JUDICIAL & LEGAL WRITING – The Number One Rule for Improvement = CUTTING (25-10)

Dear Colleaques,

Attached is our newest Martine Law Training Update, titled: “JUDICIAL & LEGAL WRITING: The Number One Rule for Improvement = CUTTING.”

There are many books and articles dedicated to improving legal writing. Unfortunately, in many of these materials, you need an English degree to understand anything past the first paragraph. There is, however, a simple way to dramatically improve any style of legal writing that has nothing to do with dangling participles or misuse of pronouns, etc. Cutting unnecessary words is key to improving your writing.

Judges, attorneys, and other legal practitioners say the same thing about written legal submissions: they are too long. Most “legal writing” resources respond with lectures on grammar, style guides, and terminology that nobody has time to wade through. This Training Update takes a different approach. It focuses on one simple rule that will immediately improve every brief, motion, and email you write: cut unnecessary words.

Drawing on my experience reading thousands of briefs, motions, and emails from attorneys, I walk through concrete, before-and-after examples showing how to turn a bloated paragraph into something short, clear, and persuasive. The Update then breaks legal writing down into three practical levels—the sentence, the paragraph, and the final product—and gives you specific, easy-to-use techniques for each.

If you want your next submission to be easier for a judge to read, understand, and rule on, I encourage you to take a few minutes to read the full Training Update and share it with your colleagues and staff. A modest investment of time now will pay off in every brief you file going forward.

You can read or download the 3-page update here:
📄 Click here for Training Update 25-10: Judicial & Legal Writing

Martine Law Training Updates will continue to focus on key areas of litigation, including Criminal and Family Law, Evidence and Procedure, and Trial Advocacy. With a subscriber base of nearly 4,000 attorneys, judges, and legal professionals, these updates reflect our firm’s commitment to the belief that Legal Education is the Heart of the Judiciary. 

Warm regards,
Alan F. Pendleton
Of Counsel, Martine Law Firm
Director of Mentorship and Education
Former District Court Judge

Minnesota Judicial Training & Education Website