Good legal writing wins court cases. It its first edition, The Winning Brief proved that the key to writing well is understanding the judicial readership. Now, in a revised and updated version of this modern classic, Bryan A. Garner explains the art of effective writing in 100 concise, practical, and easy-to-use sections. Covering everything from the rules for planning and organizing a brief to openers that can capture a judge's attention from the first few words, these tips add up to the most compelling, orderly, and visually appealing brief that an advocate can present. In Garner's view, good writing is good thinking put to paper. "Never write a sentence that you couldn't easily speak," he warns-and demonstrates how to do just that. Beginning each tip with a set of quotable quotes from experts, he then gives masterly advice on building sound paragraphs, drafting crisp sentences, choosing the best words ("Strike pursuant to from your vocabulary."), quoting authority, citing sources, and designing a document that looks as impressive as it reads. Throughout, he shows how to edit for maximal impact, using vivid before-and-after examples that apply the basics of rhetoric to persuasive writing. Filled with examples of good and bad writing from actual briefs filed in courts of all types, The Winning Brief also covers the new appellate rules for preparing federal briefs. Constantly collecting material from his seminars and polling judges for their preferences, the second edition delivers the same solid guidelines with even more supporting evidence. Including for the first time sections on the ever-changing rules of acceptable legal writing, Garner's new edition keeps even the most seasoned lawyers on their toes and writing briefs that win cases. An invaluable resource for attorneys, law clerks, judges, paralegals, law students and their teachers, The Winning Brief has the qualities that make all of Garner's books so popular: authority, accessibility, and page after page of techniques that work. If you're writing to win a case, this book shouldn't merely be on your shelf--it should be open on your desk.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
Kindle Format Not Well-Suited for Reference Style:
This is a great book, filled with great advice, from a great legal writing professional. Unfortunately, the Kindle version of this book fails to earn similar praise. There is no "master" list of the 100 tips to quickly browse. The examples, in image format, are hard to read--if not impossible on the small screen. There's no quick-flipping to the tips you want--a problem inherent to the Kindle format. So while the book and its content may be wonderful, if not essential, the Kindle format guts its value. Not... more info
Excellent Legal Writing Book:
Love this book and the author's other books. Must have for all legal professionals who do research and writing in any form.
Helpful but won't have time for it:
The book looks helpful at first glance but we'll see what happens when the semester gets rolling and it matters. I usually find that buying these books is an inevitable trap I fall into with disappointing results. But, in all fairness I haven't given this book much of a shot yet. Amazon is excellent - obviously.
Outstanding:
A must read for every serious law student and attorney - even if you are an experienced brief writer, this easy to understand book, filled withe clear examples forces you to think and improve your persuasive writing.
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