Writing, Writing, and More Writing

You will be well prepared to write and research while in law school but you may not be prepared for the vast array of types of writing attorneys produce. Attorneys draft letters to opposing counsel or clients; opinion letters; contracts; discovery requests; motions; memos, and briefs to name a few.

A memo written for school is often neutral, at work it is the first step towards advocacy. A work memo should take a stand. In school you are typically given facts which remain static. At work you will need to do factual investigation and/or discovery. In real life, client wishes or goals often change. It is imperative to learn the facts of your case and apply the law to your facts.
You need to figure out who your audience is. Who will be the first to read your document and who else may? Will it be a client, another attorney, or the judge? Once you determine your audience figure out what they know about the matter, what their concerns are, and the matters importance to them. Keep in mind that your work may be sent on, to a client or others, without any editing. This means that if you ever submit a draft be sure to mark on each page of the document that it is a draft. Only submit a draft if one was truly asked for and you confirmed this in an email.

Figure out the purpose of your work, who will it be used? This will help focus your research. It will help you decide if you need to address both the pros and cons of the issue or if you just need to seek the best arguments that assist your client.
What is the context of your assignment? Try to find out what the reader will be doing while reading your work. This can help you organize your writing, use an outline that helps too. Figuring out the context can also help you with the length of your document and where to put the summary.

You also need to be very clear on when your work product is due. Sometimes there are very tight deadlines that can not be changed. These deadlines may be due to a client’s expectations or demands or to a court deadline.
Don’t underestimate how grammar and misspellings take away form your work product. They can make you look sloppy, like you don’t care, and if oft repeated an idiot. Therefore, don’t forget to double check both grammar and spelling, using spell check isn’t enough – proofread. Also, do a double check to make sure your citations are done correctly.
If you turn over work product in hardcopy, be sure the paper is neat and clean. Presentation is part of professionalism.

How can you home writing skills while in law school? Take advanced writing courses, take your seminar paper seriously, take drafting courses, do a clinic. In other words take the time to expose yourself to different types of lawyerly writings while in school.
Writing skills are important, the attorneys trying to prosecute Barry Bonds found out the hard way: U.S. District Judge Susan Illston ordered prosecutors to rewrite their indictment because multiple alleged lies were lumped into individual charges. News of having to rewrite made it into the media!