Law Commons^™

Advice About Written Advocacy From The Washington Court Of Appeals, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

References To Beatles Songs In Advocacy And Judicial Opinions, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

This article surveys the indelible mark that the Beatles (Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr) continue to leave on courts in the United States more than half a century after the quartet burst onto the American scene with their three television appearances on the Ed Sullivan Show in February of 1964, six years before the band’s breakup.

What Lawyers Can Teach Their Employed Law Students About 'Impactful Legal Writing', Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

This article concerns the value of teaching employed law students about the potency of “impactful legal writing” – legal writing that can have a substantial impact on someone other than the student writer. Much of the employer’s most instructive teaching about impactful legal writing occurs at the beginning of an assignment, rather than solely during review after the student has completed the assignment. This article identifies four ways an employed law student’s impactful writing when fulfilling assignments differs from the effect of students’ academic writing in law school. Each of the four ways enables the employer to deliver practical lessons …

How Law Students' Part-Time Legal Employment Can Help Employers Improve Their Own Writing Skills, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

Professor Abrams authors a column, Writing it Right, in the Journal of the Missouri Bar. In a variety of contexts, the column stresses the fundamentals of quality legal writing — conciseness, precision, simplicity, and clarity.

The Fraternity Of Legal Style, Alexa Z. Chew

Faculty Publications

This article reports the findings of an empirical study of writing experts mentioned in popular legal style books. The study shows that these experts are overwhelmingly men. This study complements the many other studies showing that gender and racial bias exists throughout the legal profession, but it focuses on one area that has not yet been examined: bias in books that give writing advice to lawyers. I call these books “legal style books.” The area of legal writing advice books is admittedly niche. However, it is worth studying because writing is central to lawyering.

Didn’T I Cover That In Class? Low-Stakes Technique Of Quizzing To The Rescue, Robin A. Boyle

Faculty Publications

(Excerpt)

We all have had those moments when students’ papers do not reflect an important lesson covered in class. For instance, if teaching persuasive writing, you have likely instructed your students to use a full sentence for their point headings in their briefs, only to find phrases where sentences should have been used. Consequently, you find yourself making the same written comments on papers or verbal comments in conferences with students, beginning with, “As I had instructed in class…” In his groundbreaking book, Experiential Learning, researcher and theorist David Kolb introduced the concept of “deep learning,” which can remedy …

Integration & Transformation: Incorporating Critical Information Literacy And Critical Legal Research Into Advanced Legal Research Instruction, Courtney Selby

Faculty Publications

(Excerpt)

Legal research is not a separate and distinct endeavor from legal analysis and advocacy. These activities are inextricably intertwined in the practice of law. Few would suggest that advocacy includes the process of applying rules to situations in a vacuum without reference to context and consequences. Yet we often see this assumption about the legal research process. Many students presume that conducting legal research is a neutral endeavor, and that when done properly, it delivers the universe of relevant authorities to the researcher. This essay is about my experience integrating critical perspectives into an existing advanced legal research course …

References To Classic American Novels In Advocacy And Judicial Opinions, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

With this Journal of the Missouri Bar article, the survey of courts’ cultural markers returns to literature – particularly American literature. Besides “To Kill a Mockingbird,” federal and state courts in their written opinions have cited and quoted from other classic novels written by American authors, including "Catch-22", "Moby-Dick", and "The Grapes of Wrath".

Legal Citations: A Foundation Of Written Advocacy, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

The article advanced this formula for achieving effective appellate advocacy: “First, you seek to persuade the court of the merit of the client’s case, to create an emotional empathy for your position. Then you assist the court to reach a conclusion favorable to the client’s interest in terms of the analysis of the law and the procedural posture of the case.”

References To Robert Frost's Poetry In Advocacy And Judicial Opinions, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

This article concerns courts whose written opinions have recently cited and quoted Frost and his poetry. By profiling Frost’s enduring influence, the article fortifies a theme I have presented in earlier “Writing It Right” articles. The theme begins in the courts, which in recent years often accent their opinions’ substantive or procedural rulings by quoting or citing well-known cultural markers from literature, sports, or popular entertainment.

Improved Writing From Reading Other Writers, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

In 1954, a 12-year-old junior high school student wrote to Justice Felix Frankfurter seeking advice about how to prepare to become a lawyer. “The best way to prepare for the law,” Frankfurter answered, “is to come to the study of law as a well-read person.” Reading other writers, he explained, enables future lawyers to “acquire the capacity to use the English language on paper and in speech and with the habits of clear thinking.”

