Legal Writing Grammar Rules

Why This Matters

Legal writing isn't just about knowing the law—it's about communicating it with precision. Every brief, memorandum, and contract you write will be scrutinized by judges, opposing counsel, and clients who expect clarity and professionalism. You're being tested on your ability to transform complex legal concepts into prose that persuades, informs, and withstands challenge. The grammar rules in legal writing aren't arbitrary conventions; they're tools that determine whether your argument lands or gets lost in ambiguity.

These rules cluster around three core principles: clarity (can readers immediately understand your meaning?), precision (does every word do exactly what you intend?), and professionalism (does your writing command respect?). Don't just memorize individual rules—understand which principle each rule serves. When you encounter a grammar question on an exam or face a drafting decision in practice, ask yourself: "What problem does this rule solve?" That framework will carry you further than rote memorization ever could.

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Clarity: Making Your Meaning Unmistakable

Legal writing fails when readers must guess at your meaning. These rules eliminate ambiguity by ensuring your sentences communicate exactly one interpretation—the one you intended. Ambiguity in legal documents doesn't just confuse; it creates liability and loses cases.

Use Active Voice Instead of Passive Voice

• Active voice identifies the actor—readers immediately know who did what, which matters enormously when assigning legal responsibility
• Passive voice obscures agency and adds unnecessary words; "The motion was filed by the attorney" forces readers to work backward to find the subject
• Strategic exception: use passive voice deliberately when the actor is unknown, irrelevant, or when you want to de-emphasize blame ("Mistakes were made")

Avoid Run-On Sentences and Sentence Fragments

• Run-on sentences bury your argument—when multiple independent clauses collide without proper punctuation, readers lose the thread of your reasoning
• Sentence fragments lack a subject, verb, or complete thought, undermining your credibility and confusing your reader
• The fix: read sentences aloud; if you run out of breath or the thought feels incomplete, restructure

Use Pronouns Correctly and Avoid Ambiguous References

• Ambiguous pronouns create legal risk—if "it" or "they" could refer to multiple antecedents, courts may interpret the reference against your client's interest
• Pronoun-antecedent agreement requires matching in number and gender; "The corporation increased their profits" is grammatically incorrect (its profits)
• When in doubt, repeat the noun—clarity trumps elegant variation in legal writing

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Precision: Every Word Must Earn Its Place

Legal writing demands economy. These rules ensure that your prose conveys maximum meaning with minimum words, eliminating the verbal clutter that weakens arguments. Judges reading hundreds of pages per week have no patience for padding.

Write in Plain English Using Clear, Concise Language

• Brevity signals confidence—every unnecessary word dilutes your argument and suggests you're unsure which points matter most
• Convoluted sentences force readers to re-read, breaking their engagement with your reasoning
• The test: if you can cut a word without losing meaning, cut it

Avoid Legalese and Unnecessary Jargon

• Legalese alienates readers and often obscures rather than clarifies; "hereinafter referred to as" adds nothing that "called" doesn't accomplish
• Technical terms have their place—use them when they carry precise legal meaning, not when plain English works equally well
• Audience awareness matters: a brief to a judge differs from a letter to a client, but both benefit from accessible language

Avoid Nominalizations (Turning Verbs into Nouns)

• Nominalizations drain energy from sentences—"make a determination" is weaker and longer than simply "determine"
• Verbs convey action; nouns derived from verbs (decision, agreement, violation) force you to add weak supporting verbs like "make" or "reach"
• Common offenders: "give consideration to" (consider), "conduct an investigation" (investigate), "reach a conclusion" (conclude)

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Structure: Building Coherent Arguments

Readers follow your reasoning more easily when your writing has consistent internal architecture. These rules create the scaffolding that holds your arguments together. Structural consistency signals careful thinking.

