who have to interpret it. Legal jargon often creates ambiguity, and ambiguity invites litigation. Many legalisms have been fodder for courts to puzzle over, including herein, therein, hereby, and thereof; shall; and/or; and best efforts.

However, some academicians, most recently Professor Lori Johnson of the UNLV William S. Boyd School of Law, have modernized old excuses for legal jargon and concocted new ones. Can these arguments withstand a reasoned analysis, or are they merely fanciful declarations from Wonderland?

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Another “How To” Really, Really Write Bad Briefs.

24 Monday Oct 2016

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Brief Writing, Legal Writing, Legalese, Plain Language

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How to Ruin Your Briefs – Or The Screwtape Lawyers, by Austin J. Hakes, 50 Mich. B. J. (Aug. 2016)

http://www.michbar.org/file/barjournal/article/documents/pdf4article2928.pdf

The author has a well-known new client with an unusual request – write the worst briefs possible. The author offers eight rules to as guidelines to fulfill his client’s wish. This will be interesting! And, because it comes from the Michigan Bar Journal’s Plain English Committee, you know it’s going to be good. -CCE

That’s right— he wants us to write terrible briefs. This surprised me too at first, but then he explained his new litigation strategy: suspecting that it might be more effective to ruin judicial minds than to manipulate them in his favor, he wants to use terrible writing to drive appellate judges totally insane. Writing a bad brief is easy enough, but writing a truly disastrous one—one capable of inducing madness—is a task requiring deliberate effort and careful study. Our greatest challenge may be a lack of helpful reference materials, for although there are several good books on the art of writing well, the craft of writing badly has been suppressed and maligned for far too long. In the hope of invigorating the persecuted art of infuriating prose, I offer this letter. It’s a meager beginning, but if you follow these eight rules to the best of your ability, your writing should be sufficiently misguided and maddening to serve our client well.

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Dump This Common Legal Writing Phrase!

09 Sunday Oct 2016

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Brief Writing, Legal Analysis, Legal Argument, Legal Writing, Persuasive Writing

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Avoid Beginning Sentences with “The court held that . . . .” by Louis J. Sirico, Jr., Law Skills Prof Blog (with hat tip to William P. Statsky)

http://bit.ly/2d5b89q

Busted! I use this phrase all the time. Here’s a way to take your legal writing to another level. -CCE

Bad Brief!

28 Thursday Jul 2016

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Brief Writing, Judges, Legal Analysis, Legal Argument, Legal Writing, Persuasive Writing, Readability

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Effective Brief Writing Despite High Volume Practice: Ten Misconceptions that Result in Bad Briefs, by Sarah E. Ricks, Rutgers School of Law – Camden, and Jane L. Istvan, City of Philadelphia Law Department, 38 U. Tol. L. Rev. 1113, SSRN

http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=996907

Excellent paper on the repeated mistakes judges and their staff see in briefs.

In a busy law practice, we may not always have the luxury of researching and editing as thoroughly as we may like when writing a brief. We are so familiar with our case that we often forget the perspective of our reader. Imagine sitting all day in trial immersed in one area of law, and then switching gears afterwards to read and absorb a brief in a completely different type of law.

This paper reminds us how to write persuasively for the court, even when under pressure to meet deadlines. -CCE

Russ Guberman’s Six Editing Tips.

22 Sunday May 2016

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Editing, Legal Writing, Legalese, Plain Language

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No Thanks: Six More Words and Phrases to Avoid, by Russ Guberman

http://legalwritingpro.com/blog/no-thanks-six-more-words-and-phrases-to-avoid/#comment-91

Small wording changes can liven up your style by speeding up and punching up your prose.

Let’s match wits with some of the world’s best judicial writers below. Or is that ‘with certain of the world’s most illustrious judicial draftspersons infra’?

The Rules of Engagement: If a word or phrase is bolded in the first part of each set, the big guns didn’t write it. For each of those bolded terms, think of a lighter or shorter replacement before you peek below.

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Just Really Good Legal Writing.

21 Saturday May 2016

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Editing, Grammar, Legal Writing, Legalese, Persuasive Writing, Punctuation, Readability

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How To Write Good Legal Stuff, by Eugene Volokh and J. Alexander Tanford, Maurer School of Law© 2001, 2009

http://law.indiana.edu/instruction/tanford/web/reference/how2writegood.pdf

This is a guide to good legal writing. Good writing consists of avoiding common clunkers and using simpler replacements. The replacements aren’t always perfect synonyms but 90% of the time they’re better than the original. Warning: Some changes also require grammatical twiddling of other parts of the sentence. This is not a guide to proper high English usage. We don’t give two hoots whether you dangle participles, split infinitives or end sentences with prepositions. We care that you can write clearly.

