Point Made: How to Write Like the Nation's Top Advocates

338 Pages·2011·0.87 MB·English

by  Ross Guberman

Point Made
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Point
Made
How to Write Like
the Nation’s Top Advocates
Ross Guberman
1
1
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Guberman, Ross.
Point made : how to write like the nation’s top
advocates /Ross Guberman.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-19-539487-0 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Legal briefs—United States. 2. Legal composition. I. Title.
KF251.G83 2010
808’.06634—dc22
2010022481
______________________________________
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Printed in USA on acid-free paper
To Heidi, Sean, and Meghan
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Contents
Acknowledgments xxi
Introduction xxiii
P A R T O N E
The Theme
1
1. Brass Tacks: Explain “who, what, when,
where, why, how” 3
Eric Holder, In re Chiquita Banana
Brendan Sullivan, Greg Craig, and Nicole Seligman,
Calvin Klein Trademark Trust v. Linda Wachner
Fred Bartlit, Pinpoint v. Amazon
Bernie Nussbaum, IBP v. Tyson Foods
2. TheShortList: Number your path to victory 9
A. Your list is governed by factors or rules
Seth Waxman, MercExchange v. eBay
B. You need to address threshold questions before
addressing the merits
Ted Olson, Robinson v. Bowen
C. Your dispute is complex or fact-driven
Maureen Mahoney, Grutter v. Bollinger
Maureen Mahoney and Greg Garre,
Christian Legal Society v. Martinez
Larry Tribe, Gratz v. Bollinger
Brendan Sullivan, United States v. Forbes
D. You need to regain the offensive in response to your
opponent’s arguments
Kathleen Sullivan, SEC v. Siebel Systems
Herbert Wachtell, NFL Enterprises v. Echostar Satellite
David Boies, Weinstein v. Smokewood Entertainment
3. WhyShould I Care?: Give the court a reason to want
to fi nd for you 21
A. The fear of misconstruing a doctrine or statute
Carter Phillips, Miller-El v. Dretke
Stephen Shapiro, Stoneridge Investment Partners v. Scientifi c Atlanta
Barack Obama, Tyus v. Bosley
B. The fear of creating new duties, rules, or defenses
Jamie Gorelick, Carrington v. Duke University
Larry Tribe, Michigan Civil Rights Initiative Committee v. Coalition to
Defend Affi rmative Action, Integration and Immigrant Rights and to
Fight for Equality by Any Means Necessary
Larry Lessig, Warner Bros. Entertainment v. RDR Books
C. The fear of reaching an unfair result or causing harm
Greg Craig, United States v. Conrad Black
Bernie Nussbaum, Judith Kaye v. Sheldon Silver
Paul Clement and Greg Garre, F CC v. Fox
Kathleen Sullivan, FCC v. Fox
Kathleen Sullivan, FCC v. Fox
Ted Olson, MGM v. Grokster
Paul Smith, Keepseagle v. Veneman
4. Don’t Be Fooled: Draw a line in the sand 32
Ruth Bader Ginsburg, R egents of the University of California v. Bakke
Walter Dellinger, Rumsfeld v. FAIR
John Roberts, Smith v. Doe
Morgan Chu, Tivo v. Echostar
Mary Jo White, Trump v. O’Brien
Richard Wiley, In re XM-Sirius Merger
Nancy Abell, Jackson v. Microsoft
Roy Englert, Federal Insurance Company v. Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
John Payton and the NAACP, In re Alper Holdings USA
Ted Wells, Terra Firma v. Citigroup
P A R T T W O
The Tale
41
Fred Bartlit, Stumpf v. Garvey
5. Panoramic Shot : Set the stage and sound your theme 43
Ted Wells, Terra Firma v. Citigroup
Carolyn Lamm, Inversiones & Servicios, S.A. de C.V. v. Barceló
Hospitality USA
Joe Jamail, In re Sunbeam Securities Litigation
viii Contents
Larry Tribe, Coalition to Defend Affi rmative Action v. Granholm
Andy Frey, BMW v. Gore
Carter Phillips, Fifth Avenue Presbyterian
Church v. City of New York
6. Show, Not Tell: Let choice details speak for themselves 49
John Roberts, Alaska v. EPA
John Payton and the NAACP, In re Alper Holdings USA
Pattie Millett and Tom Goldstein, United States v. Stevens
Harvey Miller, In re General Motors
Eric Holder, Butler v. MBNA
Steven Shapiro and the ACLU, H udson v. Michigan
7. Once Upon a Time: Replace dates with phrases that
convey a sense of time 58
Larry Tribe, Coalition to Defend Affi rmative
Action v. Granholm
Eric Holder, Butler v. MBNA
Greg Garre, Weber v. Infi nity Broadcasting
Fred Bartlit, Stumpf v. Garvey
Morgan Chu, eBay v. IDT
8. Headliners: Use headings to break up your fact section
and to add persuasive effect 61
Department of Justice, U nited States v. Stewart
Seth Waxman, In re Winstar Communications
Ted Wells, Terra Firma v. Citigroup
Fred Bartlit, Stumpf v. Garvey
9. Back to Life: Center technical matter on
people or entities 64
Seth Waxman, MercExchange v. eBay
Carter Phillips, Lucent Technologies v. Gateway
Interlude: Gauging your brief’s readability
10. Poker Face: Concede bad facts, but put them
in context 67
Larry Lessig, Aguiar v. Webb
Ted Olson, Citizens United v. United States
Carter Phillips, Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church v. City
of New York
11. End with a Bang: Leave the court with a fi nal
image or thought 70
Brendan Sullivan, Brendsel v. OFHEO
David Boies, Weinstein v. Smokewood Entertainment
Contents ix