Course description and
syllabus
General description of the course:
This is a one credit intensive course in legal writing and
written advocacy.
Class policies:
There will be some classes where
the students will work briefly on writing exercises. There will be others where the
classes will be in lecture format, but with strong interaction with the
students. High quality participation is encouraged.
Please note that in order to pass this course, you must attend every
class, for the whole class. Any absences must be explained with strong reasons offered.
The only assigned readings will concern factum-writing, which is the main topic in the Saturday class. The readings will be available online and will be brief. Those that read the articles during the course will get far more out of the lectures.
Precedents and
materials will be available online and will be discussed in class. In order to
participate, students must bring a laptop computer to class in order to access
the materials wirelessly.
On October 1, 2014, this page will be amended to include a link at the top of the page to a short take home examination. The exam will consist of a short editing exercise and a request
to comment on a short six page factum -- how the factum could be improved. The examination is due at 17:00 on October 8, 2014. A hard copy should be submitted to Elizabeth Sanford and an electronic copy to BBLearn.
The instructors:
Justice Thomas Cromwell (Supreme Court of Canada) (bio) and Justice David Stratas (Federal Court of Appeal) (bio).
Topics to be covered in each class (subject to
change):
Friday, September 19, 2014 - 13:00 to 17:00
- Introduction: why written advocacy matters
-
The golden rule of writing: write for your audience
- Understanding the
judicial audience
- Understanding the client audience
- The basic rules of
writing
- Strategies for writing clear, direct and brief prose
- Making sentences and paragraphs connect
- Exercises
- Eliminating the fat
- Eliminating common problems
- Writinnnng
exercises: sentence construction
- Writing exercises: making paragraphs
connect; making sections connect
- Advanced writing techniques
-
Achieving emphasis without using bold or italics
-
Pleadings and notices of motion
- Serving and satisfying
clients and senior people in the office who do not write well
Saturday, September 20, 2014 - 9:00 to 16:00
- Factums: introductory comments
-
Factums: ethics, civility and professionalism
- How judges use factums
- What is persuasion and how to persuade?
- The
facts section: motions, trials and appeals; strategies for organization and presentation
- Managing detail: selection
- Managing detail: techniques
- Overviews and introductions
- Responding factums and replies: motionssss, trials and appeals
- Remedies section:
motions, trials and appeals
- Getting the little things right: Scheduuuules, references and authorities
- The law section: motions, trials and
appeals
- The role of oral argument
- Special considerations for Crown
counsel
- What trial judges expect
- Other documents: pleadings, opinion lettttters, reporting letters and emails
- Office politics
and client relationships: circulating your work for review
- Modern technologies and factums
- Questions: ask the judge anything!
Rough schedule for each class:
(Subject to
change)
(Note that the instructor mentioned is the lead, but the other will often interject and add commentary)
Friday, September 19, 2014
13:00 to 13:30: Introduction (TC) [notes to be posted on powerpoints page]
13:30 to 14:45 (approx.): Writing to persuade: the mechanics of clear, direct and brief writing (DS) [powerpoint to be posted on powerpoints page]
14:45 to 15:00 (approx.): Break
15:00 to 17:30: Writing to persuade: the mechanics of clear, direct and brief writing (cont'd); in-class exercises (DS) [powerpoint to be posted on powerpoints page]
Saturday, September 20, 2014
09:00 to 10:00: Introduction to factum writing; the ethics of factum writing (TC) [two powerpoints to be posted]
10:00 to 10:15: Persuasion: what is it? (DS) [powerpoint to be posted]
10:15 to 10:45: Drafting the facts section - general concepts (TC) [powerpoint to be posted]
10:45 to 11:00: Break
11:00 to 11:20: Drafting the facts section - some practical tips (DS) [powerpoint to be posted]
11:20 to 12:15 (approx.): Exercise - R. v. Cornell (TC/DS)
12:15 to 13:15 (approx.): Lunch
13:15 to 14:35: Drafting the overview statement (DS) [powerpoint to be posted]
14:35 to 15:30: Exercise - R. v. Cornell (TC/DS); short break during this period
15:30 to 16:15: Drafting the argument; special tips and tools (DS) [powerpoint to be posted]
14:35 to 15:30: Sweating the small stuff; final comments (TC) [powerpoint to be posted]
