Lawyers Are Professional Writers: Hone Your Craft

Lawyers are professional writers! Attorneys often don’t think of themselves as experienced writers.  After all, they never saw an episode of Perry Mason or Boston Legal where a lawyer spends the entire time writing a motion.  But spending most of their working day writing is what most attorneys do.

Participants will leave this program with a better understanding of good writing and how that translates into better motions, briefs, contracts, and client communication. A key part of this program is a review of the neglected subject of legal logic.  Participants will see how good writing can clean up logical flaws in an argument and how sound logic leads to good writing. Writing as lawyers and legal professionals has two purposes: to persuade and, to a lesser extent, explain. This program will help attorneys achieve both.

This course is designed for any attorney looking to improve their writing as a legal professional. Two types of lawyers may find this CLE especially useful. The lawyer who knows they need to improve their writing (sometimes in desperation) and the legal writing geek.  This presentation is designed for both - each should take away something useful.

Learning Objectives:

1. Develop a clear understanding of the purpose of legal writing and logic – that purpose is usually to persuade (i.e., to sell!).  
2. Review logical structure as it relates to legal writing – how it helps attorneys persuade and sell.  
3. Review grammar (yes, grammar!) and sentence structure (including verb tense) to see how it enables attorneys to strategically use language in motions, briefs, contracts, and client communication, and how it helps them persuade and sell.