Point Made: How to Write Like the Nation's Top Advocates *(pdf)
With Point Made, legal writing expert, Ross Guberman, throws a life preserver to attorneys, who are under more pressure than ever to produce compelling prose. What is the strongest opening for a motion or brief? How to draft winning headings? How to tell a persuasive story when the record is dry and dense? The answers are "more science than art," says Guberman, who has analyzed stellar arguments by distinguished attorneys to develop step-by-step instructions for achieving the results you want. The author takes an empirical approach, drawing heavily on the writings of the nation's 50 most influential lawyers, including Barack Obama, John Roberts, Elena Kagan, Ted Olson, and David Boies. Their strategies, demystified and broken down into specific, learnable techniques, become a detailed writing guide full of practical models. In FCC v. Fox, for example, Kathleen Sullivan conjures the potentially dangerous, unintended consequences of finding for the other side (the "Why Should I Care?" technique). Arguing against allowing the FCC to continue fining broadcasters that let the "F-word" slip out, she highlights the chilling effect these fines have on America's radio and TV stations, "discouraging live programming altogether, with attendant loss to valuable and vibrant programming that has long been part of American culture." Each chapter of Point Made focuses on a typically tough challenge, providing a strategic roadmap and practical tips along with annotated examples of how prominent attorneys have resolved that challenge in varied trial and appellate briefs. Short examples and explanations with engaging titles--"Brass Tacks," "Talk to Yourself," "Russian Doll"--deliver weighty materials with a light tone, making the guidelines easy to remember and apply. In addition to all-new examples from the original 50 advocates, this Second Edition introduces eight new superstar lawyers from Solicitor General Don Verrilli, Deanne Maynard, Larry Robbins, and Lisa Blatt to Joshua Rosencranz, Texas Senator Ted Cruz, Judy Clarke, and Sri Srinvasan, now a D.C. Circuit Judge. Ross Guberman also provides provocative new examples from the Affordable Care Act wars, the same-sex marriage fight, and many other recent high-profile cases. Considerably more commentary on the examples is included, along with dozens of style and grammar tips interspersed throughout. Also, for those who seek to improve their advocacy skills and for those who simply need a step-by-step guide to making a good brief better, the book concludes with an all-new set of 50 writing challenges corresponding to the 50 techniques. Read more
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Why Must Read Point Made: How to Write Like the Nation's Top Advocates?
This book is legitimately a Godsend in terms of its efficacy. I would recommend this book to other lawyers or law students for three reasons: (1) this book outlines, in step format, what is required of a solid brief to persuade the court; (2) the book does a great job of providing real-world examples from briefs submitted by everyone from C.J. John Roberts and J. RBG to Joe Jamail to help illustrate his points; and (3) the writing is really easy to read and quick to get through. Moving onto my first point, the book outlines the components of a well-structured brief from beginning to end. The front and back covers contain an "outline" not dissimilar to a table of contents, and that outline effectively gives you a checklist to go through while writing your brief or motion. If you are stuck on a particular section like the introduction or the statement of facts, you can easily hop into the table of contents and just jump to the relevant section. Onto my second point, as you are reading through each chapter in the book, the author will supply excerpts from actual briefs while bolding and emphasizing the concepts that particular section is teaching you so that you may see the lesson in action. He then expands on those points immediately following the excerpt and goes on to explain why he emphasized certain words or phrases. This makes following along very easy, even if the actual subject matter of the brief goes over your head (I admire IP lawyers more now than I did before I read this book). Furthermore, the brief excerpts are from heavy hitters who definitely know their way around Microsoft Word, so the examples you're being taught with are written by some of the best advocates in the country. The author even gives grammatical lessons or suggestions to help get a point across more clearly which is really nice because it humanizes the big shot advocates. I am happy to know that even the Chief Justice of the SCOTUS sometimes makes grammatical errors in his writing too. Lastly, the book is so well written that it's just really easy to get through. I got through a hundred pages or so within the first day, and should be finishing the book in a couple of days. All in all, I would suggest this book to anyone who wants to improve their legal writing. The first way to win in court is through your brief, and the second way is through oral arguments. If an attorney can persuade the court before they even appear in front of the judge, half the battle has already been won. Five out of five stars.
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