In-House Counsel

To get right to the point, you are what you write

By Rees Morrison

How a lawyer writes mirrors how that person thinks. Depth of understanding, force of reasoning, and clarity of expression all blaze from a person?s pen.

This blog has connected effective writing to effective lawyering in various ways (See my posts of May 13, 2007: writing instructors; Sept. 21, 2005: writing coaches; May 19, 2006: comparative styles of firm lawyes and law department lawyers; Feb. 8, 2006: maximum of two drafts; and June 12, 2005: ?a good lawyer sounds and writes like a lawyer.?). These posts, along with my defunct series on writing better, have all gone toward the quality with which one expresses oneself on paper (See my post of Jan. 4, 2008: why I stopped the writing posts.).

Other posts have talked about email, but more in the context of format and tone. I have also written generally about communication style (See my posts of June 20, 2007: working style of your boss.). Writing permeates almost everything an in-house attorney does; writing clearly increases productivity and boosts your value to your client.

To borrow from Continental Airlines, work hard, write well

Full post as published by Law Department Management on March 26, 2008 (boomark / email).