This Just In… - - Pete Boll

In keeping with the theme of this month’s issue, here are several library titles that provide guidance in writing legal briefs.

The Winning Brief: 100 Tips for Persuasive Briefing in Trial and Appellate Courts, 2nd edition / Bryan A. Garner. Oxford University Press, 2004.
Call Number KF 251 .G37 2004

Bryan Garner, editor of Black’s Law Dictionary, has put together 100 tips for writing clear, concise, and persuasive legal briefs. Some deal with major issues (“Frame the deep issues at the outset, so that you meet the 90-second test.”), and others are more specific in nature (“Strike ‘pursuant to’ from your vocabulary.”). Thorough explanations and practical examples are given for each tip. Especially helpful are “before and after” paragraphs written with and without heeding Garner’s tips. The writing in the “after” paragraphs is more concise and easier to understand.

Winning On Appeal : Better Briefs and Oral Argument, 2nd edition / Ruggero J. Aldisert. National Institute for Trial Advocacy, 2003.
Call Number KF 9050 .A935 2003

In this greatly expanded second edition, Aldisert, a forty-five year veteran of the federal appeals bench, provides an extensive overview of the appellate review process. No less than 14 of the 25 chapters delve deep into the thought process and mechanics of brief writing, which cover:

• Requirements for briefs at the federal and state court levels
• Stating the issues and facts of the case
• Stating the theme of the brief
• Identifying the flashpoint of controversy
• Identifying the logical form for each issue
• Shortening and perfecting the argument, and writing to persuade

The book also includes a compendium of advice on brief writing given by both state and federal appellate judges.

The Amicus Brief: How to Be a Good Friend of the Court, 2nd edition / Reagan Wm. Simpson and Mary R. Vasaly. American Bar Association, 2004.
Call Number KF 251 .R42 2004

The amicus brief, filed by the amicus curiae or friend of the court, has its roots in ancient Rome and was intended to provide a court with legal information that was beyond its notice or expertise. The role of the amicus brief has changed little since fist appearing in England in the seventeenth century. In an easy to read style, Simpson and Vasaly present important topics to consider in preparing to submit an amicus brief, including:

• Who may file an amicus brief and why
• When and how to seek amicus support
• Functions of the amicus brief
• How to write an effective amicus brief
• Responding to an amicus brief
• Ethical considerations in filing an amicus brief

The appendix provides amicus brief examples and excerpts from such top names as Professors Laurence Tribe and Robert Rains, Pamela Stanton Barron, Roger Townsend, and Karen Grundy.

Persuasive Written and Oral Advocacy in Trial and Appellate Courts / Michael R. Fontham et al. Aspen Law and Business, 2002.
Call Number KF 251 .F658 2002

Divided into four parts, this book covers all aspects of producing effective written and oral advocacy. Part I discusses persuasive legal writing, including organization, writing for clarity, writing persuasively, and editing. Part II deals with oral argument, covering the requirements of good oral argument, and preparing, planning and delivery. Part III focuses on preparing research and trial court memoranda. Part IV covers writs and appeals, with an entire chapter on preparing appellate briefs and oral arguments containing detailed discussions of the need for preparation and efficient use of time, the importance of reviewing the record, and the various components of the appellant’s brief.

The appendices are especially useful. In Appendix I, the authors present problems and practical exercises in preparing an outline, and use a simplified abstract of facts and a few possibly controlling cases designed to let the reader extract the rule of law, identify related facts, and organize the material into an outline. Appendix II is an example of an appellate brief filed in the United States Supreme Court, in which the appellants asserted that the Court had appellate jurisdiction over the case before that jurisdiction was curtailed by Congress.