“the language of law must not be foreign tothe ears ‘of those who are t6 obey i” — Learned Hand, judge and legal philosopher “the louryer’s greatest woopon is clarity, and its whctstone is sucinctness” CHAPTER! INTRODUCTION | ~ dude Prettyman Purpose: ‘Be ableto define logal writing its types and categories. Bo able to name e-amples within exch category. 1, LEGAL WRITING ‘A. Definition — legal writing isthe kind of writing used, by lawyers, law professors, judges and other workers ip ‘he field of Jaw to express legal rights obligations and, ‘tinions 1B. ‘Types — leg writing may be informative, persuasive or functional 1. Informative writing conveys information ou an {seve involving the law or a person’ leal rights. This type of writing do 2 “pak vieaue-a cot of fasts regardless of who ik2 LEGAL WRITING Acompetney Bad Approach vslablelga tools to support his thesis These may be pins of evidence offored in court, sections of the ‘deisions_of the Supreme Court law, ona. ‘Bxamples: academic legal writing, motions, pleadings and argument section of the brief. 8. Functional writing is designed for a specifi uss ot ‘emul in law These are deeds, wills. contracts ot ‘taflsof laws and ordinances" which legally bind {hose involved. Some specif format, ceremony ot legal requirement may be present in this type of ‘writing. Ths type of writing need not be analytical hor persuasive. [tis enough to be accurate ang ‘complete yet understandable, Tl. TWO @ BROAD CATEGORIBS OF LEGAL WRITING AL Logal Analysis 1. Preditoe Analysis — [A predictive document deals with a legal question in 3 ways: a, Analysis — The fete snd lowe ate_analvzed anise ltey, The facts are then applied {asthe law (or Jurisprudence’, and they are ‘nierpeted_acsoing 1. the meaning ofthe law, * Prediction — ‘Theontcomeafthelegal question, whether positive or negative, is predicted. ‘e Recommendation — The writar, based on the facts and law, gives his advice or recommenda: tion aa fo what isthe best line of ation under thecirmumstances, ‘Bxamples: opinion memorandum written for senior partners and legal opinion letter for clients, ‘The pinion may be in favor or against the ‘question raised by the cient. Predictive documents belong tothe infor- ative type af legal writing. cone 3 sTRODUCTION. 2. Persuasive Analysis — A persuasive document attempts to persuade judge, arbiter or any other deciding authority Examples: pleadings, motions and brief B, Legal Drafting : ‘This is the functional type of legal writing. Here z or ws, ana ‘bandbooks. Among the examples are: contracts, deeds (eg. of sale or mortgage) wills and testaments for private ‘persons and laws, regulations and ordinances which bind ‘the publie In general Legal drafting requires ologal authority. A separate subject inthe lat curviculum, “Legal Forms,” deals with ‘egal drahing. MIL, DEFINITION OF TERMS A. Memorandura— iterally tobe remembered” is paper that explains and summarizes specific points of law for 8 judge for another attorney or raion, Pleading — The farmal “The specific papers by ‘which te allegations of parties toa lawsuit are presented in proper form, specifically, the complaint of = plaintift fand the angeer-of-a-dofondant plus any additional ‘responses to those papers that are authorized by law." 778k memoranda hing tobe emember et Zing of meme ‘ands gece menrar alto nd ram mes nl eo mem $5 Orkin. sword win tthe topo ot by 1542 Kea to and ‘bower Omine Rome Die, brea ond, ‘Solansemaneran, let ysl Nerear 20 “Hnieadcocary betedionrycxc Wt vite: November ‘na, Ona a ancent Band, prt opposed Uneven ‘Rbwnel eh eysioed tir st Phir worted wel noah in ha cut ‘limb acu were er bac vein eee, ba re ‘Sau curiae King Sense ref. Frm te the far (Sho tele the neath cetyl ral cars bepan mer ed more 1 dsmand wen pangs hate party pnton nese.ea] 0A warren compen Rose Approach Motion — A.swritten or oral application made to 2 court, ‘orjudge taobiain a raling ar order directing thatsome act ‘bedane inavor ofthe applicant. The applicant is known, ‘a the moving party, oF the movant. Examples: ‘A motion to dismiss asks the court to diamisa an ‘action because the initial pleading, or eamplaint, fails to state a cause of ation or claim for which the law prov'des ‘a remedy. i ‘A motion for summary judgment, also known as ‘4 motion for judgment om the pleadings, asks the court ‘to make a judgment solely on the facta set coth in the pleadings, without the =occssty of tral. A eourt will ‘ant a summary judgment motion when the material facts ofthe ease are notin dispute and all that remains to ‘be determined are questions of law. Brief ~ A yritten docu:ren drawn up by an aoeney for, ‘apart in. lawanicor by appearing pro se that concisely states he fllrseing 1. issues of lawsuit; facts that bring the partes to cout; relevant laws that ‘can affect the subject of the te; and 3 | : 5 i F F + 5 F {some error or impropriety-that occurred during the {tial A statement of the issues presented for review, @ summary of how pertinent laws affect the fact, and & ‘Statement of the relief boing requested are ecscntil ‘laments of an appellate brit, The appellee's brief will cuarren 5 smRoDUCTION argue that the lower court acted propery in its judgment fand request its afirmance, while the appellants brie will attempt to convince the court to reverse or vacate the lower court's judgment because it acted improperly?CHAPTER II ‘SIMPLICITY “Plain language i, or should be, every bit as accurate and precise 1 traditional legal writing. It is clearer ~ considerably clearer. It fs unually shorter and faster. 1 strongly preferred by readers. I ‘mould greatly improve the image of lawyers." — Professor Joseph Kimble, Answering the Critiza of Plain Language "You are no iss a lawyer for being understandable” = Christopher T. Late Purpose: Be able to write simply. The student is expected to: a) use short sentences, asa rule; b) avoid wordy expreasions cliches and {autology; ) avoid elaborating on the obvion=# yet to Ube point soonest; ©) minimize the use of connectives and relative pronouns; 1 avoid convalnted word-constructions and g) replace mulisyllaLie terms with shorter, more understandable words. ELEMENTS OF LECAL WRITING ‘The elements of legal writing are: ) simplicity; b) laity, and e) persuasiveness. A. Simplicity Simplicity in writing means to write plainly and simply. To observe the rules on “economy of expression,” ‘each sentence must say what the writer means and means ‘what the writer wants to aay. Convoluted words and ‘word-constructions mit be avoided. This is best done by preferring shorter sentences, and choosing shorter words. ‘Repetition must aleo be avoided as much as posible. component. Every word that serves no function, every Tong word that could bea short word, every adverb which ‘carries the same meaning that i already in tho verb, weakens the sentence, We are a society strangling in Tinnecessary words, circular constructions, pompous fils land meaningless jargon. ‘Who can understand che visrous language of every- day American commerce and enterprive: tae business lt- ter, the interoffice memo, the corporatin report, the no- ‘He from the bank explaining its latast “simplified” state- ‘ment? What member ot an insurance or medial pian can Aecipher the brochure that tell him what his costs and Trenefts ure? What father of mother ean put together @ cllld's toy on Christmas Eve or any othor eve ~ from the {nstrurtons un the box? Our national tendency isto in flate and thereby sound important. The airline pilot who ‘wakes us to announce that he is presently anticipating ‘Cxperiencing considerable weather wouldn't dream of saying that theresa storm aheed and it may get bumpy. ‘The sentence isto simple — there must be something wrong with it B. Use short sentences Lawyers generally write in long sentences. A com plain, say, for replevin' may eontain paragraphs consst- ‘ng of oniy one sentence. For examplet “The herin plaintiff is willing ond ready to give a bond pursuant to the Rules of Court ‘executed in fosor ofthe defendant inthe instant fase in an amount double the valuation ofthe “ulject personal property above described, and forthe teturm ofthe same property if tke rturn in, W080, Writing Wl An Infra Cui Writing Nonftion, New Yer Harpe ow, 8_LeGaL WRETING Acampetency Based Apron thereof be adjudgo?, and for the payment to the same defendant of such amount as he may ‘recover from the plaintiff inthe herein action.” ‘The senteree above contains 76 words inno les than 7 separate thoughts, Whereas a good sentence typically ‘contains only one main thought in less than 25 words. By “typically” means that a sentence may have more than ‘one thoaght. Its howev-r preferable to express only one for at most to though's in a statement. Long sentences make one» writing unwieldy and feat to understand. They tax she reader's concentra ‘tion and memory. He will have a hard time figuring our ‘what the writer wants to say ashe wades through thiek- ‘ts of main snd eubordinats clauses. Our sample state- ment may be rewritten: “The plaintiff is willing to give a bond double the value ofthe property. He likewise un Udertaes to return the prenerty tothe defendant ‘or pay him auch amount if adjudged todo s.” While short sentences are recommended, one may cccasionally use Tonger ones for variety Mark Twain [tdvised writers to stick to short sentences. However, he ‘added: “At tires (the writer) may indulge himself swith alors one, but he will make sure there are hn folds in i, no vagueness, no parenthetical Interruptions ofits viet a8 @ whole; when he ‘has done with it, it won't be @sea-serpent with half ofits arches under the water i wil Be a torcelight procession.” ©. Omit needless words ‘Simplicity and economy are good qualities to have in legal writing. One must therefore omit unnecessary words ened Ereet Goern Ph Compt Plain Word, 16657 st US. dy hey Cl Rn We 80) ced by Wri re cuarren ° ‘Spuicrry RULES 1. Avoid wordy expressions ‘Simpler construction is preferred than using too many words to express an ide. Wordy: ‘The ears were bought forthe purpose of starting taxi Dbasines.