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Brief Writing – The Summary of the Argument.

13 Sunday Mar 2016

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Brief Writing, Legal Analysis, Legal Argument, Legal Writing, Persuasive Writing, Summary of the Argument

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Drafting the Summary of Argument, by Louis J. Sirico, Jr., Legal Skills Prof Blog

http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/legal_skills/2016/03/drafting-the-summary-of-argument.html

Although not all courts require a “Summary of the Argument” in major briefs, you might consider adding one nonetheless. It is the heart of your brief. It concisely sums up your argument – no fluff allowed.

Some busy judges will read your Table of Contents, Table of Authorities, the Summary of the Argument, and nothing else. It is why the Summary of the Argument is at the beginning of a brief, and why it should to get right to the point and stay there.

This is a particularly interesting article on writing by Judith Fischer, and well worth your time regardless of your brief writing skills. -CCE

[B]ecause the summary of the argument appears near the beginning of a brief, it allows the legal advocate to take advantage of both framing and priming to begin to convince the Court. Thus, it’s a mistake for an advocate to treat the section as an afterthought. . . .

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Are You Guilty of Using Any of These Overly Used Words?

02 Saturday Jan 2016

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Editing, Legal Writing, Readability

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51 Over-Used Adverbs, Nouns, and Clichés in Writing, by Laurie Pawlik-Kienlen, Blossom Blog

http://theadventurouswriter.com/blogwriting/51-over-used-adverbs-nouns-and-cliches-in-writing/

This post is like preaching to the choir. I found several words that I often use on this list. Time for a New Year’s Resolution! Remove these words from our writing and vocabulary. -CCE

Do you want your writing to get noticed – in a good way? Ditch these over-used adverbs, nouns, and cliches when writing articles, stories, and books.

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I promised a reader in the comments section of 5 Over-Used Words and Phrases for Writers to Avoid that I’d write this post . . . and here it finally is . . . better late than never. What’s that you say? The cliché ‘better late than never’ is over-used and boring, and belongs on my “over-used words and phrases in writing” list? If you caught that, you get a gold star! (jeez, there I go again with the tired clichés).

Ditch these boring words and phrases! Stop using amorphous adverbs and namby-pamby nouns! Delete crummy clichés!

And, here are 51 over-used words and phrases in writing – which I hope helps you become a more successful, confident writer. Compiling this list has certainly opened my eyes to my own weak writing habits…

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Quick Legal Writing Course.

24 Thursday Dec 2015

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Editing, Grammar, Legal Writing

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Video: A Down and Dirty Writing, Editing and Grammar Course For Lawyers, Gary Kinder, Legal Productivity®

http://www.legalproductivity.com/webinars/video-writing-for-lawyers/

Regardless of how good your legal writing may be, there is always room for improvement. Like anything else, your writing skills improve with practice. 

You may not think your writing skills are less than ideal. You may not think it’s a big deal – who cares whether your grammar or punctuation is perfect? Actually, most people, including clients. -CCE

Plain Language = Good Writing.

28 Saturday Nov 2015

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Grammar, Legal Writing, Persuasive Writing, Plain Language, Proofreading, Readability

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The Pros Know: Plain Language Is Just Good Writing, by Mark Cooney, 94 Mich. B.J. 54 (Sept. 2015) (with hat tip to William P. Statsky!)

http://www.michbar.org/file/barjournal/article/documents/pdf4article2701.pdf

Is plain language foreign to ‘real’ writers? To the pros, I mean? Would professional writers, editors, and literary agents outside our field scoff at the plain style that this column has long endorsed? Would plain English draw ridicule in those quarters? Too childish? Dumbed down? Illiterate? And would readers of literate magazines, technical journals, or fiction balk at the simplicity, the directness?

This is an easy one: no—on all counts. . . .

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Failure To Follow Court Rules Earned This Fed Up Benchslap.

23 Monday Nov 2015

Posted by in Appellate Law, Bad Legal Writing, Benchslap, Brief Writing, Citations, Court Rules, Courts, Issues On Appeal, Judges, Legal Writing

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A Lawyer Way Out Of Her League Gets Benchslapped By Frustrated Judge, by Kathryn Rubino, Above The Law Blog

http://tinyurl.com/o9hk847

The case did not seem suspicious. A commercial painter claimed he had not been paid for work hired by a building manager. The lawyer took the painter’s case. Unfortunately, under oath, her client admitted that he had faked his evidence with forged invoices.

No one was surprised when the trial court imposed sanctions. The surprise came when the lawyer appealed the case with a badly written brief. The lawyer only made it worse when she submitted her corrected brief to the Court. The judge’s response is a classic benchslap. -CCE

The Effort to Make and Keep Patents Correct and Clear.

