tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5360590339175234377.post842613288652724770..comments2012-05-09T17:41:16.848-07:00Comments on SEE YOU IN COURT!: ACCLAIM FOR "SEE YOU IN COURT"Bonnie Willdorfhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02194875830675790712noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5360590339175234377.post-26879760453508814432012-02-06T18:28:49.249-08:002012-02-06T18:28:49.249-08:00Hi Alyssa,
You are right of course. Good writing c...Hi Alyssa,<br />You are right of course. Good writing can even work with judges, that is unless they get jealous. And a good story always works with juries. My epiphany has come with circumstantial evidence. Despite the jury instruction that tells jurors that circumstantial evidence is as good as an eye witness, or maybe because there is a need for the instruction, we tend, as lawyers to thing of circumstantial evidence as a kind of second class citizen. But for novelists, it is really a goldmine for narrative. I am reminded how children view the world with awe while we adults take the very same sight for granted.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5360590339175234377.post-32444899078378037732012-02-06T17:23:44.561-08:002012-02-06T17:23:44.561-08:00I am also an attorney who writes fiction. You'...I am also an attorney who writes fiction. You're right about the need for both of observation, but I believe in legal writing you're telling a story designed to convince a trier of fact to take your client's position. A good lawyer is a natural storyteller, and many of my colleagues are wonderful raconteurs and comedians.<br /><br />Lawyers can benefit from writing fiction. In law school we are taught to write in convoluted, extended sentences using high-falutin' words to impress others with the quality of our education. I learned from writing fiction that judges and arbitrators appreciate simple, direct language. As I read once in an article in California Lawyer magazine, at the dinner table your wouldn't ask someone to "pass said salt," so why say it in your legal writing. When I simplified my language and sentence structure, I found judges not only found in my clients' favor, but complimented me on the clarity and quality of my legal writing.Alyssa Lyonshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01172921570843656414noreply@blogger.com