GET THE FIX FOR PASSIVE VOICE

Dear Legal Writer,

If you supervise a lot of junior legal writers, you likely face a passive-voice problem.

Please send them to this carousel for the fix. ⤵️

And if you get any pouts or pushbacks—e.g., “Why is passive voice a problem?”—here’s a script for a 5-point pitch:

1: Psycholinguistic studies of brain processes show that a reader’s instincts
expect sentences to start with subjects ACTING verbs.

2: Passive voice can sound weaker: Which would you rather hear?

“I love you.” (Active) ♥️

-or-

“You are loved by me.” (Passive)

3: Active voice uses fewer words.

—> That leads to more concise writing.

4: Active voice removes ambiguities.

—> That leads to clearer writing.

5: Active voice sounds more confident and direct.

—> That leads to more persuasive writing.

***

🗳️ Any questions? I’m happy to answer!

Fondly,
💌 Amanda

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