Bar News - October 22, 2004
Writing - The Essential Skills of the New Lawyer
By: Kristin M. Yasenka
New Lawyers Committee
WRITING WELL IS imperative for a young lawyer. We do not often speak in front of judges. We do, however, frequently prepare motions, memoranda, and letters for the court, clients, or senior attorneys. The ability to express our ideas and arguments clearly, concisely and persuasively is essential.
 The senior attorneys in my firm require all our new attorneys to review two resources on good writing: Strunk & White, The Elements of Style, 4th Ed. (2000) and Herrmann, Mark, "How to Write: A Memorandum from a Curmudgeon," Litigation, Vol. 24, Num. 1, Fall 1997. I have culled the following suggested tips on writing well from those sources and my experience in the firm:
- Be brief. Write in short sentences and only use necessary words. Say "to" instead of "in order to;" "regarding" rather than "with regards to;" "whether" instead of "as to whether;" and "because" not "the reason why is."
- If you can describe something in one word, avoid using use two or three. "The jury will return soon" is more concise than "It will not be long before the jury returns."
- Use positive words. Say "he was dishonest" rather than "he was not honest;" or "he forgot" instead of "he did not remember."
- Use "and the rest" or "and so forth" rather than etc.
- Avoid the use of qualifiers (rather, little, pretty, very) unless necessary.
- Break long paragraphs into two or three. Even if one is sufficient for meaning or logic, long blocks of text are difficult to read.
- Use the active voice and action verbs rather than the passive voice and the verb to be. Say "The court reviewed the ruling" rather than "The ruling was reviewed by the court."
- If possible, use "that" instead of "which."
- Do not begin a sentence with "however." Use it in the middle of the sentence. For example, "The judge, however, disagreed with the plaintiff."
- Do not emphasize statements with exclamation points unless truly exclamatory, such as "What a show!"
- When discussing a case, first explain what the plaintiff or defendant did, and then what the trial court and appellate court held. For example, "The plaintiff sued the defendant. The trial court held that the defendant was negligent and the appellate court reversed."
- The most persuasive case to cite is one in which the trial court ruled in favor of the opposing argument and the appellate court reversed.
- Use bluebook citations and know the custom for citing in the local court.
- Most importantly, PROOFREAD everything.
Incorporating these tips into your writing will help you more clearly express your ideas, and therefore more effectively advocate for your client. If in doubt, ask a senior attorney for examples of well written products or to review your writing for style, content, or typos.
Kristin Yasenka is an associate at Nelson, Kinder, Mosseau & Saturley, P.C. in Manchester where she practices in the professional liability and environmental groups. She is a member of the New Lawyers Committee of the New Hampshire Bar Association.
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