6 Tips for Boosting the Quality of Your Legal Writing Skills

Advice Even The Best Legal Document Writer Will Forget

Creating legal documents and drafting correspondence may not be the most enjoyable part of the law profession. The value and significance of this specific writing form is crystal clear in this industry. Creating well-developed, high-quality legal documents can enhance your firm’s reputation and credibility.

Who needs to be reminded of the consequences of bad legal writing? Bad legal writing can lose cases, millions of dollars, and in the some extreme instances, it can lead to public reprimands from the judge. Remember the famous typo that cost the Japanese company, Mizuho Securities Co., over 200 million for a simple error? Instead of selling single shares for 610,000 yen apiece, they instead sold their shares for 610,000 shares for 1 yen apiece. Mistakes happen – that’s why having an expert legal document writer on staff is crucial.

How, though, can you boost the quality of your legal writing to meet the bar of raised expectations? Here are six helpful tips for you to consider and apply.

1. Be Concise; Avoid Excessive “Fluff”

If a word, phrase or specific sentence does not add value to your document, remove it. Have you ever read a lengthy document where the number of valuable words was a small fraction of the total word count? For example, a document may contain 1,000 words within it. However, when you clear away the extra, unnecessary sentences and excessive words, you realize that the core message is only 250-500 words.

When addressing a jury or defending your case in front of a judge, you must master the art of making your point as quickly as possible. Excessive wordiness and “fluff” could lead to multiple objections, a confused jury or a derailed train of thought. Keep that same “courtroom conversation” mentality with your legal writing. Shorten complex phrases and sentences, remove any redundancies, and avoid extraneous words.

2. Keep it Simple with an Active Voice

To keep your legal writing simple, you must use an active voice instead of the commonly used passive voice. The passive voice essentially requires using 10 words to convey a 5-word point. The active voice emphasizes the value of proper sentence structure, allowing subjects to perform actions instead of explaining executed actions without identifying the subject.

For example:

• Passive: Tom’s automobile had allegedly been stolen by Brian.

• Active: Brian allegedly stole Tom’s automobile.

Notice how the 8-word passive sentence was simplified into a 5-word active sentence while conveying the same message in both examples.

• Passive: The verdict is still being considered by the jury as a decision is anxiously anticipated by all parties involved.

• Active: The jury is considering the verdict as all parties involved await a decision. 

As shown in the example above, using the passive voice can lead to using excessive words to explain actions as well as the aftermath. The active voice allows you to simplify the subject-action references, while helping to clean up and simplify the rest of your sentence as well.

3. Add Power with Dynamic Action Words

As mentioned above, there is a significant difference between creative writing and legal writing. However, a shared similarity between the two is the captivation of dynamic action words. Using carefully chosen action words can breathe life into your legal prose, painting a simple yet vivid picture for the reader.

For example:

• “The witness raised his voice at the attorney” vs “The witness yelled at the attorney”

• “The defendant became very angry” vs “The defendant became enraged”

• “The witness was untruthful on the stand” vs “The witness lied on the stand”

Do not overdo using excessive verbs and imagery as if you were telling a story. Use action words moderately within your legal prose to structure a narrative, not turn it into a bedtime story.

4. Beware of Legal Jargon

Along the same lines of simplicity and careful word choice, you must also pay attention to how much “legalese” you use in your document. Legal jargon and phrases – “heretofore, wherein, herewith, aforementioned” – may make you seem educated and intelligent when used correctly. However, they can drastically reduce the quality of your legal writing. As mentioned above, excessive words can disengage your audience – causing the value of your document to plummet.

Instead of showing off your knowledge of “legalese” by cramming these phrases into your writing, strive to substitute them with simple and clear phrases easily understood without reaching for a dictionary. If necessary, have someone without your level of legal knowledge and experience read through the document. If it makes sense on a layman level, it will make sense on a legal level. Remember to make your point and move on to the next. If a word, phrase or sentence does not add value to your content, get rid of it without hesitation.

5. Check for Holes in Your Structure

Legal writing, like most forms of professional writing, requires organization and structure. Examine your document and check for any “holes” that may exist within the structure. Is your subject or topic effectively introduced toward the beginning? Are supporting reasons and examples highlighted throughout the body? Have you used transitional phrases successfully to connect the dots within your document? While formatting legal documents as you address the areas outlined above, remember to master the basic elements of organization and structure.

An effective tool for ensuring structure is the use of legal template software. Instead of creating custom legal documents from scratch, a well-structured template provides you and your team with a roadmap to follow. You will still need to heed the advice provided above regarding quality content, active voice, removing “fluff” and removing legal jargon. However, modifying a properly formatted template to meet your needs immediately provides you with an organized structure and will save time on the backend.

6. Edit, Edit and Edit Some More

Thorough editing and tedious proofreading play vital roles in the world of legal writing. If you want to tarnish your reputation and credibility as a legal expert, file a document with the court that is seasoned with misspelled words, grammatical errors and other typos that “slipped through the cracks.”

Do not solely depend on any grammar analyzer or spelling checker integrated within your Word processing software. There are still a number of grammatical errors and typos that fly under the radar of those integrated tools. In addition to running those checks, manually comb through the document line for line to ensure there are no unresolved errors before printing and/or submitting your document.

Remember, you have already invested a considerable amount of time into crafting a well-structured legal document. The last thing you want to do is drop the ball when it comes to editing your work.

Spend Less Time Creating Legal Documents

Document formatting issues can slow down even the most skilled and efficient legal document writer out there. That is why many law firms today are evaluating legal document automation software to help their teams stay ahead and service clients better. With tools that take care of legal document formatting, you are free to focus more on the quality of writing. Infoware’s Word LX Software is designed specifically for legal professionals. Find out how Infoware’s legal template solution software can improve the efficiency at your practice. Book a free demo today!