| y Concise: ‘The cars were bought to start a taxi busines. Worl, ‘The brothers succeeded in baking two huge ice-cream cakes. Concise: ‘The brothers baked two huge ice-cream cakes. Word ____ Goncise answered in the afirmative [suid yes inthe amount of Fn exen nin the event of in [if __the event that_ in the meantime in the near future in the neighborhood of im this pluce view ofthe Tact that sine, because large number of many [major portion of [ost taking into consideration the [since fact that [here ran bene doubt that [doubtless with the exception of except with reference to! with regard [about aoA warms ‘ACanpetne Bed Appreneh 2. Avoid elaborating on the obvious ‘This means do not expand or restate the obvious. I bores the reader with information he already has. Wordy: Annie Bantug’s two sons, Kenneth and Julio play judo, ‘Concise: Annie Bantugs sons, Kevin and Julio play judo, Wordy: Needless to say, you are your mother’s favorite. goes without saying, you are your mother's favorite, Concise: You are your mothers favorit. Wordly: A baby girl was born to Spa, Reyes, Concise: A girl was born to Spe. Reyes 8. Get to:the point Omit unnecessary prelininaries, Wordy: We are very proud and happy to announce that our ‘office won the golf championship this year, Concise: Our ofice won this years golf championship, Wordly: There is no doubt that some people will disagree ith me, int im my opinion, flzmly believe that Concise: I believe that teachers should not run anymore as PTA. ‘board members, 4. Avotd tautology ‘This means doing away with unnecessary repetition of an idea in aifferent words, Wordy: ‘The guests stood up during the flag ceremony. Concise: ‘The guests stood during the flag ceremony. Wordy: Please vole out your opinion, Concise: Please voice your opinion, couarrent ” Wore Concise [actually happened pened [advance planning planning fany and all, al i was barn isl waa bor efor in th past before cheap in pie [cheap [combined tgetier feombined feonneet vp, end up, finish up, — feonnec, end, Rais, jin liacusted ina tak diseased [during the course of during fesch and every ach fequaly as levery once a while cin. awhile fatal death {death final destination destination rst and foremost for the purport of in color hopeful optimism fotimism ie throng Ihrong itand when ‘ny opinion Think hin ide of inside Invited guest | long length of ine flong tine | et up with meet ir eallees of tod |moder allows jumerous in number numerous eres (or only) fone and the same Joe or the same] past history history [rarely ever rarely [requirements needed for [requirements for round in shape round seesaw back and forth leceaw — ens I Girt, Moder Bal Acton lings: LC. HEATH & CO.‘oA warns current 1 ACampetney Bae Apprnch Shruicrry Se lamall Word: Her version is a strange ome. and all stil Concise: Her version is strange. ithe two twine te Ewing [throughout the whole night [Usroughout the night. , The phrase the fact that is often unnecessary. hatally destroyed destroyed rue ets facts Wendy ona [unexpected windfall windfall [verdant (or verdant) dae owing tothe fact that [since because calling your attention to the fat that [reminding you 5, Bliminate certain phrases in spite of the fact that although‘though ‘2. Wordy sentences may be "ade shorter by liminat- My attention was not called to [1 was not aware that ine “there,” “that,” “which,” “who is,"“as to,"“it or “one.” ‘the fact that Wordy: ‘There were eight members ofthe faculty who attended the fact that you have not succeeded [your failure the meeting the fact that you had enrolled ___|yous enrolment Concise: Bight faculty members attended the meeting. Wordy: This is topic that interests me, Concise: This topic interests me, Words: Thememorandum which Isenttoyou last weekexplained {in detail the background ofthe cas. ‘The memorandum sent to you last week explained tho case background iz detail. Wordy: Her cousin, who is an ssociate of the same frm, isa (CPALlawyer. ‘Concise: Her cousin, an assciste of the same firm, is a CPA: myer: Wordy: He is a man who does not ike litigation, Concise: He dislikes tigation. Wordy: ‘The question as to whether you or your husband should Sle the divore in Switzerland, Concise: Whether yor or your husband files the divorce in Switzerland. Wordy: It is. recommended that the compromise agroement ‘which was signed on April 2, 2005 be enforced. Concise: ‘The compromise agreement of April 2, 2005 should be enforced. Wordy phrases may be shortenci by eliminating propositional phrases Wordy: the leader ofthe unit Direct: un‘tlecder Wordy: the treasurer ofthe homeowners association Direct: the homeowners association treasurer Wordy: the employee with innovative ideas Direct: the innovative emplayee ‘& _ Aphrasemaybeconverted toa wordorbeeliminated altogether? Wordy Concise [ns por our telephone conversation[as we said/iscusted [as sn as posible by specific date) [ns the capability lean. [ake into consideration [onside Gyan Bar, A Manages Cae Mode! Memos New Yor MIF Boks, 1996 413408. mo ana : wae = me oe = ry —— fe = ees =e in a sloppy manner slonpily — “Acsuccession of loose sentences: ee FES Sealers ake Tome = eee ee i i eee ere rae Se ered es eae cap Sean ey eeaaee Pea = = Soy cease ae Sere ee — ees ees co Sowemene 2 ose eee a a See ae 7 eee eee ee ee oe are theresa at food. dies | eee ae fe ee ee eee ae ao Sa ee es {paramere febout, on frm in town, 6. Minimize the use of connectives and relative pronouns ‘Some writers habitually string together two or more sentences using connectives and relatives, Connetives may be: a) coordinate ‘conjunctions such ax “»nd” and "but™ which join clauses of equal tank; orb) subordinate conjunctions such ass,” "beenuse,” “if” “that? “though? which connect to the principal clause a clause of ‘minor rank. Relative pronouns or “relatives” relate to an antecedent ‘and invroduces a qualifying clause, et, Tet my cousins who taught sme bowling Bxamploofrelatives: Subjective Possesaive ‘Objective [she whose. [whom [which lof which whieh Tike crinatingenjnctinn are or; nor fre and. Asshown, a single centence composed oflanco clauses joined by ‘connectives may be recat in simple centences The result preserves the orginal tzought‘low of the writer without taxing the reader to go through great lengths. If anything clarity and conciseness is achieved leo possible to jon two clauses with a semi-slon instead ot connective.(CHAPTER Ill CLARITY “There is nothing as mysterious as something clearly seen.” = Robert Prost “The pric: of clarity, ofcourse, is thatthe clearer the document ‘the more obvious its substantive deficiencies. For the lazy ‘or dll this price may e too high.” ~ Rood Dickerson, Professor of Lav, Indiana University Purpose: Students are expected to: a) use conerete instead of abstract terms, b when abstract terms could not be avoided, tobaek them up ‘with illustrative examples c) avoid wide gaps between subject verb ‘and object; d) avoid nested modifiers; e) avoid dangling mosiirs, ‘avoid ambiguous pronoun referencr; g) avoid punetuations which ‘cause ambiguity) apply the seven rales of clear writing. 1 cLaRITY Clarity in writing results when the writer is able to xpress exacly (and unambiguously) what he wans to be reflected on hia work. The last thing a writer would want isto Confuse his readers. On one love, clear writing involves clarity of expression and sentence structure. On another, deeper level ‘lavty refers wu eloarnecs of one's logic and arguments. Clear expression happens when what one thinks is ruflected on that which one has waitten. To cheek if this has hhappened, the writer must re-read his work and lok at it from the point of view of the ordinary reader. The writer must check for ambiguities, that i, i some terms may have more than one meaning. Generally, what is unclear forthe writer is likewise ‘unclear forthe reader couarrer ” ‘A cardinal principle lear writing isto be coneree. This will provent ambiguity and room for misinterpretatin. ‘Many Filipinas are in favor of contraceptives” is abstract. when compared to “a 2007 research conducted by the Univesity tf Eastern Vieay= shows that 75% of Filipinos above 21 are {in favor of using condoms.” When one eannot help using an abstract statement, this must be llowed by conerete examples. USE FAMILIAR AND CONCRETE WORDS. Aristotle said that: “Side io be good must be clear..that speech which fil to convey a plain meaning wil filo do just tehat speech has to do...Clearness is secsired by using words {nouns and verb alike) that areeurrent and ordinary.” Plain meaning is a by product ofthe use of definite and ‘words makes one's prose indefinite and vague. Example: Abstract ‘She sustained bereavement of her paternal relative Conerte Hor father died Abstract er counset failed to come because of the onset of inclement weather. Conerte Her counsel could not come due tothe storm. Abstract ‘You need agricultural implements to do thejob of planting Conerte ‘You need a spade to plant treeseo warns ‘Ncampeteney Basel