02 Thursday Jan 2020
Posted in Legal Writing, Persuasive Writing, Plain Language, Propositions and Headings
≈ Comments Off on Best Tips To Improve Your Writing.
Tips to Immediately Improve Your Writing Skills, by Adam Lamparello, Appellate Advocacy Blog
An excellent list of key skills to improve your legal writing regardless of your proficiency level. This is one of the best legal writing checklists I have seen. Definitely worth a bookmark. -CCE
02 Thursday Mar 2017
Posted in Brief Writing, Legal Writing, Persuasive Writing, Propositions and Headings
≈ Comments Off on Tips on Writing Persuasive Propositions.
Tags
©Now Counsel Network, Briefs, Legal Writing, Lisa Solomon, Persuasive Legal Writing, Propositions, William P. Statsky
How to Write Effective Argument Headings, by Lisa Solomon, NOW Counsel Network (with hat tip to William P. Statsky!)
Ms. Solomon calls them argument or point headings. I call them propositions. Regardless, their importance as a persuasive writing tool in any brief should never been overlooked.
A proposition or heading is a succinct statement that states the question or issue to be discussed and answered in your brief. If done correctly, the reader – your judge – should follow the logical flow of your brief’s argument by simply reading the propositions and sub-propositions.
A proposition that is a positive statement is more persuasive than a question. Even better, your proposition should state positively what the court ought to do and why. X should happen because of Y or, because of Y, X should happen. Regardless of the format you use, a proposition that says why the court should rule as you want is always more persuasive. -CCE
06 Saturday Dec 2014
Posted in Bad Legal Writing, Legal Argument, Legal Writing, Propositions and Headings, Readability
≈ Comments Off on Evan Schaeffer Shares Top Legal Writing Tips.
Improve Your Legal Writing, by Evan Schaeffer, The Trial Practice Tips Lawyer Blog
http://www.illinoistrialpractice.com/2014/11/improve-your-legal-writing.html
My three articles on legal writing, all originally published in the Illinois Bar Journal, continue to get a steady stream of Google-fueled web traffic.
I’ve reposted these three articles, which are favorites of mine, on my personal website. Follow the links to–
‘Five Steps Towards Persuasive Writing,’
‘Improve Your Legal Writing with Five Simple Rules,’ and
Hundreds of other legal-writing tips can be found here at Trial Practice Tips in the ‘Legal Writing’ category.
27 Thursday Nov 2014
Posted in 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, Appellate Law, Appellate Writing, Brief Writing, Editing, Legal Analysis, Legal Argument, Legal Writing, Legalese, Plain Language, Proofreading, Propositions and Headings, Readability, Statement of Facts, Summary of the Argument, Table of Authorities
≈ Comments Off on Appellate Legal Writing – This Is How You Do It.
Tags
A Writ In Time, Appellate Writing, Bridging the Gap Seminar, Chief Judge Alex Kozinski, Free CLE Materials and Forms, Legal Writing, Louisiana Civil Appeals Blog, Moot Court, Raymond P. Ward, the (new) legal writer blog
Free La. Appellate CLE Materials, by Raymond P. Ward, Louisiana Civil Appeals Blog
Here’s something you don’t see everyday – a top-notch lawyer generously sharing everything juicy in his CLE presentation. I am a long-time follower of Mr. Ward’s blogs. I strongly recommend this blog, as well as his other blog, the [new] legal writer blog at http://raymondpward.typepad.com/newlegalwriter/.
Notice how the propositions further the appellate brief’s argument to the court. They are not simply “The Court Should Grant Summary Judgment to Plaintiff” or something equally bland. Likewise, the propositions are not more than one sentence.
The Statement of the Case is less than one page. The writer doesn’t bog the Court down with unnecessary facts. You can look, but you will not find even a whiff of legalese.
Please pay attention when you read the materials and each sample document (thank you for including them!). Notice that no words are wasted. There is a reason why.
Notice the word choice, the size of the sentences and paragraphs, and the crafting of the propositions and subheadings. The persuasive argument is easy to follow. The writer keeps the reader’s attention – an absolute must for anything you write.
Do you aspire to be a good writer? Write like this. -CCE
This morning [October 28, 2014], I presented an hour of CLE on appellate practice for the Louisiana State Bar Association’s ‘Bridging the Gap’ seminar, a program for newly minted lawyers who passed the February 2014 bar exam. For attendees and anyone else who may be interested, here are some supplemental materials used or discussed in the presentation:
- My written materials
- A PDF copy of my PowerPoint presentation
- My article A Writ in Time, 51 La. B.J. 338 (Feb.–Mar. 2004)
- Two entertaining and informative articles by Chief Judge Alex Kozinski of the U.S. Ninth Circuit:
- In Praise of Moot Court—Not!, in which Judge Kozinski discusses the differences between law-school moot-court competitions and real-world appellate practice
- The Wrong Stuff, in which Judge Kozinski offers tips to help you lose your next appeal
For reasons discussed at the seminar and elsewhere, I recommend against over-reliance on forms. With that caution stated—and with no warranties—I offer some samples of pleadings and briefs, all in PDF:
15 Sunday Jun 2014
Posted in Bad Legal Writing, Brief Writing, Citations, IRAC, Legal Analysis, Legal Argument, Legal Writing, Legalese, Plain Language, Proofreading, Propositions and Headings, Quotations, Readability
≈ Comments Off on If You Want To Lose The Case, Just Write Like This.
How To Lose Your Case, by Eric Voight, Lawyerist Blog
http://lawyerist.com/73849/how-to-lose-your-case/
Legal writers do this more than they realize, sometimes out of haste and short deadlines. These are common — and fixable — bad writing mistakes. -CCE
In litigation, you have to persuade judges that your client’s position is correct, but don’t forget about the gatekeepers. Your motions and briefs will probably be reviewed by a law clerk before it reaches the judge’s desk. Clerks for federal judges say they have reviewed many motions and briefs where it appeared that the attorneys didn’t care whether their clients prevailed.
I didn’t realize that attorneys would prefer to lose, not win, their case. But if your goal is losing, this article is for you. Be sure to incorporate these ideas from my law clerk friends into your motions and briefs — if you want to lose your case. . . .
The Researching Paralegal 
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