08 Sunday Nov 2015

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Intellectual Property, Legal Writing, Legalese, Patent Law, Plain Language, Readability

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Director Michelle Lee: Moving toward Patent Clarity, posted by Dennis Crouch, PatentlyO Blog

http://tinyurl.com/q4dvog7

The following is a post from Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO Michelle K. Lee and was published on the PTO Director’s blog.

Patent quality is central to fulfilling a core mission of the USPTO, which as stated in the Constitution, is to ‘promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts.’ It is critically important that the USPTO issue patents that are both correct and clear. Historically, our primary focus has been on correctness, but the evolving patent landscape has challenged us to increase our focus on clarity.

Patents of the highest quality can help to stimulate and promote efficient licensing, research and development, and future innovation without resorting to needless high-cost court proceedings. Through correctness and clarity, such patents better enable potential users of patented technologies to make informed decisions on how to avoid infringement, whether to seek a license, and/or when to settle or litigate a patent dispute. Patent owners also benefit from having clear notice on the boundaries of their patent rights. After and after successfully reducing the backlog of unexamined patent applications, our agency is redoubling its focus on quality.

We asked for your help on how we can best improve quality—and you responded.

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If You Don’t Need It, Don’t Plead It.-

03 Tuesday Nov 2015

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Legal Writing, Pleadings

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Be A Winning Writer, Not A Self-Indulgent One, Starting With Complaints, by John G. Balestriere, Above the Law Blog (with hat tip to Allen Mihecoby, CLAS, RP®)

http://abovethelaw.com/2015/10/be-a-winning-writer-not-a-self-indulgent-one-starting-with-complaints/

‘In law it is good policy to never plead what you need not, lest you oblige yourself to prove what you can not.’ – Abraham Lincoln

We lawyers love to write, at least most of us do (as well we should, since to say it’s a big part of our job is an understatement). But as with all of the work we do, we need to remember our writing has a purpose: any of the writings we submit as litigators to a court or arbitrator must be directed towards winning for our clients.

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The Worst Legal Writing Ever?

19 Monday Oct 2015

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Legal Writing, Legalese

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We Created the Worst Piece of Legal Writing Possible, by Sam Glover, Lisa Needham, and Sam Harden, Lawyerist Blog (with hat tip to Raymond Ward!)

https://lawyerist.com/91373/we-created-the-worst-piece-of-legal-writing-possible/#disqus_thread

I have to admit that it’s a good effort at legalese, but is it the worst legal writing you have ever read? Does it deserve a place in the Legal Writing Hall of Shame? You be the judge! -CCE

Legalese is awful. To prove it, we forced three lawyers (Sam Glover, Lisa Needham, and Sam Harden) to combine their skills to write the worst piece of legal writing imaginable. Here’s what they came up with:

Clarity in Legal Writing: Unattainable Goal or Necessary Component of Effective Advocacy?

The issue of clearness and conciseness in writing and preparing legal documents, e.g. court filings, pleadings, and motions and all other possible legal and ancillary documents is often a topic of discussion among judges and legal scholars. . . .

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Plain Language Examples – Before and After.

16 Friday Oct 2015

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Editing, Grammar, Legal Writing, Legalese, Plain Language, Proofreading, Punctuation, Readability

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Before-and-After Comparisons, PlainLanguge.gov

http://www.plainlanguage.gov/examples/before_after/index.cfm

There are a number of superior – and free – websites available to anyone who wants to improve his legal writing skills. PlainLaguage.gov is one of them.

I doubt that anyone wants to write poorly. Often, just showing before-and-after examples improve writing skills. One of the most efficient ways I have found when teaching legal writing is to take a bad writing example, identify why it is ineffective or just plain silly, and suggest different ways to fix it.

Here are examples of government regulations, manuals, handbooks, reports, and other publications that show “before and after” examples that use plain language to improve a sentence, paragraph, or document. -CCE

4 Writing Tips For Persuasive Briefs.

29 Tuesday Sep 2015

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Brief Writing, Editing, Legal Argument, Legal Writing, Persuasive Writing, Readability

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4 Edits I’ve Never Made, by Mark Herrmann, Lawyerists Blog (with hat tip to Raymond Ward!)

http://abovethelaw.com/2015/09/4-edits-i-have-never-made/

I have revised an awful lot of briefs in my life.

I clerked for a year; worked as a litigation associate at a small firm for five years; worked first as an associate (for three years) and then as a litigation partner (for 17 years) at one of the world’s largest firms; and have now served as the head of litigation at a Fortune 250 firm for the last five years.

I repeat: I have revised an awful lot of briefs in my life.