Approach ‘Tho use of nighfalutin words is often an attempt to cover for one's inability tobe definite or specific. For instance “birds of the same feather flock tether” cam become “celestial denizens of identical plumage congregate in their own proximity" "The graphic deseripton in Exodus 8:7 of Moses inflicting ‘plague on Baypt which originally reads: “He lifted up the rod and smote the waters ofthe river..and all the watere that were inthe river were turned to blood. And the fish that were in the river dad; and the river stank, and the Egyptians could not drink the water of dhe river; and there was blood ‘throughout the land of Ey. the hands of sentimertal and florid writers may become: “The water was impacted by his rod, whereup on a polluting effect was achioved. The consequent Toxifcation reduced the conditions necessary for the Sustenance of the indigenous population of aqratie tertebrates below the level of viability. Olfactory dis- ‘comfort standards were substantially exceeded, and potability declined. Social, economic and political tisorientation were experienced fo an unprecedente degree” ‘Thus, why say: “member of the feline family” when one is only talking about a “cas,” or say he “rendered a negative response on the subject of my solicitations” when tohet one means is he dented my request.” AVOID WIDE GAPS BETWEEN SUBJECT, VERB AND OBJECT A. Gaps ‘A sentence normally consists of a subject and a verb, withthe object Gf any) following the verb, ea, The Tawgyer shouted atthe witness, Ifthess three are placed in TF a, at order and near one another, the sentence becomes easily Understandable. Pulling modifiers between the subject land verb or between the verb and its objeet makes for tedious writing ‘With gap between subject and verb: “The plains, disgusted at how long it took {forthe court to deide such a simple eectment case, ‘ile a motion for early resolution.” Improved: “The plaintiff fled a motion fr early resolution. He was disgusted at ths court’ delay in resolving i simple ejectment ens.” 1B. Modifying the modifiers Partculacly avoid “nested modifiers” which modify ‘the modifier. When this happens, ake away the “nest” of ‘modifiers and make a separate sentence. ‘With Nested Modifier: “Antonieto Doro, who ‘as defendant’ unl ‘and smmong those defrauded Sy him, Bled before te court closed for Christmas vacation a Motion to Interven.” Improved: “Defendants ree, Antoniato Doro, Med a Motion io Tatecrcne before Une sourt closed [or Christmas vacation. He was among those (efrauded by defendant” Poor: “Maria, who at that time was carrying bundle of newiy-rinsed clothes some of which belong to plaintiffs son, while trying to eseape through the Dack gate, was caught by the plaintiff there.” Improved: “Maria was caught by the plaintif athe back gato as she tried to escape. She exrried a bundle‘ea wren. Acompetney Base Approach of newly-rinsed dathes, some of which belonged to plaints son(passive) The plaintiff eaught Maria atthe back gate 8 ‘he tried to escape, She carried a bundle of newly- Finsed elothes, sme of which belanged to plaintiff's son" (active) IV. AVOID MISP:ACED OR DANGLING MODIFIERS A. Concept ‘A modifier is a word or phrase that desribos or gives ‘more detail about a concept. A dangling modifier attempts to clarify a word not clearly stated in the sentetse. As a ral the writer has a fair amount of freedom where t9 place his modifier in sentence, eg, He edited the letter quickly He quickly edited the letter. Quickly, he edited the ltt In the above example, the thought ofthe sentence semains, When a modifier is misplaced, the meaning ‘changes singe the modifier appears to describe the wrong. ‘thing: For exampie: New Dalahit Municipal Elementary School (hich ie “ne,” “DalakitY or the “Elementery Seno") Our policy is to give our buyers the lowest possible prices and workmanship. (Surely the sop- ‘owner means "to give our buyer. worknvanship at lowest possible pics”) “Mental Health Prevention Center.” (A sign in ‘a hospital clearly containing a misplaced modifier. ‘What it means is probably “Mental Health Disease Prevention Center”) “Ribbos-eutting ceremony” (Better: “Cuting of the Rikbon Ceremony,” as its the ribbon being ext, ‘ot the ribbon that does the eutting) ‘CAgTY 1B. Rules in revising dangling modifiers 1 Place single-word modifiers near the word or phrases ‘that they modify, especialy if the modifier tends to ‘gerbe the wrong word. Poor: He almost ate all the,deserts in the party (here the subject as not yet eaten) Better: He ate almont all the desserts in the party. Poor: ‘The judge could understand the Hocano spoken ‘by the witnestes easily ‘Query: Did the judge understand “easly” or Aid the witnesses spoke “easily” Better: ‘The judge coul easly understand the Moeano spoken by the witnesses. Likewise, place the modifying phrase or clause closest to the word it modifies. Misplacing these modifiers next to the wrong word often seeentally ‘changes the meaning ofthe seutenc. For exemple: Poor: I heard that my wife intexded to throw & surpriee birthday party for me while I was outside her office window. Better While I sas outside her office window, heard that my wife intended to throw a surprise birthday party for me. Poor: “Three television sets were reparted stolen by the Dalahit City police yesterday.”ace wars Acampetney Bad Aporonch Better: “The Dalakit City police reported that three television sats were stolen yesterday.” ‘The wrong placement of modifiers ean have bourd results. For example: Poor: “Calf born to farmer with two heads” Better: “Calf with teo heads born to farmer” Poor “Paling a thousand feet from the cliff we finally saw Pagsonjan Falls.” Better: “We finally saw Pageanjan Falls falling thousand feet from the cliff” 8. By categorically naming the doer, « dangling modifier ean be eliminated. For example: Poor: Having finished washing the dishes, the door tune closed: ‘Since the doer of the action expressed in the participle having finished” was not clearly stated, The partcipial phrase becas:e a dangling mesifer. ‘The modifier modified nothing since obviously it was Tot the “door” that finished washing t= dishes. Better: Having finished washing the dishes, Mortha closed the door. \V. AVOID THE AMBIGUOUS PRONOUN REVERENCE A. Concept Careless use of pronouns can result in ambiguity problems, This occure when the writer allows multiple coupren 2 can antecedents as possible references to a single pronoun. Pronouns, when not placed properly, can point to <> fwrong noun thereby” changing the meaning of the ‘Mintence, et, "Your skills will surely benefit your friends obo mure to use them? The antecedent of them may be “lle or friends” making the sentence ambiguous How to avoid ambiguous pronoun reference 1, Toavoid confusion, ane must rephrase the sentence tn dearly identify the antecedent. For example: Poot: Robert’ father will use hia cor forthe pind, {snot clearly stated here if whose ear ill be used.) Better: Robert's father will ase Roberts car for the pieni, (if referring to Robert oF) Robert’ father will use the latter's ear forthe lente, (reforring tthe father) ‘2, Dernonstrative pronouns such as this, that, these, there, them should only be used when the antecedent is definitly established. or example: Poor: Repressed jealousy and hatred among brothers and sisters i counterproductve. You must get rid of ‘them, (Aoea he ref to jealousy and hatred o the siblings? Better “Repressedjacloury and hatred among siblings is counterproductive. You must get rid of these feelings. Sometimes the use of demonstrative pronouns is inherently ambiguous because the antecedent is not given but assumed,‘LecaL wRIMING -ACampetench Bese Apron For example: Poor: ‘That ie what I have been waiting to hear from you, (What does that refer to) Better: That pnrase “love thy neighbor” is what I have ‘been waiting t hear from seu. ‘VL. PUNCTUATIONS MUST AVOID, NOT CAUSE AMI- curry Punctuations are mars in written communication used to help the reader better understand the matcsal. One such ‘use sta eliminate ambiguly. Reckless use of punctuation ean Ihave abeurd results, ‘The ceral comma, which is used before the conjunction and or or in list of three of ore items, is a ease in point ‘Without the serial comme, the Governor and the President become codeachers the author inthis statement: “The wr‘er| aratefully acknoseledges the invaluable help of his co-teachers in the State Un‘versity, the Honorable Governor and the President ofthe Republic of the Philippines.” Wore, the sentence implies that the Philippine president 18 provincial governor atthe fcme time, The ambiguity can be cured by putting a serial Suinma after “governor” et, “the Honorable Governor, and the President ofthe Republic of the Phitppines” ‘The following sentence is ambiguous’ “I cook banano, carro, ube and chocolate cahes.” The reader would not know ‘if three or four cakes are being talked about. Putting a comma ‘fter “ube” indicates thatthe “ube,” and “chocolate” cakes are ‘separate (On the other hand, reckless use ofthe serial comma also results in ambiguity, eg, "he writer gratefully acknowledges the intaluable help of his mother, the Honorable Provincial Governor Else Eyplera, and the President ofthe Republic of the Philippines” Here, the author unwittingly made itappear that ‘the lady Governor is his mother when such isnot the ease eee cents So coapren = ‘CLARE ‘To avoid both eases from occurring, the sentence has tobe rephrased to avoid listing the items in an ambiguous manner. For example, after “mother,” put the