Browse the Articles in the BriefCatch Content Library!
Welcome to the BriefCatch Content Library, a brand-new repository of insight and innovation for legal professionals, scholars, and enthusiasts. In this Library, we are excited to present a comprehensive collection of articles authored by the renowned legal writing expert, Ross Guberman.
The articles included in the BriefCatch Content Library span across an array of topics, including persuasive legal writing, strategic argument structure, and innovative rhetoric. These pieces are not just theoretical discussions, but practical guides that are infused with illustrative examples, tips, and tricks that have proven successful in practice. Every piece is a potential masterclass in legal writing.
Browse our articles below. Happy reading, learning, and growing with BriefCatch!
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From the loftiest law firms to the grandest judicial chambers, I see the same comma errors time and time again. In the name of consistency, and perhaps even sanity, consider committing to these Eight Comma Commandments. 1. Thou Shalt Include a Comma Before a Conjunction That Introduces an Independent Clause
Although law-firm partners have too many grammar-specific issues to detail them all in one article, here are eight of the most common issues below: 1. Misuse of Mid-Sentence Commas Tip: If you have and or but in the middle of a long sentence, check what follows. If it’s a person
It’s hard to get lawyers and judges to agree on much these days, but here’s one exception: that Justice Elena Kagan is a terrific writer. Take her majority opinion in Allen v. Cooper. Kagan’s opening facts might already reel you in:
When you hear the name George Conway III, do you think “Kellyanne” or “That Twitter Guy”? My goal is to make the association “Peerless Securities Litigator” or “Crack Legal Writer.” Let’s take two routine briefs Mr. Conway signed at Wachtell: a reply brief in a case about quartz countertops and a motion to dismiss for
Several years ago, a Wall Street Journal legal columnist put adverbs on trial. Witnesses for the prosecution: Stephen King (“The adverb is not your friend,” says he), a host of anti-adverb judges, and legions of legal writing teachers. Witnesses for the defense: Famed adverb fan Justice Scalia, an academic “legal anthropologist,” and
Craft a concise, effective, and persuasive introduction in little time by looking at your dispute through these four lenses: The Narrative Lens. Begin with a paragraph or two that covers what many attorneys never explain at all: who the parties are; when, where, and how the dispute arose; what question the dispute is over and why your client is in the right
When Chief Justice John Roberts was a lawyer, he once wrote that determining the “best” available technology for controlling air pollution is like asking people to pick the “best” car: “Mario Andretti may select a Ferrari; a college student a Volkswagen beetle; a family of six a minivan. The choices
Many law firms market themselves by sending out “client alerts” about the latest hot case or regulation. But how successful is the typical client alert? Newsflash: These client alerts leave most clients cold. Why? Because they fail the “So what?” test. “So what” can I do differently? Read and compare the
Just like its sister article Just Say No, this article adds to our list of quick style fixes. 1. Provides That Replace this heavy phrase with under and a comma. That way, you focus on the parties, not on the case name or statute. Before: “Section 102(a)(3) provides that life
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