Justice Frankfurter offered his young correspondent sound advice about the intimate link among reading, writing, and lawyering. Reading works from other writers with an eye toward …

Swimming With Broad Strokes: Publishing And Presenting Beyond The Lw Discipline, Robin Boyle Laisure, Stephen Paskey

Faculty Publications

(Excerpt)

In our greater skills community, we share ideas, borrow and tweak theories from other disciplines, and create new approaches. It is understandable how our community may expand pedagogy to the brim of legal writing or explore topics outside of the field. Skills professors are, by nature, a creative collective who teach from the heart and enjoy writing and thinking. Our publishing pursuits can be boundless.

Both Authors of this Article share mutual experiences of dipping our toes in a pond beyond the legal writing continent. Our writing experiences have influenced our teaching, bringing these broader perspectives to our legal …

Writing By Presidential Example: The First Inaugural Addresses Of Reagan And Obama, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

This article is about two recent U.S. presidents who differed from one another in prominent respects. One entered the Oval Office as a staunch Republican; the other entered as a staunch Democrat. One was one of the oldest men ever to serve in the Oval Office; the other was one of the youngest. The pair assumed contrasting positions on the political spectrum.

Despite these differences, however, the pair – Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama – shared an important common denominator. As president, both achieved recognition as “great communicators,” thanks in large part to their speeches marked by dexterity with the …

Turducken™ Legal Writing: Deconstructing The Multi-State Performance Test Genre, Kaci Bishop, Alexa Chew

Faculty Publications

The Multistate Performance Test (MPT) has been praised as the most redeeming part of the otherwise unredeemable bar exam because it most aligns with what new attorneys do in practice. It has also been praised, along with other performance tests, as a useful teaching tool throughout the law school curriculum. This article builds on prior scholarship about the MPT by analyzing the MPT as a tool for teaching and testing legal writing and professional communication skills.

The new insight that this article brings is that the testing aspect of the MPT tends to engulf the teaching aspect; understanding both of …

Charles Dickens' Novels In The Courts, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

This article examines written judicial opinions that contain references to novels by Charles Dickens (1812-1870), the British novelist and social critic who is widely regarded as one of the greatest writers of the Victorian Age. Americans today still read Dickens’ best-known novels, and the U.S. Supreme Court and the lower federal and state courts have cited and quoted from them.

"Yogi-Isms" In The Courts, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

The versatility of Lawrence Peter (Yogi) Berra, a native of St. Louis,5 appears unparalleled in the annals of professional sports. His stellar on-the-field performance earned him election to the Hall of Fame in 1972, and his vast collection of off-the-field sayings earned him a secure place in American folklore. Some Yogi-isms are cited and quoted in federal and state judicial opinions. Topping the judicial ledger is “It’s déjà vu all over again,” which appears in Shurtleff and a few dozen other decisions.

Eleven Observations About Legal Writing, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

This Article collects 11 observations about legal writing that I have shared with law students since I began teaching in the late 1970s.

Shakespeare In The Courts, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

This article continues the theme of recent “Writing It Right” articles in the Journal of the Missouri Bar. These articles describe how federal and state judges today frequently accent their opinions’ substantive or procedural rulings with references to cultural markers that can resonate with the advocates, parties, and judges who comprise the opinions’ readership. The courts’ broad array of cultural references demonstrates versatility. Some of my early articles in the Journal profiled judicial opinions that referenced terminologies, rules, and traditions of baseball, football, and other sports. Together these sports’ mass audiences help define American culture.

Later my Journal articles profiled …

Eight Strategies That Enhance Legal Writing, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

A few years ago, I spoke about legal writing at an annual forum of Missouri’s appellate judges, held at the University of Missouri School of Law in Columbia. The hour-long presentation advanced eight strategies that enable judges and practicing lawyers to sharpen their writing. These eight strategies appear below in this article.

References To Aesop's Fables In Judicial Opinions And Written Advocacy, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

In several “Writing It Right” articles over the past few years, I have described how federal and state judges frequently accent their opinions' substantive or procedural points with careful references to cultural markers familiar to many Americans. This article continues traveling the literary lane by turning to Aesop’s Fables. By invoking a Fable, the Friends of Animals district court continued a tradition that began in 1823, when the Pennsylvania Supreme Court cited Aesop in a will contest.