emjunction "as wel as,” taf, his mother as well asthe Honorable Provincial Governor Elie splera..” ‘VIL. RULES IN CLEAR WRITING A. Beclear on your point ‘Good legal writing, asin all od communication for that matter, requires thatthe author must have a point, find ts clear sbout it, Writers who are not sure what they ‘want to say eannot be understood. Their work appears to Tamble, with the reader not knowing where he or she headed. ‘There are three ways to know when one is unsure of ths or her point: a) by over-dearbing the background to what one wants to say; b) hy being unsure whether one Teor or against a certain tape; and e) having too many points within one work, 1B. Make sure your point is communicated at once ‘As important as having # point, is to go direct to the point in one's paper. There is no use heving a log {Introduction and thea stating one point near the end. By this tim: the reader is either tired or puzzled not knowing, ‘where the material is headed, €. Have a structure, This is wisere you put your data, ‘analysis and argument "The inirodction, for example, must already contain ‘agummary or abstract ofyour work. The background must ‘nly be short overview ofthe problem cx legal concepts to De discussed, Extending an explanation ofthe background tll ie the reader, and wil give an impression that the Deckground is already the main concept discussed by the paper, The facts of @ particular case under study must ‘nly cite relevant detail. Putting in more will make the reading tedious. The analysis will discuss the writer's frguments. Here, the writer will cite facts, profs and teidenee supporting position Hie may alsocite counter proofs against his postion, and discuss how these wouldcompen Based Approach {all short of the writer's arguments Ifthe analysis covers many areas that may be broken into sub-parts, and each part is digcuased separately, the paper must end with a {hort conclusion which isa summary of the main analysis presented, Observe grammatical rules ‘This cannot be overemphasized. Non-observance of the rules on grammar subjeets the writer to a whole Tot of accusations: from being sloppy and Inzy to being ‘uneducated, and worse, someone who writes not sensical’. ‘Grammatical rules shall be treated in a separate chapter. Be previse Know the exact meaning of the term. If che term is. scientific or lyal and has a technieal meaning, know both its ordinary and technical meaning. Never use a term because it “sounds” right, particularly when you are not Sure of its definition. To be sure, eonsult the ditionary. Also, avoid lgalese. A separate chapter is devoted to legalese. Be Consistent ‘Are my tenses consistently present, or consistently in the past? From whose point of view am T coming from? Who are my irsented readers? Be logical and clear in your argument [As a writer, one must be clear beforehand whether fone is deseribing or arguing I the paper argues on Something, it ie must be made clear beforehand. The thesis statoment must be stated fromthe very beginning to guide the readers what the writer is arguing for oF ‘against. Unless the writer is lear with what he or she intends todo the paver will not be clear to the renders. Rales on argumentation (and “persuasiveness") on paper willbe discussed separately. CHAPTER IV PERSUASIVENESS “Ifyou wish to win a man over to your eas, frst make him your rand.” Abraham Lincoln Purpose: ‘Tobe able to write persuasively by using any ofthe four modes of logal reasoning” &) rue-hared Feascring, b) anctogical an the ounteranalogcal reasoning); e) policy-based reasoning; and d) the ‘arative reasoning 1. PERSUASION Persuasion isa process where people are guided towards the adoption of an iden or course of action. In legal writing ft peruasive document attempts to influence the deciding ftulorty to favorably deide the ease in favor of one's cient, ‘The deciding euthorty is usually the judge. However, he may also be the arbiter in an arbitration dispute), commissioner, Fearing fice, mediator or the other party tothe dispnte. I. MODES OF LEGAL REASONING ‘Reasoning ia the process of drawing conclusions trom facts or evidence. To reach the desired conclusion, arguments ‘nd proofs may be used, ‘There are four modes of legal reasoning: a) rule-based reasoning }) analogical (and the counter-enalogieal reasoning); ‘Sy pliey boced reasoning, and ) the narrative reasoning. A. Rule-based seasoning Invule-based reasoning, Une conclusion is reached by anclyzing and applying the law, rale or legal principle. ”_Acompeteny Based Apprech Example: ‘The law says: contract is annullable where one of the partes is incapable of giving consent to a contract! ‘Albert "yas seventeen when he signed the contract. ‘Therefore, Albert should not be bound by the contract ‘because he signed it when he was a minor. B. Analogical (and, by extension, the “counter-analo- ‘FicaD”) reasoning ‘There are three posse types of analogical aru ment 1. Arguing from precedent. This type of analogical argument hhappens. when the conclusion is reached by showing ‘dimlaritign betwee the ease decided by the Supreme Court and the eave ofthe cient. This is usually achieved hy invoking the doctrine of stare decisis” ‘The lawyer reasons by showing that there is dirvet factual similarity between the case decided upon by the high court and his clients ease. If the Supreme Court decided the case this way, then the client's ease must be ‘deided this way due to the similarities of facts. To put Weonversely, my client's case Phould be decided in this, manner" beeause after al, the Supreme Court ina case of Similar facts also decided inthis manner.” Example Inthe ease in question, Mario was ssteen when he signed the contrat in 2009, However belie about his age by misrepresenting himself to be 20. Ina case of similar facts, Mercado v. Espiritu? the Supreme Court declared the deed of sale valid, snd eannot be annulled in spite the “GRELOODE, Art. 1a00 tae: “The long sores ar ale am tates mg thre may ve Denno ama tte ecractng ar) FRUMS\ afte par weal ot grin eae os eon A, TOP =ReTeving cane ge comet te cotoc () Unemancaed mors “Bhar dcr non pis mower” hand ty Uh eco 0 Sar ot what alah Sve Dec ie dnsioe tay whm the curt a eed {Bho sinc tina pic erin wae of et wl adhere oak risa opty tar tne wre he faci are substantial te ame evernmentSalandou 440.6800 curren y = PEREUASIVENESS fact that two of the four partios were minors, The reason {their misrepresentation about their age amounted to ‘ctoppel They cannot be made to benefit fom their bad ith 2. Argument ofsame legal application. Analogical reasoning ‘may also be used to show similarities that if the law fppliee one area, it may be understood to apply to other nila areas na cage that attemps to impose damages tn the seller of immovable or real property for failing to Aisclose « mujor defe-t ofthe property, the lawyer might fargue thatthe law has imposed such duty on sellers of jetsonal property a8 well, He might argue that rule for Fal and personal properties are the same. a. Mutatis Mutandis Mutat mutandis! an example of argument ‘using the wame legal application. This happens when tne compares multiple situations having multiple Variables where some variables remain constant, while others ar allowed tobe changed. For examale, the injunetion in the ten commandments “Thou shalt fot covet thy neighbor's wif” will apply mutatis mutandis vo "thy neighbe-s husband” as wel ‘Aartcle 11 of "The Law ofthe Sea” states: “The right of hot yuceult shall apply ‘mutatis mutandis to violations in the exclusive economic zone oF fon the continental shelf, iniuding safety zones ‘tround continental sbelf installation, of the laws find regulations “f bo coastal State applicable in ftcordance with this Convention to the exclusive fcenomie zone of the continental shelf, including ‘suc safety zones. 3. Argument using common sense analy. Analogical ‘rguments may be used by staring with something that tveryone acepts. Gari rt feqity whieh render a admins representation ‘out on th esos mang and pean tom eninge samen ‘Sadapusaea yoy ne led thre Sogo sen 6206973. i “The ncaa eget ae eR ete Tama toe La fh Se) ARTICLE 11: Satin 2aca was Acompeteney Based Apron Example: ‘A person might argue that death penalty must be restored beeause the body of society is just ike the body of ft pervon. Ifa man has severe tooth ache, the logical way {stocextract the tooth, A heinous criminal i just like the ‘aad tooth b. Counter-analogical reasoning Cozter analogical reasoning is the opposite of analogical reasoning. While the later concludes by pointing out the similarities, counter-analoyical reasoning concludes by pointing out relevant ‘iffrencee between the case and the client's fats. Counter analogical reasoning is usually used to Aicbunk or destroy the other partys prior use of ‘analogical reasoning, by stating that the case cited ‘and the client’ situation are actually different, th fo common conclision ean be inferred from’ born situations Example ‘The opponent might use counter-analozical reasoning by saying that in the Mereado v. Espiritu Case, the minor’ representation misled the other party for ater =Il, the minors had passed the age Of puberty and truly leoked like adults, While in ‘the other ease, even if Mario, the seller, ied about his age, there ia x2 wav the buyer could be misled because the ataio Is a baby-faced sixteen year ol "That the seller has not passed the age of puberty, ‘and neither does he look like an adult. Thus, there ‘are no factual smilies in bth eases. {In the tooth-extraction