Back to Basics: Writing About Case Law in Briefs and Motions
Conveying the value of cases to legal readers is critical for legal writers. This installment of "Writing Matters" reminds you of the basic principles of writing about case law.
BY DAVID HRICIK AND KAREN J. SNEDDON
With this installment of "Writing Matters," we're returning to the basics of effective legal writing. Effective legal writing conveys an accurate, meaningful understanding of the authorities, both factual and legal. This back-to-basics installment addresses how to discuss case law, including explaining the rule, analogizing to favorable precedent and distinguishing unfavorable precedent, and organizational issues.
State the Background Legal Principles Without Using Case Names as the Subjects of Sentences
When we talk about cases, we lead with the case names, but when writing about cases, flip the order of the sentence. When a case name is the subject of a sentence, the case is doing the action. To understand this, compare the following two sentences:
Version AIn Hous. Auth. of Atlanta v. Famble, 170 Ga. App. 509, 511, 317 S.E.2d 853, 857 (1984), the Court of Appeals of Georgia stated: "The essential elements of negligence are set out in Lee St. Auto Sales v. Warren, 102 Ga. App. 345(1), 116 S.E.2d 243: "˜(1) A legal duty to conform to a standard of conduct raised by the law for the protection of others against unreasonable risks of harm; (2) a breach of this standard; (3) a legally attributable causal connection between the conduct and the resulting injury; and (4) some loss or damage flowing to the plaintiff's legally protected interest as a result of the alleged breach of the legal duty.'"
Version B
The essential elements of negligence are: "(1) A legal duty to conform to a standard of conduct raised by the law for the protection of others against unreasonable risks of harm; (2) a breach of this standard; (3) a legally attributable causal connection between the conduct and the resulting injury; and, (4) some loss or damage flowing to the plaintiff's legally protected interest as a result of the alleged breach of the legal duty." Hous. Auth. of Atlanta v. Famble, 170 Ga. App. 509, 511, 317 S.E.2d 853, 857 (1984) (quoting Lee St. Auto Sales v. Warren, 102 Ga. App. 345(1), 116 S.E.2d 243).
In Version A, the case (or rather the case name) is the subject of the sentence; in...
