Preface
Introduction
Part One: Principles for All Legal Writing
1. Framing Your Thoughts
¡× 1. Have something to say, and think it through. Approach your task with a fervent desire to get your message across.
¡× 2. Carry out your writing projects in four steps: think and research; plan and organize; write; revise.
¡× 3. Order your material in a logical sequence. Present facts chronologically. For other material, make the order (a) deductive, (b) comparative, or (c) spatial. Keep related material together.
¡× 4. Use informative headings to mark sections and, if helpful, subsections.
2. Phrasing Your Sentences
¡× 5. Exclude unnecessary words.
¡× 6. Keep your average sentence length to about 20 words.
¡× 7. Keep the subject, the verb, and the object together--toward the beginning of the sentence.
¡× 8. Use parallel phrasing for parallel ideas: don't pair unlike grammatical forms.
¡× 9. Use strong, precise verbs. Minimize is, are, was, and were--especially when they are part of a passive-voice con...struction.
¡× 10. Avoid multiple negatives.
¡× 11. End sentences emphatically.
3. Choosing Your Words
¡× 12. Use plain English, not legalese.
¡× 13. Be wary of pretension, officialese, and stiff formulas.
¡× 14. Simplify wordy phrases--especially those containing of.
¡× 15. Avoid zombie nouns--especially -ion words that you can turn into verbs.
¡× 16. Avoid doublets and triplets.
¡× 17. Refer to people and companies by name. Never use corresponding terms ending in -or and -ee.
¡× 18. Use shorthand names only when you must. Shun unfamiliar acronyms.
¡× 19. Make it snappy, vivid, and interesting.
¡× 20. Be a companionable voice of reason. Make everything you write speakable.
Part Two: Principles Mainly for Analytical and Persuasive Writing
¡× 21. Plan all three parts: the beginning, the middle, and the end.
¡× 22. For the all-important opener, use the deep issue to state the problem clearly.
¡× 23. Summarize concretely and effectively. But don't overparticularize with dates and similar unimportant details.
¡× 24. Make your paragraphs cohesive. Introduce each one with a topic sentence.
¡× 25. Link your paragraphs explicitly.
¡× 26. Vary the length of your paragraphs, but keep them generally short.
¡× 27. Provide textual signposts along the way.
¡× 28. Unclutter the text by footnoting citations. Keep the footnotes free of sentences.
¡× 29. Weave quotations deftly into your prose. "Quotation sandwiches" are hard to skip.
¡× 30. Be forthright in dealing with counterarguments.
Part Three: Principles Mainly for Legal Drafting
¡× 31. Draft for an ordinary reader, not for a mythical judge who might someday review the document.
¡× 32. Organize provisions in descending order of importance. Use a good numbering system and abundant headings to make things easy to find.
¡× 33. Minimize definitions and cross-references. If you have more than a few definitions, put them in a schedule at the end, not at the beginning.
¡× 34. Break down enumerations into parallel provisions. Put every list of subparts at the end of the sentence--never at the beginning or in the middle.
¡× 35. Replace every shall.
¡× 36. Don't use provisos.
¡× 37. Replace and/or wherever it appears.
¡× 38. Prefer the singular over the plural.
¡× 39. Use numerals, not words, to denote amounts. Avoid word-numeral doublets.
¡× 40. If you don't understand a form provision--or why it should be included in your document--try diligently to gain that understanding. If you still can't understand it, cut it.
Part Four: Principles for Document Design
¡× 41. Make sensible choices about typography: use a readable font and type size, don't underline, minimize all-caps and initial caps, and put one space between sentences.
¡× 42. Create ample white space--and use it meaningfully.
¡× 43. Highlight ideas with attention-getters such as bullets.
¡× 44. Use graphics whenever they can enhance your message.
¡× 45. For a long document, make a table of contents.
Part Five: Methods for Continued Improvement
¡× 46. Embrace constructive criticism.
¡× 47. Edit your work rigorously and systematically.
¡× 48. Seek out reliable answers to questions of grammar and usage.
¡× 49. Habitually gauge your own readerly likes and dislikes, as well as those of other readers.
¡× 50. Remember that good writing makes the reader's job easy; bad writing makes it hard.
Appendix A: A Restatement of Punctuation
Appendix B: Four Model Documents
1. Research Memos
2. Motions
3. Appellate Briefs
4. Contracts
Key to Basic Exercises
Bibliography
Index