case as an analogy why death sentence should be imposed, the opposing party who ie against death penal.y might reason Sing counter analogy by saying satrically that if “my tooth aches, Tay have it pulled, such that if amy head aches, I may have it eu.” This is another ‘way ofteling Ut there are not enough similartiex ‘tween tooth ‘extraction and death penalty to ‘warrant a concison. curren a PERSUASIVE ©, Policy-based reasoning Policy-based reasoning reaches a conclusion by connecting the fats of the case to the state's existing policy, Les what would be “best” for the society at larg, Publ policy is “recognized or established by the State in determining what acts are unlawful as (they are] ‘deemed injurious tothe public or contrary tothe public food” Thus, an agreement ia agaitst public pliy if it ‘injurious to the interests of the public, contravenes ome established interest of socicty, violates some publi ‘late, an against good moral, tends to interfere with the ‘Nibis welfare or safety, orf itis at war with te interests Sraoeicty an is in conflict withthe morals ofthe time.” Bxample: ‘Mario should aot be bound by the contract. Young poop!s whose minds and morals are not yet fully formed Thould not suffer from the harmful consequences of those feta which they themselves could no ally eansent to. He ‘nol yet mature enough to consider the fll eonsequences ‘this decisions: He deserves tobe protected, not punished. 1D, Narrative reasoning ‘Norrutive reasoning the conclusion by telling a story that shows the coatext, description and perspective {hat appeals to commonly-held ideas of justice, merey or fairness. Example: [Narrative where there is possibility of unue influence: ‘Mario should not be Bound by the contract the signed Because Joey, the ear-deaer for 25 ‘years prestured Mario, discouraged him from Zalling his parents to ask for advice and telling fim that another buye= was looking atthe car at that very moment. Jocy loered his voice, Said: “Tl tll you what TU do “TU give you a Sere ot ot Daas 08 Jone 17187 Sapte Ganon 86 Pal_eoa weno A conpeteney Bnd Approach ‘bonus of PS,000 on top of sour selling price, if yo will allow me t facilitate the sale of your ‘arto the buyer. This bonus is secret betiveen "Bes da la tion, hap tnd Bana, 1008S Bavaria, egal Writing: Poe, Analy and Oru CHAPTER V FALLACY “A person should refrain from all those things that take him. “wards fallay, misery, ignorance and degradation.” = Atharva Veda quote Purposes "To recognize the diferent clases of formal and informal jes." avo using fallacies in e's documents and pleadings. CONCEPT Fallacy is an error in roasoning. Alawyer spends a lot of time arguing and reasoneg for hs client, Thus, iis vital that the knows the priciples of sound reasoning to avoid fallacies. He ‘must also be able to spot fallacy in others. Errors in reasoning {Keepo us from arriving at the truth. Ones thinking is slanted ‘and displace, Worse, he would not know it 1¢ takes skill to ‘wade through layers of arguments and pinpoint fallacies. Av ‘tnalytial mind is one of truth’ allies, and falsehood’ fees MAIN TYPES Fallacy may be: A. Formal fallacy is an invalid argument, an erroneous inference. Its a error in deductive reasoning where the ‘conclusion doesnot necessarily fllow from the premises. 1B. Informat fallacy cz invvctive fllary 's an error in reasoning ina form which doesnot follow the traditional formal structures of loge.LEGAL. war compen) Baned Aproach IL. DEDUCTION ‘Deduction isto reason from general principles (or truth) to particular instances of that truth, Example: ‘Allcats are mortal. (anajor premise) ‘Srila isa cat. (minor premise) ‘Therefore, Smila ie mortal. (conclusion) Fora deductive argument tobe valid it must be absolutely established that both major end minor premises ae true. Ifthe ‘premises are true, the conclusion is valid. If Sila is a eat, ‘hen itis mortal, But if Srila ia not eat, but a eel phone brand (making the statement “Smila is a cat” false), the. the ‘conclusion is invalid, [all members ofthe gars participated in the mauling” aand“Pinoisa member ofthe gang,” are true, then theconclusion “Pino is gulty of maxing” is true. IV. DEDUCTIVE FALLACY ‘Otherwice called “formal” or “logical” fallacy, deductive fallacy presents an error in deductive reasoning, in that the ‘oxelasion arrived at is logically awed or absurd. There are Several types of deductive fallacy. The three main types are Aigcussed below: the fallacy of tho ict major, the fallacy of thelist minor andthe fllaey of tne undistributed mile A. Fallacy of the ilieit major ‘This fallacy happe.a when the major term (predicate ‘of he major premise it “particular” (or “ne distributed”) in the major term, but is “universal” distributed" in the conclusion, A simple way to understand this fallacy is ‘Some studenta sf that schoo! deink alebol therefore, all. studenta in that echool drink alcohol some students” is particular in the premise but universal in the conclusion). ‘This is fallacious because no universal conclusion ean. be inferred from a partieslar premise. Otherwise, one Decotes guilty of hasty generalization. cunrreny Py Examples: AI Bicolanos are Filipinos, (True. Here, “Bicolanos” is ‘universal but “Filipinas” are parieuar. The reason is while “all” Bcolanas are Pilipinos nly some Filipinos are Beslanos. Thus “Filipino” which is the “major term” cused in a "particular mods) Beolanos are ‘ot Cebuanos. (tue. Both “Bicolano” and Cebuano” are universal. This premise may be restated aa "No Bleolano is Cebuana’ of, *No Cebuano is Biclano") ‘Therefore, Cebuanoe are not Filipines. (The conclusion is flee. The reason isthe Fallacy of the Mit Major, which made the major term (which ‘was “particular” in the snajor promise, eg, Filipins) as “universal” in the conclusion “Not Filipinos” are universal because it may be restated a8 "No Cabuano is Filipino” oF tr conversely: No Filipino is Cebuano." The fonclusion making the major term universal (eg, Filipino) is fallacious, All Catholics are Christians. Cathalies ae not Protestants ‘Therefore, Protestants are not Christians. (The fallacy is belfexplanatory, since Protestants are like ‘wise Christians, “Christians” ie partiular (undistributed) in the major promise but tuniversa! (distributed) in the conclusion, ‘Thus, the fallacy.) UP law students are excellent students, San Beda students are not UP students, ‘Therefore, San Beda students are not exellont students (Obviously a fallacy. Many times, San Beda students had exccled) Fallacy of the Ilicit Minor Fallacy of illicit minor bappens when the minor ‘term (the predicate in the minor premise) is particularAConpetney Based Approach (or undistributed) in the minor premise but bocomes. ‘universal (or distributed) in the eanclusion. ‘The basis (tninor term) being particular, cannot sustain a universal canclusion, hence the fallacy. Examples: All lawyers are bar passers. AIL awyers are professionals. (Here, “professional,” the ‘minor term is partcular or mndistributed ‘Therefore, all professionals are bar passers, (Inthe con- clusion, “professional” i universal ‘A universal conlusion was arrived at from a particular ‘premise. This isa fallacy since nt al profes- sionals are bar passers) ‘The fallacy is more egregious inthe following: All criminals deserve tobe punished. All eriminals deserve another chance. ‘Therefore, all f those deserving another chance, deserve tobe punished. Fallacy of the undistributed middle Fallacy ofthe undistributed middle ooeurs wis the middle term (tho term thet appears in both major and tinor premise) remine partiectar (undistributed) in both premices. Beemplas All criminals have tattoos. online has a tattoo, ‘Therefore, Jonlino js a criminal (This isa fallacy since ‘ot all persona with tattoo are criminals. Tatoo in bth major and minor premise is parti=ular, thus it eannet be uni {he conlsion that just berause Jolin has ‘tattoo ho is necessarily a criminal Allcommunists are atheists. curry a Lusino ia an atheist, “Therefore, Lusino is a communist. INFORMAL FALLACY Informal fallacy is an error in reasoning occuring within non-traditional forms of inference, Informal fallacies are also [known as semiformal, quasi-formal or inductive fallacies, |. TYPES OF INFORMAL FALLACY ‘The flo 1. Ad Hominem — from Latin “argument fo the man,” is fan argument reiecting @ person's views by attacking or Abusing his personality, character, motives, intentions, ‘qualifieatins te, a8 oppased ta providing evidence why the views are incorrect! i Ust of common inf! fllaies: Example: What Lolo testified in court should nat be believed. Aer all, e isa known communist sympathizer. ‘The form fllowed by argumentum od hominem is usually: Mr. A makes a claim or assertion, ‘Mr. B attacks on the person of Mi . "Therefore, Mr A's elaim or assertion i false. ‘This is feacious boeause the person may (or may not) have @ hearing on the truth of his assertions. The truth of Mr. A's assortion should be subjected to tests ther than a mere attack on the personality, character or ‘motivation of Mr, A, the claimant, 2. Ad Hominem Tu Quoque ~ from Latin “you oo,” argues ‘that a person's claim is false because itis inconsistent ‘with what that person's earlier statement or action. Example: Antonina teaches the message of love and peace. Yet she does not practice it. T have seen her berate her studente, TRE Ran, eto of Php, Barnet and Nel Boks 1981.Te ‘competency Based Apron ‘Bronne'spro-divoree stance should be rejected. After all, she was an antidivoree activist just a year ago. ‘This