Legal Writing

The Bestest Law Firm — Part I

In my line of work, a typo or grammatical error can be catastrophic. Publishing an error that editors are expected to Catch & Correct just wrecks my marketing efforts.

Now, most big law firms advertise that they have (and always seek) the most capable attorneys from the nation’s most prestigious law schools. Turn to the employment section of a big firm’s Web site, and you’re sure to see some emphasis on communications skills required of attorneys seeking employment at these big firms.

Consider this statement from the employment section of the Kenyon & Kenyon Web site:

The firm seeks candidates with excellent written and interpersonal skills, . . . .

That’s precisely the sort of mistake I can’t afford to make, not if I want people to hire me for my writing and editing skills.

Attorneys have writing skills, not written skills!

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While most big law firms say they require their attorneys to have strong communication skills, many of them don’t seem to mind sloppy writing on behalf of the firm.

Consider a few lines from how Kenyon & Kenyon describes its E-Commerce and Information Technology practice:

Internet and information technology has affected the daily lives of all of us. Whether a young start-up company with nothing but an idea or an established multinational powerhouse, each new innovation brings with it tremendous potential rewards, but also hides risks for the unwary. 

The firm brings together a wealth of relevant technical and legal experienced attorneys to partner with our clients and steer them safely through this relatively new minefield.

Not content to sit on our laurels, our attorneys not only stay on top of new legal developments in the field but also teach others at our in-house practice group meetings and in the community through our active participation of lecturing and presenting at numerous professional organizations in the field.

Those lines defy the firm’s claim that it uses, in part, “clear communication” to “provide the best client representation.” 

Not only that, but the fact that those lines have been at the firm’s site for five years suggests that either the firm’s attorneys don’t care that the firm’s site is chock full of poorly written copy, or they don’t even know about it; i.e., they never even bother to look at the firm’s Web site.

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Consider the following line from the firm’s Web site:

The firm is equipped with the most preeminent intellectual property litigation group in the country.

The problem here is two-fold: 

1. Preeminent means best, and so the term most preeminent is equal to most best, or bestest, which is a queer way to express superiority.
2. The claim violates bar association rules.

The firm has an office in New York, and an office in Washington, D.C. The New York Code of Professional Responsibility and the District of Columbia Rules of Professional Conduct prohibit lawyers and their firms from making statements that cannot be “factually supported” (NY) or “substantiated” (DC).

To claim to have the bestest attorneys in the country is to make a subjective, boastful claim (and to do so with some pretty poor grammar). More, it says you can’t or won’t or don’t care to follow the rules.

Full post as published by Set in Style on July 28, 2009 (boomark / email).