Lawyers tend to write more and with unique limitations than many other professionals. Do you remember the last time you read a fascinating novel and came across the words “so far” and above? Of course not, because heavy and strange vocabulary kills storytelling. But legal documents are famous for their archaic transitions, jargon, repetitive phrases, and verbosity. None will do your case any favors.
Besides, nothing muddies your argument more than a disorganized structure. Know your audience (a judge is a different reader than a new customer), start with a main sentence, avoid redundancies, and use headings and captions to break up blocks of text. Readability goes hand in hand with the clarity of your argument. In other words, disorganized documents don't help you present your arguments.
Although many people mistakenly believe that writers are born, not made, precision in writing is a skill that can be learned like any other. USF's intensive four-month paralegal certification program provides detailed instructions so you can expertly craft law memos, evidence documents, interrogatories, and more. Taught exclusively by active and practicing judges, the program trains you to create legal documents and supporting materials that improve your company's reputation. Good writing skills can help lawyers work more efficiently.
Lawyers who can write quickly and accurately can draft legal documents and correspondence more efficiently, leaving more time for other tasks. Lawyers who can write clearly and concisely can avoid confusion and ensure that their clients and colleagues understand their arguments. You have to read a lot; observe what good writers do; maybe keep a notebook with words, phrases, and techniques; want to edit; and practice, practice (that is, write a lot). As a law student, it will be a daily task to inform the supervising attorney about the investigation carried out that day, prepare the first draft of a lawsuit before the Small Claims Court, submit a summary of a file, or write a blog for the firm's website about a recent case.
If you have a career in law or are a lawyer, you'll likely need writing skills to be able to write reports, emails, and letters to both clients and colleagues. Leigh Brown Perkins, a freelance marketing writer, strongly believes that developing new skills and pursuing new ideas should be a lifelong task for all of us.
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