Dear 1L,

I’m keeping a list of recurring mistakes in law-student writing samples.

This one is easy: make sure you know when to capitalize “court.”

*    *    *

🔷 CAPITALIZE SCOTUS (Supreme Court of the United States)

Dear 1L,

If you’re someone who routinely writes the phrase “in order to,” I suggest you reconsider.

Almost always, a simple “to” will do.

Try it when you edit your writing this summer.  Run a search for the phrase “in order to.”  Substitute the simple “to.”

Dear 1L,

Before you send in your resume, hold yours up to light.

Then assess. For OUR eyes, what’s the sight?

Is it just one wall of text?

Is there white space, for rest?

✏️  Is there any white space at all???

Dear 1L,

Please stop writing “they” when referring to “company.”

If you question that, below is a short explanation, along with a question for those across the pond:

**

In the U.S. English, and legal English, that I’ve always know:

Dear 1L,

If you write “prior to” instead of “before,” I am curious.  Why?

I promise that using “prior to” does not make your writing better.

Nor does it make you sound more intelligent or well-read. In any event, sounding that way should be a given. It will not impress your reader, and it should NOT be one of your goals for persuasive legal writing.

Dear 1L,

When I look at drafts of your writing, I strike almost every “since.”

I substitute “because.”  Here’s why.

🔷 “SINCE” confuses the Reader.

“Since” means many things. 

Dear 1L,

When finalizing your writing samples for this summer’s law-firm recruiting (aka, OCI, or On Campus Interviewing), please aim for as near perfect as possible.

As a still-recovering perfectionist, I am hesitant to recommend that anyone strive for perfection in anything. I know the perils of such pursuits well.

Dear 1L,

I’m working on an end-of-exams congratulations letter,

but I know you have a big legal writing competition first.

Below are some initial thoughts for you.

🔹 First, don’t panic or get defeated. You’re going to receive a huge competition packet, and you’ll run out of printer toner making a hard copy.

Dear 1L,

I’ve never been good at promoting myself publicly.

I know it’s a shortcoming. It holds me back professionally. But there’s an internal struggle.

On one hand, I don’t feel comfortable talking about myself in big groups.

Dear 1L,

Are you one of the billions who (according to Google) has searched “affect vs. effect”?

For most of my life, I avoided “affect” as a verb. I would use “impact,” or just change my sentence around to avoid the word somehow. 

But the verb “to impact” doesn’t really mean “to affect.”

Dear 1L,

Before I was doing what I do now, part of my law firm role was Editor for L&E and Appellate thought-leadership communications. 

Over the years, I saw the full gamut of grammar and usage mistakes.  Here are five of the most prevalent that require no further explanation

Avoid these mistakes to minimize your grader’s use of red pencil.

Dear 1L,

Here are some tips for the Introduction to your brief.

✏️ To BEGIN

Remember that your Reader is busy—think tiny attention span. Grab their attention and get to the point.

Your Reader seeks information. That can’t happen if they’re confused. Above all else, strive for clarity. Best are short, crisp sentences in an active voice.  

Dear 1L,

In reviewing recent writing samples, I am reminded of just how many wordy ways there are to say “because.” Don’t go these ways. Just say “because”:

• In light of the fact that

• Due to the fact that

• As a result of

• For the reason that

• On account of the fact that

• On the grounds that

Cut these clauses. Just say “because.” 

Dear 1L,

When I look at drafts of your writing, one of the first things I do is reword almost all sentences that start with “However, …” 

“But starting sentences that way is grammatically correct,” you might protest.

And you’d be right. Nevertheless, I suggest you limit your use of this sentence-starter. Here’s why.

Dear 1L,

Be careful with the word “find.”  In fact, don’t use it at all.

Unless sitting as the fact-finder in a non-jury bench trial, judges do not “find.”  They hold, rule, decide, conclude, reason, explain, and determine, among other synonyms.  But “find” is not one of them.

Appellate courts do not find anything, ever.