is fallacious because Bvonne may have changed {inthe meantime.Thevalidity ofthe laim should be tested by a erteria other than the claimant’ view or character Appeat to Authority —happensin any ofthe two instances: 8) when ane appeals to authority (or custom, tradition, inst‘tution or book) in order to gain acceptance of point tinue: oF 1b) when one appeals to the feelings of reverence or respect ve have of those in authority or those who fare fame, ‘App! to authority is known by other names: ellaey of argumentum ad vereeundiam, argument authority, ‘argument to veneration, fallacious appeal to authority, misuse of authority, ivelevant authority, questionable tuuthorty, inappropriate authority Examples: “believe that the statement ‘you cannot Je rmorality’is tre, beea'se President Blaenhower said it” ruse Maskinal astringent because Ms, V, my favorite movi tar, uses it Jose: Tbelieve, just like there inthe U.S, that abortion jgal and moral within the first six months. A person must have the right to decide what to do ‘vith her body. Zeny: bog to disagree. Our universitystop lady exionco professor holds that abortion is immoral Jose: Why? Ie she an expert on morali Zeny. She's an expert on marine worms. Appeal to Belief ~ algo known as appeat to popularity, {i the argument that becnuse many people believe in a ‘lim, that claim must be true. Its fallacious in that just or law? because many (or most) people hold a belief to be true, ‘uch believers are nat an evidence that the claim put orward is indeed true, Example: During Galileo's time, most believed the ‘sun révalved around the earth, And just because the ‘majority believed in it, doesnot mean its true. Appeal to Connon Practice — argues that if most people ‘don act, it must be morally correct. Tiss fallacious in that just beesase something ie commonly practiced, this does not necessarily mske an act moral. ‘The belief is fallacious in that numerical majority alone cannot be a gauge for an acts, moray. For Instance: if an islnd has 10 people, of whieh 6 are non- thieves while 4 are thieves. In this setup, to be a non- thief fe “moral” because they are the majority. "n case aa epidemic hits the sland and hills of the non-thieves, the ‘thieves would now become the majority. Clearly their ‘number alone would not make thievery moral. Examples: {pald the oficial cause anyway most people do it nowadays. Since everybody eae accepts money from politicians in elotions, Thave no choice but to accept. Appeal to Consequences ofa Belief — argues that a belief ue fi leads to desirable consequences. Conversuly, 1 bie is false if i lead to undesirable consequences. "This fallacy is otherwise known asthe argumentuam ad ‘consequentiam or argument tothe eonsoquences, “The argument ie fallacious i thatthe consequences of « belief could not be a determinant as to the truth oF falsity of the belie. Bxample If my belie that Jose Risal “is alive” makes me happy, this belief in no way makes it true that Jose Rizal inal, [My belief that every time I wear a rod shirt I will pass an examination, has no bearing en my actuallyAcampetncy Bad Approach passing the examination. It may be thot I prepared for the exam, Appeal to Bmotion — deliberately generates feelings in ‘people so that they wil actin a ecrtain way. Appeal to ‘emotion assumes that trth comes with god flings, and falsehood with bad feling eg. ft fools bad it must bs ‘wrong, This becomes fallacious when a person bases his Conclusions on emotion rather than logie Commonly used by politicians, cult leaders and advertisers, the fallacy thad become a tool for manipulation to control bshavior. Example Our sofa with electronic massager will soothe your stress everytime you watch TV. Thus, “Sofa Cum “Massage” is what you and bus family needs hese days. the Ponton people inthe mountains of Patalangan are raiding our wash usec. They are training children to ‘become armies. How bad ean you Tec! reading the nev each day. IFyou vote forme, Twill make reading the news ‘pleasure. You will read how I would eradicate these people Appeal to Fear — also called argumentum ad baculum, frgues that a belief is true, or at least acted on, not Ibeause there is a “rational reason” to believe (evidence) itis true, but because of external factors such as fear, hharm or threat, Here, a conclusion is formed an the basis ‘offear and not evidence. Example: Ityou do not pass on this lottor to sx ofyour frien’, ‘an unforeseen calamity will befall upon you. 1 need to have my application acted upon by ‘Wednesday. After that, Iwill have to consult my uncle ‘who works is Malacaticay, ‘Talking back against your father might diminish your allowance! Appeal to Flattery — argues that there are persons who frve at conclusions, or act iy a certain way, when fatered. The argument i fallacious in that the basis of 10. u. 2 cursny « ‘ones conclusions isnot “rational eason" or evidence but ‘tery Example: ‘You look younger today, and your face is smoother. By the way, did you receive our leter of solicitation? ‘Your mind doesnot deser obo in this small town, Dut in the Hague, How far are you now in editing my thesis? Appeal to Novelty — argues that a thing or idea is ‘ascessariy beter simply because itis new. One is nove, therefore good. The argument is fallacious in that the basis of one's conclusion isthe thing's newness, not its merit. Exams ‘This book is the latest, therefore you must buy i. Tis useful for your teaching as itis the latest edition ‘whereas the former edition was writen three years go. Appeal to Pty — also called argumentum ad misricor ‘diam, argues that some persons conclude or make deci sions solely on pity, and not on evidence. The argumenc is Bxample: Sin, I rvivd a grate of ochre something we can do? Tam graduating and my ailing motbe ‘ving esa leundrywoman, My father has asthma and ‘annot do his usual chores. Appeal to Poparity — argues that a claim or idea is ‘nue simply beeatse more people are inclined to accept ‘such claim or ide. The argument is fallacious in that tho ‘aie of one's conclusion or decision is nt evidence but an ‘external factor which s widespread acceptance of belief, Bxample: ‘To my beloved Filipinas: fm running. ARer all, 1 received a million signatures that urged me to run for ‘fice. It isthe wil of the province.13. 4, Laat warms ACompetney Bae Appa When the law on violenee against women and children was passed, {questioned what about the rights of battered husbands? But then I realized moet lawyers and professionals did not objet to the lew. Fn thinking, ‘maybe I was wrong. Appeal to Ridicule — argues Una ridicule, or the idea of being laughed at, may eve as basis for one's decisions. ‘The argument is fallacious in that ridicule and not reason ‘or evidence become the support why one thinks or ets in sseertain war Example: You should not wear those pants, Only people plucked from the 50's wear then, ‘Your argument, just like your shirt, reminds me of restaurant table cover Appeat to Spite —arguesthat spite, orhate,may substitute ‘reason incoming up toa conclusion. It fallacious in that 1 purely subjective emotion ~ spite — takes precedence ‘over objective evidence in coming up with a decision. Example: ‘A: “Is my cousin Reygie’s wedding tomorrow. Tm 1B: "Remember when we were kids how Reggie accused ‘you of stealing his cards?” ‘Ac *Asumater offact, do. will no! attend his wedding then" Appeal to Tradition — is the opposite of appeal to novelty ‘Appeal to ‘radition argues chat the dea ia necessarily better simply because itis older, more “tested” and “trie!” because it had boon sed years over, It is fallacious Deeause age per se does nat necessarily qualify an idea to be beter. Older is not necesearily better Example: We have to go to the cemetery on November 2, nat 1 ‘Aficx all, people in this town had been doing that since as long a8 Tean remesaber. Ofcourse ar. versaral court system i better than some inquisitorial aystem they have in France. We have always used the adversarial systam since the Spanish era ‘and nobody questioned its efcacy. 16) Bandwagon — argues that rejection (or a threat of rejection) may influence one's decisions or conclusions. Its fallacious in that solid or objestive evidence takes a backseat over poer-pressure ‘The bandwayon fallacy, als called argumentum ad ‘numerum, believes in: “if meny uieve 50, ii 0." Example ‘Ac “If cam help it go for fish and vegetables.” “Why that’s fod for oldies” “You better shape up, or else people will think you are undisciplined” 17. Begging the Question — ie a fallacy where the conclusion is assumed in the premises. Also ealled pelitioprincip't ‘Castuming the initial point), is fallacious in that the ‘eonelusion to be proved is assumed implicitly or explicitly inthe premise, Seldom is anyone gaiug to simply place ‘the conclusion word-for-word into the premises. ‘According to Paul Herrick “reldom ie anyone going to simply plnee the conclusian word-for-word into the premises. Rather, an anguer might use phraseology that ‘onceals the fact that the conclusion ia masquerading a premise. The conclusion is rephrased to look differents ‘then placed in the premises” lover of musi, Afterall, she plays the piano i a oar egal tem, he eur ainly e n dtermo: Ing te tf ese, a shes ae oetnng er saris Tit opened the set wera le te curt thao april eee ae “itech, Pau. The Many Werldef Lge Ox Unie Pret 20“ LEGAL. warn A conpetansy Bad Approach ‘Ynu better follow what I say because I tld you so ‘Tm your father, and you beter follow me. He is mad right now, because I could see Usa