Subject Index Legal Writing

Any point worth making belongs in the text, not a footnote.

Confusion caused by an omitted comma led to a huge judgment against a Maine employer. What do Illinois drafting guidelines say about Oxford commas?

From new IOLTA rules to a new official citation system, a range of important supreme court rule changes took effect from January through September of 2011.

Now the supreme court publishes the official version of Illinois cases - here's what it means.

Interviews with Supreme Court justices about effective advocacy are themselves good models.

You can use the online CFR to find the very latest regs and the LSA to verify their accuracy.

The recently redesigned Illinois state homepage is an improvement over its predecessor.

Fastcase's free application offers cases to iPhone and iPad owners.

See comments from our readers.

An appellate law clerk offers pointers and an insider's view of common brief-writing errors.

Expert help and skillful motion drafting can help defense counsel respond to prosecution "document dumping" in complex criminal fraud cases..

It takes time to train fledgling lawyers to write well. But the time you invest now will pay dividends later.

Don't let convoluted word order tangle your sentences.

These books and Web sites make mastering grammar…well, if not fun, at least less painful.

Don't know about the great legal Weblogs out there? Don't know what a Weblog is? It's time you learned. You might decide to be a blogger yourself one day.

Yes, you really do need a Web site, and these FAQs will help you make the most of it.

You've built a well-reasoned, well-argued edifice; don't sabotage your effort by neglecting the final flourishes.

Last month's column looked at the "prep work" necessary for a brief. This month, we focus on the framework.

Like a house, a brief needs a solid framework, intricate inner workings, and an attractive appearance.

Sorry, but proper citation format really does matter. Here's why.

As this cautionary tale illustrates, sometimes what you say to a client is less important than how you say it.

Sometimes 'tis nobler in the mind to keep thy mouth shut...

The observant couch-potato can actually learn a lesson or two from the tube about effective communication.

Using these six tips makes writing first drafts fun. Well, almost.

Is comma placement a lot like flower arranging for you ("let's see, one would look nice here")? If so, read on.

So when do you use "whom"? Our grammar review continues with adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, and pronouns.

Part two of our journey into the wonderful world of composition and grammar.