Tips for Judgment writing

Judgment     

Introduction  -

At the beginning of the judgment, readers need above all a clear context. Generally, this context will include the nature of the case, the parties involved, and the issue or issues to be decided. 

- An effective introduction tells the reader what the judgment is all about and maps out the argumentive terrain. 

- Like formal introductions in society, introductions to Judgments also create an image of the self. 

Organization  -

$       Introduction – nature of the case, parties, issues, facts.

$       Argument – Law in relation to facts  for each issue. 

$       Conclusion – disposition of the    case.      

      Conclusion                       Argument

1. Findings must be                           1. Choose the method of argument

earned.  One cannot               that best suits the case.   

end well if one has                            The most obvious are

argued ill.                                                                               'Argument as quarrel' and 'Argument as reasoned demonstration.' 

2. Avoid vague and                             2. Choose the most logical

sweeping assertions                          order for the elements of

about the argumentive                       the judgment. 

process.   

3. In short judgments,                       3. Use headings to re-enforce

end without fanfare.                                      the order if the judgment is long and complicated. 

4. In long Judgments,                        4. Keep constantly in mind

consider the virtues of                      the reader's need for

summary or a weighted                     orientation.  Provide a

summary at the                                  clear statement of the

conclusion.                                        issues at the outset, and

                        provide clear transitions

                                                            from sentence to sentence,

                                                            paragraph to paragraph,

                        and section to section.

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Judicial styles  -  Judicial writing style is not entirely a  matter of choice. It is dictated in part by the occasion, by the needs of a specific audience, by the material, by the judicial role. 

It is also dictated, of course, more subtly, by habit, by unconscious preferences and by times. 

A choice of a style implies something important about one's relation to the subject at hand, to the audience, and to the judicial role.  In this sense, style creates a persona, represents a self. 

The plain style has five main characteristics : 

1.         Simple diction. 

2.         Spare use of figures of speech. 

3.         Short sentences. 

4.         Simple structures. 

5.         Transparency [the style does not call attention to  itself]. 

Further Tips for judgment writing 

1) Bryan A. Garner: it’s impossible to separate good writing from clear thinking”.

2) What’s also important is letting the meaning choose the words and not the other way around. One must remember that words are only the means to an end.

3) Nearly two-thirds of the sentence can be cut without any loss in meaning whatsoever, but with enhanced speed, clarity, and impact by rephrasing it.

4) Some words phrases can be easily discarded as superfluous in the interest of ease of understanding.

5) Talk in active voice as far as may be and not passive voice.

6) Avoid double negatives (“I cannot say that I don't disagree with you.”)

7) Use maps, pictures, lists, clear headings.

8) Refrain from adding details that would have no bearing on the case, for example the incident took place at 0.00 hours on 1 January, 2019, if otherwise, timing/chronology is uncontested and not important for the outcome of the case. Same for sections and provisos.

9) False elegance

Recognize that unfamiliar words of any length will confuse, rather than impress, readers. Consider this rule of thumb: If you can’t say it, don’t write it. If the word is a stumbling block in speech, it probably will be hard to digest in writing.

10)Facts should be stated as simply as possible. The shortest distance between two points is a straight line, so there is no point beating about the bush.

11) As stated earlier, BEGIN the editing process upon completion of — not during — the first draft. Make your primary target the culling of unneeded words. That practice frees you to focus later upon making other kinds of improvements — those related to organization, context and style. 

11) Judgments are, more than anyone else, written for the losing party. Therefore, it is very important to adequately highlight and deal with the Losing Party’s Position  and further demonstrate, with clarity, the Flaws in the Losing Party’s Position.

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