Leadership... From A To Z, Anne Klinefelter

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

The Cognitive Power Of Analogies In The Legal Writing Classroom, Patricia G. Montana

Faculty Publications

(Excerpt)

New law students traditionally learn better when they can connect what they are learning to a familiar non-legal experience. Therefore, the use of an analogy, which can be defined as a comparison showing the similarities of two otherwise unlike things to help explain an idea or concept, is an obvious way to facilitate a student’s connection between the new and what is already known. An analogy is a logical step in introducing the complex processes of legal research and analysis by attempting to simplify the alien structure of summarizing that legal research and analysis into a coherent piece of …

Amicus Curiae Briefs: A Message From The 7th Circuit, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

Like other brief writers, the amicus brief’s writer must heed the court’s rules of practice and procedure, including rules that prescribe a brief’s maximum page length. But a brief writer can meet the court’s circumstances and expectations without going to the max. A few months before he ascended to the Supreme Court bench in 1943, D.C. Circuit Judge Wiley B. Rutledge advised advocates to strike a balance by being “as brief as one can be consistent with adequate and clear presentation of his case."

An amicus’ prudent approach to concise brief writing is to adapt the advice delivered by opera …

References To Children's Stories And Fairy Tales In Judicial Opinions And Written Advocacy, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

Jones v. State is typical of recent state and federal court decisions that have spiced substantive or procedural points with references to classic children’s stories or classic fairy tales. These literary resources have won places in American popular culture and are likely generally familiar to readers, especially when (as in Jones) the court provides any necessary context explaining the resource’s relevance to the decision.

In previous Journal of The Missouri Bar articles, I have written about judges’ invocation of an array of influential cultural markers that are generally familiar to Americans. These articles explored written opinions that accompanied substantive or …

Mincing No Words: When The Court's Opinion Criticizes An Advocate's Writing, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

In recent years, court opinions have chastised counsel’s briefs or other written submissions for such structural deficiencies as improper citations; missing exhibit labels; incomplete tables of citations; mis-numbered counts; failure to cite to the record; and skirting of court rules that regulate font size, maximum page limits, mandated margins, and the like. Beyond structure, opinions have also chastised counsel for written submissions that are “riddled with misspellings, typographical errors, punctuation errors, and grammar and usage errors” and for those marked by careless cutting-and-pasting from forms or other prior work product, or by careless reliance on spell-check.

Some opinions identify the …

The Value Of An Academic Law Library In The 21st Century, Anne Klinefelter

Faculty Publications

Law school deans and university provosts may ask how law libraries can deliver value as new technologies, practices, and economic pressures inspire reassessment of legal education and of higher education more generally. The proliferation of information delivery systems, trends towards centralized management of higher education infrastructure, and changes in the law practice market suggest that the traditional law library may not meet current needs. But law libraries have the potential and opportunity to deliver strong value in this environment due largely to the sophistication of today's law librarians. The law library can be a center for expertise that can advance …

The Power Of A Positive Tweet, Patricia G. Montana

Faculty Publications

(Excerpt)

I am not naively suggesting that all we need are more positive tweets to solve the inequity problems that still plague many law schools’ treatment and advancement of legal writing faculty. But I do wonder whether more positive tweets from administrators, tenured colleagues, and others can help (and more instantaneously) spread positive feelings, heal past harms, build relationships, forge new connections, and ultimately help create more opportunities for success.

Getting It Right By Writing It Wrong: Embracing Faulty Reasoning As A Teaching Tool, Patricia G. Montana, Elyse Pepper

Faculty Publications

(Excerpt)

In the early days of legal writing, we use exercises that have clear "right" answers. The rules are very simple and their meaning, even without looking at the cases, is usually clear. So, the "right" answer is often obvious. Indeed, it is intuitive. Though these exercises give students a sense of accomplishment and allow them to track achievement and understand success and failure, in some ways, they reinforce a common problem in first-year law students: their inability to see beyond the surface of a legal rule.

To ensure the "right" answer, students must distill not only a general rule, …

Research Strategies And Organization, Courtney Selby

Faculty Publications

(Excerpt)

The model for the research process outlined in Chapter 1 assumes a project that is undertaken from scratch, with no prior knowledge of the area of law or essential relevant authorities. Chapter 1 calls this a “fresh search.” However, each research project is by nature unique, and thus requires a distinctive strategy. This chapter explores the ways a judicious researcher can take the essential elements of a fresh search, consider the practical confines of the research environment, develop a strategy for approaching the research process that fits the unique problem, and implement that strategy in a cost-effective and efficient …

Generalist Judges And Advocates' Jargon, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

Clerking is a privilege. Fresh out of law school and eager to begin their careers, law clerks at any level of the federal or state judiciary covet the opportunity to learn from a judge’s reservoir of knowledge. But law clerks who anticipate careers writing as advocates are also well-positioned to learn about something that a judge may not know when briefs or other adversary submissions land on the desk.

That “something” concerns jargon, this article’s focus because its use by advocates can impede the court’s understanding of a case’s facts and law. “Jargon” refers to “special words or expressions that …