hei 18, Biased Sample — i committed when a conclusions taken from a sarple, which in turn was taken from a clearly bated source Example: Ione wants to find wut whether Filipinos are fond ‘ofcating vegetables would havea biased conclusion ifthe ‘sample was taken during a meeting of vegetorians and animal rights activist, 18. Burden of Proof ~ alto called argumentum ad ignoran- ‘iam, it argues that something is true because no one has proved it to be false, ar arguing that something is false Decause no one has proved it to he true. Te argument Fw Wi ef sump re ue oa Ma. Random Sample: Thi ample that then noch sway cat nhing ot shane eters sich mee ‘Selany mon wel wen dang i steed popeatonn, For rangle be ‘eis nome tes inne how sb tens wh hong spider al ‘ould bm gd to take asad sig ngs ‘erdetermiting the sat hel eet nde sn Sas cach sat th population neatly erent. Tne Lape Same le: This pe seamen by ting atte rao spl aod tes {aking wt oe moe sarpl wih sii laps of ine etme hem Aer ‘he to pln ar then, ty an be compared er change, Theta sag liking ry important en making predcons A rescon based sly oe ‘Soul ily obo Hasty Govern ean heme ly tn no ‘alc pt an a opto Hal ate ‘te wi tastes ot Se ‘ro gee ‘she onaesacewoed amp Last Vial November 34 008 20. a is fallacious in that lack of evidence on, say, side “A” is ‘taken as proof or evidence that side "Bi tue Example: Heaven exists, After all, no one has proved it does not exit. Heaven doos not exist. Aer ll, noone has proved it Tm innocent, not a robber or thief No one has presented evidence that T stole or robbed, Circumstantial Ad Hominem — attacks any person's claim by saying itis done out ofselfinteret. The oy u- ‘mont i fallacious in that instead of hearing reason and tabjetive evidence, the arguer assumes that the other yar- ty is motivated by his personal interests, such as promot ing his business, religion, honor or palitialafiliation. A person's background may’ not have a bearing on the tris Walue of what he is saying. sample: OF course Martina is against crceity to animals Afterall she isa vegetarian, and maintains a lucrative pet shor business. "The joven ix ond-et againat granting annulments orimpocing death He is w lay minster, and ie expected to old such views Composition — ‘The fallacy of composition argues that what i art ia likewiee true of the hole itself, The argument is fallacious because i cannot be inferred simply Uhat just beeause a part (or parts) ha 4 lstinet charactristi, the whole will have the same ‘hatacterstcs. Example: “Sal” is Spanish for salt. “Pan de sal” has salt. ‘Therefore, pan de sali salty Pure oxygen damages the kidneys. Water has cxygen. Therefore water is bad forthe kidneys. ‘This “dream team’ consists of the country’s top Adebaters: There ino way itean be beaten.m, Lec WRITING A congener Based Approach Confusing Cause and Bifect — alo called the fllacy of ‘questionable cause, argues that just because the events ‘cour together, one must be the cause of the other. The ‘trgumentiafllacious in that there i net nocessaily any ‘ental link between two things just because they ocrur ‘tagether. See Ignoring @ Common Ces Example: Alecholics are often very shy poople. Shyness is ‘therefore the eause of alcoholism, ‘Atabout the time Redante divorced his wife, he kept seeing a prychiatrist, Fm sure the peychiatrist influenced ‘Rodante's decison to separate. Division ~The fallacy of vision a=gues that what is true ‘ofthe whole s necessarily true oft parts. The argument fs fallacious in that what is true generally isnot always true particularly. Bxample Forbes subdivision is peopled by extremely wealthy people. If Marito lives there, he must therefore be ‘extremely wealty “Bow Scouts” ie 8 movement composed of young men ‘and boys. X being a member must also be a Young man. ‘or bo. (This is fallacious as facts show that girls may Lo members of the Boy Seouts.) False Dilemma — also called black and white fallacy, hhappens when one argues that there could anly be two thotee forthe problem, or when one attempts to make the middle point between two ex:remes as one of the fextremes, The argument is fallacious in that there may bbe more than two cholees involved in the problem, or the middle point may act be the other e=treme of the continu Example: ther he is a communist or secretly religious Tam sorry you are homosexual. You would have ‘been adocent person. ‘You are no longer visting me It seems you do nat lovee. Either you go to church, or Iwill think you are an atheist. 25. Gambler's Fallacy — also called Monte Carlo fallacy, ‘argues that since, for example, n penny’ Aas fallen tals tan times in a row then it will fll heads the eleventh time, or {fan airline has not had an aeident fr te past ten year, iin toon due for an accident. The argument is fallacious in that it rejects the assumption in probability theory that each evenc is independent of its previous happening Bxample: (Medical joke) Tm sure you will survive. Medical literature says that 105 survive im this ness. So far have 9 patients and they did not survive, You are my 10th, so you will survive. 26, Genetic Fallacy — also called reductive or nothing but fallacy, argues that th origin of a thing is identical with that ftom whieh it originates, The argument is fllacious Jn that the product or consequence of a thing is not necessarily the same as that from which it eae from, Example: He sa criminals son. He must have crimi or worse is nothing but a criminal himsel. People from that section of the «ity are notorious pick-pockets and drug adiete Ths, beware of him. Her mother won Mise Philippines. She will to, someday, 21, Guilt by Ansociation — lao called the bad company fallacy or “ompany that you hep fallacy, argues that an. ‘dea should not be accopted simply beeause among those ‘who accept the idea are people one does not like. The ‘argument ia fallacious in Wht the truth of an idea is not ‘etermined by the charactor of those who accept. genes, Rar Rl, Doar of Php, Barn & Noble Boss, 181.28, ecaL wernsc A compteny Bed Apr Example: 1 don’t like that movie. It is the favorite of my Irusband’s ex-girlfriend, 1 fel uncomfortable explaining biblical verses to you in the par When T was Younger, religious debaters ‘gla one Bible vere in hp nd ream Hasty Generalization — also called fallacy of hasty induetion, ooeurs whea a general statement is asserted ‘which is based om limited information, inadequate {vidence or unrepresentative sampling? The argument is fallacious eeause not enough suppor is given to base the ‘conclusion on, In a court setting, not enough evidence is ‘offered to port a decision. Example ‘Aforeign actress checked in a hotel in Manila found cockroaches, In the press interview, she concluded that {the Philipines ie ful of cockroaches |A State vice president was in an elementary school and wanted to help a 12 year-old boy spell “potato.” When the vice president wrote "ptatoo," he got rounding from. the radia who thereafter concluded, hased on a single boo-boo, thatthe vie-prenint i « dummy in Ignoring a Common Cause ~ also called the fallacy of (questionable cause, happens when a conclusion is made {hat A causes B simply because A and B are regularly ‘associated or connected. The argument is fallacious ‘that it ignores te possibility tha: there might bea factor that estused both A and B. That A need not be the cause of B. ‘Soe Confusing Cause and Efe. Example: “Jerry nticed that everytime his bestfriend Marvin goes with him tothe golf course, he wins, Jerry attributed his Tuck to Marvin “Th tor names of the lay a) Play of nun Staite, ‘Pane onfnt Sap Leaping a Consus td aay Edin a1. cuteny ° PALACE ‘Goke) Julia's husband loves ta drink eee with he. ‘After his deat, Julin would suffer headaches everytime ‘the drinks coffee, She attributed this to her missing her Ihusband, having associated coffe with him. In fact, it twas the spoon which Julia regularly forgets to take out {rom the cup that causes her migraine. Middle Ground — algo called the fallacy of moderation ‘or the golden mean fallacy, it happens when the arguer fassumes that the mean (or middle position) between {wo extreme positions must be the correct zosition. The ‘argument i fallacious beeause it doesnot fll that the mean is always the correct postion, Beam Splitting the middls ie a common strategy in ation, Sometimes it helps to have the parties settlo ‘a the middie. However, this is not always tre as the ‘Cxamples belo wil show ‘You want to sell your new laptop for P40,500.00. Joey, a graduate student, desperately, wants to buy a iapiop but only has P500.00 in his pocket. f you really want to hely Joey, as you said, why are you unwilling to gohalfhalt? ‘Between literacy and iiteray, the best is lo be somewhere inthe middle. (A patent absurdity!) Misleading Viviciness — oceusa when a person decided ‘ase ona few dramatic o enotional events rather than fon the evalence presented, The argument i fallacious in thet just because an event is vivid doesnot always make it the basis for one's decisions Baample: er husband, when he was alive, used to say that small fish is epecinlly rich in protein. Now that he's fgone, she buys nothing but small fish, inspite scientific tvidence that fish, whether big or smal, are equally rich ‘sources of protein, Timow sorscone who does not eat eggs, despite the fact that egys are among the most nutritious of foods, He aid, when he was a child, he was punished while eating2. aa, Po compen Bed Sppreh ‘an egg that he fll to the oor. Now he will not have ‘anything to do with eggs. Personal