Persuasive Legal Writing

This skill distills the techniques that separate serviceable legal writing from writing that actually moves people — judges, tribunals, opposing counsel, clients. The principles come from close study of Justice Kagan's opinions and dissents, the advocacy of David Boies and Ted Olson, and the analytical framework of Ross Guberman. They apply to any legal document that needs to persuade.

The skill is organised into two parts: Architecture (how to structure and sequence your arguments) and Craft (how to write the sentences and paragraphs themselves). Use both. Architecture without craft produces outlines; craft without architecture produces beautiful paragraphs that don't land.

Part One: Architecture

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