Strategic Legal Writing: Preparing Persuasive Documents
Civil Litigation | Original Program Date: March 31, 2015
Writing in a strategic way is as critical as oral advocacy, and is fast becoming an absolute foundation for solving and winning legal disputes. This popular program will teach you how to:
- Write in a tactical and winning way
- Move beyond reliance on boilerplate precedents (including “before/during/after” examples)
Learn what the Court expects, what works and what doesn't, and get expert guidance from senior trial and appellate counsel on how to write and win in a practical, strategic, and focused way.
- “Positioning”—What the ad agencies do
- Avoiding legalese in legal writing
- Think tactically, write strategically
- Avoiding “Not”
- The basics of good legal writing
- Acronyms
- Know the purpose for your writing
- Thinking like a judge
- Reader-friendly writing
- Case law—give the court a break
- Run-on sentences and big words
- Adverse authority
- Writing with colour
- Opening—the first impression
- Writing visually
- Being realistic not academic
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- Telling a story
- Useful headings
- Making the story work
- Taking the high ground
- Writing for the reader
- Being creative
- Stay in the present
- Limiting the issues
- Crafting your facts
- Building around your theme
- The analogy
- Long paragraphs, the one-breath rule
- Being realistic, there is another side
- Letting go of the little stuff
- Being credible
- Conclusions—making sure there is one
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PROGRAM CHAIRS
Eugene Meehan, Q.C., Supreme Advocacy LLP
PROGRAM SPEAKERS
The Honourable Madam Justice Gladys Pardu, Court of Appeal for Ontario
Barbara Legate, Legate & Associates
AGENDA
To view the full program agenda, please click here.
