Persuasive Legal Writing
"If you can't write, you can't win."
"Good writing is rewarded so automatically that you don’t even think about it."
“Lucid, well-ordered writing can contribute immeasurably to a lawyer’s success. Strong arguments can escape attention when embedded in dense or Delphic prose.”
Daniel U. Smith
With over 40 years of specializing in civil appeals, Daniel U. Smith brings unparalleled expertise to teaching persuasive legal writing and consulting on appellate briefs and strategy.
- A.B. Princeton 1965
- J.D. Berkeley Law School 1968
- Executive Editor, California Law Review 1967-1968
- CAOC Amicus Curiae Committee Member
- Judicial Council Civil Jury Instructions Committee that Issued in 2003 the New CACI Instructions
- Certified Appellate Specialist
- 19 Appearances in California Supreme Court
- Admitted to Practice: U.S. Supreme Court; California Supreme Court; Illinois Supreme Court
- Clerk, Hon. Alfonso J. Zirpoli, USDC (N. Cal) 1968-1969
- Member, California Academy of Appellate Lawyers 1980-2024
- Founder, Law Office of Daniel U. Smith 1983-2017
Training & Consulting
Training in Persuasive Legal Writing; Consulting on Brief Writing and Appellate Strategy
Group Training
Group training is suitable for multiple participants from one law firm or bar association.
The first hour is devoted to developing empathy for the reader, explaining the importance of clarity and the value of brevity, simplicity, continuity, and specificity. Examples and exercises drive these points home.
The second hour is devoted to acquiring the writing and editing skills to produce a
document with clear headings, paragraphs, and sentences that embody brevity, simplicity,
continuity, and specificity. Examples and exercises demonstrate how participants can
write and edit to create the clarity that judges seek in legal writing.
Individual Training
Individual training is offered in eight one-hour sessions. The first four hours are
devoted to the writing principles in the manual, “Persuasive Legal Writing.”
The second four hours are devoted to editing legal documents prepared by the student and
by other lawyers or judges to manifest the four components of clarity: brevity, simplicity,
continuity, and specificity.
Consulting on Appellate Strategy
Mr. Smith offers clients the benefits of his 40 years as a Certified Appellate Specialist, representing clients in the U.S. Supreme Court, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, the California Supreme Court, and California’s Courts of Appeals. His consulting services address strategies for post-trial motions, notice of appeal and cross-appeal, designation of record, briefs, oral argument, and mediation to achieve the strongest position for the lawyer’s client.
Because Mr. Smith is retired, he does not offer legal advice and is not responsible for the ultimate content of any filing or for compliance with procedural rules and deadlines.
Consulting on Your Brief
Mr. Smith consults on the organization and editing of your brief. On organization, Mr. Smith will assist you in sequencing the sections of your brief in the order most likely to answer the judge’s questions as they arise.
Typically, the first section is comprised of “Introduction,” “Issues Presented” and “Summary of Argument.” The second section presents the “Procedural History” to the extent necessary. The third section is the “Statement of Facts,” and the fourth section is the “Argument.”
Regarding editing, Mr. Smith will conform your draft’s headings, paragraphs, and sentences to the four persuasive writing principles advocated in “Persuasive Legal Writing”—brevity, simplicity, continuity, and specificity.
Testimonials
Law Professors and Senior Partners
“A serious effort to improve one of lawyers’ most vital skills.”
Prof. Jesse H. Choper
Former Dean
U.C. Berkeley School of Law
“This manual should be required reading for every lawyer in America. The examples are terrific!”
Gerald F. Uelmen
Professor and Former Dean
Santa Clara University
School of Law
“No book better presents how to write with the clarity and vigor demanded of the successful practitioner.”
Robert M. Westberg
Pillsbury
San Francisco
“No book better presents how to write with the clarity and vigor demanded of the successful practitioner.”
Robert M. Westberg
Pillsbury
San Francisco