Maintain Parallel Structure in Lists and Series

• Parallel structure means using the same grammatical form for each item in a list—all nouns, all verbs, or all phrases beginning the same way
• Non-parallel lists ("The defendant was reckless, negligent, and acted with intent") create cognitive friction that slows comprehension
• Contract drafting essential: parallel structure in numbered provisions prevents ambiguity about what modifies what

Use Appropriate Transition Words and Phrases

• Transitions signal logical relationships—however indicates contrast, therefore indicates consequence, moreover indicates addition
• Missing transitions force readers to infer connections between ideas, which risks misinterpretation
• Overused transitions become invisible; vary your choices and ensure each transition accurately reflects the relationship it describes

Use Consistent Tense Throughout a Document

• Tense shifts confuse chronology—readers lose track of when events occurred relative to each other
• Convention: describe facts in past tense, state legal rules in present tense ("The defendant drove recklessly. Negligence requires a breach of duty.")
• Within paragraphs, maintain tense unless the timeline genuinely shifts

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Mechanics: The Foundation of Professionalism

These technical rules may seem basic, but errors here undermine your credibility instantly. Judges and partners notice. Mechanical precision signals that you've attended to every detail of your argument.

Use Proper Punctuation, Especially with Commas and Semicolons

• Commas separate items in lists, set off introductory phrases, and mark non-essential clauses; missing or misplaced commas change meaning
• Semicolons connect closely related independent clauses and separate items in complex lists where commas already appear within items
• The Oxford comma (before "and" in a list) is standard in legal writing—its absence has caused costly litigation

Employ Correct Subject-Verb Agreement

• Singular subjects take singular verbs; plural subjects take plural verbs—this rule sounds simple but trips up writers with compound subjects or intervening phrases
• Collective nouns (jury, committee, corporation) are typically singular in American legal writing: "The jury has reached its verdict"
• Watch for distracting phrases: "The list of defendants is" not "are"—the subject is "list," not "defendants"

Use Proper Capitalization for Legal Terms and Titles

• Capitalize specific courts, statutes, and parties when referring to them by name: "the Court" (this court), "the Defendant" (this defendant)
• Lowercase generic references: "courts generally hold" or "defendants in similar cases"
• Follow Bluebook conventions for capitalizing terms in citations and textual references

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Professionalism: Meeting Modern Standards

Legal writing evolves with the profession. These rules reflect current expectations for ethical, credible, and inclusive legal documents. Outdated conventions mark you as behind the times.

Use Gender-Neutral Language

• Gender-neutral terms avoid assumptions and reflect the diversity of clients, judges, and colleagues you'll encounter
• Practical solutions: use "they" as a singular pronoun, alternate pronouns, use role-based terms ("the attorney," "the client"), or restructure sentences
• Outdated forms like "he" as a universal pronoun or "chairman" when gender is unknown signal inattention to professional norms

Properly Cite Legal Authorities

• Citations establish credibility—they show readers you've done the research and allow verification of your claims
• Follow Bluebook or jurisdiction-specific rules precisely; citation format errors suggest carelessness that may extend to your legal analysis
• Pinpoint citations (specific page numbers) demonstrate you've actually read the authority, not just skimmed headnotes

Properly Format Numbers and Dates

• Spell out numbers zero through ninety-nine in text; use numerals for larger numbers and in citations (conventions vary—know your jurisdiction)
• Date formats should be unambiguous: "March 15, 2024" not "3/15/24" which could be misread internationally
• Consistency matters: once you choose a format, maintain it throughout the document

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Quick Reference Table

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Self-Check Questions

1. Which two rules both address the problem of readers being unable to identify who performed an action? How do their solutions differ?

2. A partner asks you to "tighten up" a draft memorandum. Which three rules from this guide would you apply first, and why?

3. Compare and contrast the functions of parallel structure and transition words. When would you use each to improve a confusing paragraph?

4. You're drafting a contract provision that lists three obligations. What grammar rule is most critical to apply, and what's the risk if you ignore it?

5. An exam question presents a sentence using passive voice and a nominalization. Rewrite "A decision was made by the committee regarding the approval of the motion" using the principles from this guide.