Here are 5 key shifts to make:

1️⃣ I am writing to impress —> I am writing to communicate

2️⃣ I need to be trained —> I will train myself

3️⃣ I aim to write acceptably —> I aim to write exceptionally

Subject + Verb

🔹 1: Identify the subject in your sentence.

The SUBJECT tells who or what the sentence is about (e.g., “The boy” in “The boy kicked the ball.”).

🔹 2: Now, find your verb.

I am thinking of hosting a small “legal writing lab” in February.

The idea is to get 4-6 lawyers together once a week.

—I will teach content from my new legal writing course.

the hyphen (-),
the en-dash (–),
the em-dash (—), (that’s 3!)

Check out below, and an expert you’ll be:

🔺 HYPHEN (-)

We’ll start with the hyphen,
and you can call it a “dash.”
It links multi‑word adjectives,
as in this little miss-match:

And while you’re at it, cut “regard” from your vocabulary altogether:

👎 “Regarding”
👎👎 “In regard to”
👎👎👎 “As regards”

All of these sound like nails on a chalkboard in legal writing.
They bloat your sentences and make them sound clunky and awkward

“Find” and “hold” mean very different things.

▪️ “Find” refers to determining facts—what actually happened. This is the job of a fact-finder (a jury, or sometimes a judge in a bench trial or preliminary hearing).

▪️ “Hold” refers to a legal conclusion—a court’s determination of what the law means or what the law requires, given the facts.

‍ ‍

Well, here’s why we use it and how you can do so effectively in your spring brief:

🔷 “To be sure” signals, “I will now acknowledge the point that most hurts me, in hopes of defusing it on my own terms.”

— “The date was amazing for Brad and myself.”
— “Sarah and myself have a real connection.”
— “This journey has really helped myself grow.”

❌ NO! NO! NO!
(Somewhere, a grammar teacher is sobbing into a rose.)

I hadn’t worked a “real job” in 5 years;
I’d let my lawyering skills lapse;
I’d let my people skills lapse;
I’d let my self-worth lapse;
I’d become a nobody.

But the worst part was having no community.

It’s unnecessary, and it’s considered redundant.

WRONG: The teacher said “hi” to only one student, (whose name was Charlie).

WRONG: The plaintiff, (who had a strong case), looked confident at the hearing.

In 2026, I will:

Put more verbs in the active voice (1)
& use “that,” not “which”
when given the choice (2).

I’ll use “therefore” or “thus”
(but never “as such”) (3),
and I’ll throw away my “However, . . .” crutch (4).

“The same” leaves havoc in its wake. To illustrate:

🔹 "She delivered the goods to the warehouse and then sold the same."

—Does "same" refer to the goods or the warehouse?

🔹 “The contract has a 30-day notice rule. Failure to comply with same will result in penalties."

—To me, it meant awkward alumni dinners, bar ass’n meetings, and cocktail mixers with lawyers 20–40 years older than me.

—I spent events like those wearing a plastic smile, laughing at jokes I didn’t understand, and feeling like a complete idiot.

-law school applicants,
-law school students,
-full-fledged lawyers of all levels.

I’ve identified the top 10 most common errors.

So I made a checklist for you.

I hope it helps!

▪️ Example: “There’s no unlawful wiretapping if one of the parties consents.”

✅ Improved: “There’s no unlawful wiretapping if one party consents.”

Shorter

Cleaner

Better