TORT TALK PRACTICE TIP

BE CONVERSATIONAL IN YOUR BRIEF WRITING

Legal writing courses in law school wrongfully kill creativity in brief writing in favor of arid, brittle, crisp statements of the law as applied to colorless adjective-free facts. The result is lifeless law review writing, and who seeks out law review articles to read after they are written? No one.

So be conversational in your writing and bring the story of your case to life within your argument with descriptive and carefully chosen words and concise sentences. Let your recitation of the facts flow as if you are relaying the story of the case to a friend in a conversation. Leave out slang words, but don't be overly formal either. Use your natural speaking voice in your writing.

Being conversational includes being polite. Know your place and never tell a judge that he or she "shall" or "must" accept your position. Rather, soften such statements by instead writing that "it is respectfully submitted" that the rule of law supports the result requested.