There’s been a world of variety in the substance of briefs that I’ve revised. Labor law, First Amendment cases, commercial disputes, product liability cases, tax spats, securities fraud, insurance and reinsurance matters, IP cases; you name it.

But there’s been almost no variety in the revisions that I’ve made to briefs.

As I’ve ranted before, I’ve spent my decades generally making all the same changes to draft briefs.

So I’m not going to list here the usual edits that briefs need. I’m going to do the opposite: What edits have I never made to a brief over the course of three decades practicing law? . . . .

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Classic Legal Writing Never Goes Out Of Style.

11 Friday Sep 2015

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Contract Law, Legal Writing, Plain Language, Readability

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30 Years of the Michigan Bar Journal’s “Plain Language” Column, by Ken Adams, Adams on Contract Drafting

http://www.adamsdrafting.com/30-years-of-the-michigan-bar-journals-plain-language-column/

The Michigan Bar Journal’s ‘Plain Language’ column recently celebrated its thirtieth year. Joe Kimble, its longtime editor, wrote this piece marking the event. . . .

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Legal Writing Tips Honey Pot.

29 Wednesday Jul 2015

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Business Memorandums, Contract Law, Editing, Grammar, Legal Writing, Punctuation

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Writing Cheat Sheets for Your Summer at the Screen, by Ross Guberman, Legal Writing Tips for Attorneys and Judges

http://legalwritingpro.com/blog/writing-cheat-sheets-for-your-summer-at-the-screen/

There is something here for everyone – student, newbie, or seasoned professional. Writing tips for memos, grammar, punctuation, biggest partner complaints, checklist for drafting contracts, and more. Many thanks, Mr. Guberman! -CCE

As a writing trainer for many of the nation’s top law firms with about 500 summer-associate workshops under my belt, I’ve learned first-hand where summer associates go wrong and how to help them succeed.

Here are some questions that will likely come up over the summer, along with links to some free online resources. . . .

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Judge’s Benchslap Orders Parties To Rewrite Their Acronym-Loaded Briefs.

20 Monday Jul 2015

Posted by in Acronyms, Bad Legal Writing, Brief Writing, District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals, Legal Writing, Readability, Style Manuals

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Alphabet Attack, by Ross Guberman, Legal Writing Tips for Attorneys and Judges

http://legalwritingpro.com/blog/alphabet-attack/

I wonder how many judges have wanted to do this? -CCE

It wouldn’t be spring in America without some federal judges publicly criticizing attorneys in a genre now known as ‘benchslap.’

The offended court this time: the D.C. Circuit. The court’s target: acronyms in briefs filed in a complex telecom dispute. The benchslap: ‘It is ordered . . . that the parties submit new briefs that eliminate uncommon acronyms used in their previously filed final briefs.’ The court even cited its own practice handbook for good measure: ‘[i]n briefs the use of acronyms other that those that are widely known should be avoided.’ . . .

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Yes! Ohio Court Rules Missing Punctuation Changes Interpretation Of Municipal Code.

11 Saturday Jul 2015

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Grammar, Legal Analysis, Legal Writing, Proofreading, Punctuation, Statutory Interpretation

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Ohio Appeals Court Ruling Is A Victory For Punctuation, Sanity, by Sarah Larimer, The Washington Post (with hat tip to William P. Statsky)

http://tinyurl.com/q7vzjws

Punctuation nerds, rejoice! For all of us who care deeply about really good legal writing, grammar, and punctuation, today we are vindicated! Thank you, Judge Robert A. Hendrickson, of the Twelfth District Court of Appeals in Ohio. -CCE

Look, I know you’re all busy, but let’s just take a minute today and celebrate Judge Robert A. Hendrickson and the 12th District Court of Appeals in Ohio.

These defenders of punctuation.

These champions of copy editors everywhere.

That one court that totally called out a village ordinance for its comma-related failings.

(I know!!!)

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Excellent Editing Tips From Jonathan Van Patton.

09 Saturday May 2015

Posted by in Bad Legal Writing, Editing, Legal Argument, Legal Writing, Readability

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“On Editing,” by Louis J. Sirico, Jr., Legal Skills Prof Blog (with hat tip to William P. Statsky)

http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/legal_skills/2015/05/on-editing.html

 

Excellent article on editing! Editing is no easy task. You have to practice to do it well.

This article focuses on editing, but also on persuasive writing. Anyone interested in writing a winning brief, motion, or opening and closing argument will like this one. -CCE

An excellent treatise on editing and writing is Jonathan Van Patten’s article “On Editing,” 60 South Dakota Law Review 1 (2015). Employing an extremely clear writing style, he states and explains his propositions on good writing. I plan to distribute the article to the editors of my school’s law reviews.

You can access the article here.