Attack ~ also called ad hominem abusive, the fallacy of personal attack happens when abusive remarks ‘against the speaker take the place of objective evidence. Example: Teannot believe what vou have to say, young man, ‘You are only a few monthe-!d lawyer, and have to eat Look at the dermatologists face. I's full f pimple ‘ow can we believe what he has to say? Poisoning the Well — happens when one diseredits what a speaker will have to say in the f.ture by givingin advance ‘an unfavorable information about the speaker Exaile ‘The gir isa pathological liar Do not believe a single sword from her. ‘He has had six failed relationships in the past. You ‘may be the 7th Avoid him. Post Hoe Ergo Propter Hoc — literally: “ator thi therefore because ofthis," argues that just because event ‘A cccurred ahead of time, event A was the eause of event a Bxample: ‘Marin does not send her applications to courier A. Everytime she does, she gets rejected. Bverytime Jim wears red, he passes an exam. “Red” contributed to his passing the exam. Generally, superstitious belits are examples of the post hee ergo prpter hoe allay. Questionable Cause — argues that because two things are associated on a rogular basis, one is the eause ofthe ‘other. While the two events in pst hoe fallacy come one ‘after the other, in questionable cause they go together. “FALLACY, Example ‘A killed B. After all they were seen together and ‘arguing about shoes the night before. Red Herring — happens when a topi fren tothe issue wc nud a oda iver Ses on ‘heigl ve oe ter an a assent sd, “Senn ‘a is igh tie tht we oss ew making See capelny tall elven iow 18? The sate ing relolfouknew weedy have to reyes rela an th Bos he prin sma ame er retin nay cre hye ‘td toson asco” ‘ty tagowod pushed forthe pase of 2 lw regulating te fampngf waste ony ve Suey Pete ct hin and a Tse malta ene ely cn ho wr” Aether SIneG rember who Geaned our verre twas Swe sed iocwim adh here etaivi Pllory — ocore when, perenne tity mayo hat wile Samay be re fr Scie pata may nt work for im. The argument ‘aha t sect dnc may bby ped rier tule ima ‘Sxample: ‘Atbeathy non-smoking lifestyle may suit others, ut te not work for me Contrary to evidence, I still maintain that eating pork fat boiled in soy sauce and black beans is one of ‘mankind's great pleasures. Slippery Slope — argues that once a person allows. an fevent to happen, another event will inevitably follow. ‘The argument is fallacious in that thors is no objective evidence to suggest that the second evidence will ‘necezearily fallow.40, 41 A compreney-Bused Approach Bxample: You know young ladies. Once you allow your boyiend to touch you beyond the elbow, there is no stopping after that. Do not give in. Ifyou do, you will find squatters ‘ceupyins each and every inch of your propery. ‘Special Pleading — argues that roles ox principles only apply to others but not t oneself without giving relevant reason (or relevant difference) why Le should be exempt. ‘This fallacy isa plain case ofimporing double standard Bxample: ‘Be careful young man. If you do something egal, you will be arrest=d. tn my cate, I have my battery of Tawyers to back me up. ‘You must not drink. It is not good for you health Don't mind us, We are used to this ‘Spottight — occurs when one assumes that thoe> who receive the most media attention are representatives of the group to which they belong. The argument fallacious in that those wn receive the most mecia attention are ‘vt woessarly repreweniave ofthe whole. This fallacy to hasty generalization, WsoMten in the news that this and that celebrity had ivoreed and married several times. I guess actors and. actresses are naturally promiscuous. Romblon_ people are often featured. winning in ‘track and field events. Indeed, Romblon people are great ‘runners. Maybe it sin their genes. ‘Straw man — The straw man fallacy presents an ‘opponent's position in a weak or absurd way so that it ‘an easily be refuted. The argument i fallacious in that ‘one deliberately misrepresents or does not include the ‘strong points in the other’ position thereby giving the ‘impression that the ansuer's points are strong. 2 Bxaple: ‘Supporter of the new reproductive bill encourage contraceptives. Contraceptives cause abortion, and abar- tion is killing. Thus, we must oppose the bill. (This is fallacious in that not all contraceptives cause abortion). ‘Two Wrongs Make @ Right — argues that ifthe other party di illegal things, then itis okay for one to make fn legal activity. The argument i fallacious in that an ‘unlawtl act dane by another has no bearing on whatever ‘ct one ehoosss for onesel. Example: -Bribing officials to win cats is okay. ARer all, Mr A, a farsous lawyer, does it T have ro qualms receiving election money from candidates. Bveryone's doing it; and it is nt the candi- dates’ money to start with,CHAPTER VI ‘THE ACTIVE VOICE “The habitual use ofthe active voice, however, makes for forcible vwraing. Ths is true not only in narrative principally concerned twith action, hut orting of any kind. Many a tame sentence ‘of desrintion or exposition can be made :cely and emphatic ty substituting a transilive inthe active voice fr some such ‘perfunclory espresion as there ior could be heard.” — Wiliam Strunk and E.B. White, The Elements of Style Purpose: Write in the active voice, as a rule. Avoid, or at least minimize the use of, nominalization, partkiple, auxiliaries cr conditionals Prefer positive over negative forms. 1. ACTIVE VOICE A. Concept ‘An “active voice” engages the reader with movement ‘and action, "he sentences apund and fed like the subject produces the ation. In passive voie, the subject becomes ‘feted upon.” In the active voice’ the subject of the sentence does the seting in a passive voice the subject of the original sentence is being acted upon. Examples: 1. Active sentences. The subjects produce the action. Passive: “The Sound of Music was soon by Mario.” Active: “Mario saw the ‘Sound of Music” po ion nk Wit, he eof Sp ha Leman ‘Te ACTIVE VOICE, Passive: A sudden interest in paychology dawned ‘Active: got interested in peychology. Passive: ‘The car is driven by David ‘Active: David drives the car. 2. Active description. Here, the verbs activate the des- ‘eption. Passive: ‘The room was filled by his anger. Active: His anger file the room. Passe: He talked nervously. Active: We stuttered. ‘Active and passive voiees may be expressed in ‘various tenses Passive — ‘Active Ihe car waa driven by David. [David drove the ear. [Mh ear is driven by David. | Dawid drives the ear [the car willbe driven by Davi. | David will drive the cr. ‘The car fas been driven by|David has driven the car? David "The car fad been driven by|David had driven the car? [David The car wil have been driven| David will have driven by David. lear B. The Active Voice ix more foreefal and concise ‘Although the two mean Uhe same, the ative voice is more direct and vigorous; the passive voice ia longer and ese forceful. Three words, “was driven by," is needed to “Prccl poet ene expressing a con cmp bythe prt Fam he Shaan ate “pa pert ine ning am con cmp pro athe exarencs sexe ae fst tno vet Raa: She hd ried blr ou A ella Hpere j "tfaar pf tene expen ston coped fie aftr vet or ‘ection Erp Se wav red by tere‘The regular so of the active voice makes fr a more forceful writing, not only in sentences where the actor does the obvious “doing” (ce, the subjec: isa person) but likewise in narrative descriptions involving non-human, subject. Bzampless Passive Hetioe [There were great number of dead|Dead leaves covered the leaves Ising on the ground ind, [At dawn the crowing of « rooster|The cock's erow eame| could be heard, withthe dawn, ailing health competed him to leave college [She soon repented her sorry that she had said what she| words, na ©. The Active is more definite ‘Tho active voice is more categorical, the identity of ‘the actor being always present,e.,-David had driven the ‘ur” or ‘David immediately recived the package.” Passive Voice on the other hand has more chances of becoming ambiguous; the writer can easly hide the identify of the factor, «4, “The car had been driven” or "The package as ‘rmediately received By whom? In this patent license provision: “All improvemnts of the patented inven tion that are mae hereafter shall proraptly be disclosed, and failure to do 0 shall be deemed ‘a material Breach ofthis license agreement.” 1 may be asked: Who must disclose improvements, and to whom Must the Heensing offle disclose any ‘HEACTIVE VOICE {improvements made on the patented invention to the ‘original inventor? Or must the inventor disclose future Improvements tothe office? Or is Ube obligation mutual ‘onthe lieensing office and inventor? ‘The ambiguity as to who is obliged to disclose to whom creates a fertile ground fora cour ease to ensue, "The use ofthe active voice would have prevented the am- biguity from happening, .,°The'patent holder is obliged to disclose within 60 days ail improvements ho makes on his invention” appreciated” (by whom?). To verite "Your goodness is ‘appreciated hy me” becomes tedious. Focus on the Actor, the Action and the Object of the action Gfany) Inorder to develop the habit of usingthe active vice, tse the following guide question: "Who i doing what and tovwhom?” First state the actor, then the action using the strongest word that fits what you want to way. Las, state ‘he object to whom the action is directed Example: Passive: nterlneutory orders may sil be modified by the courts Active: Courts ean modify its interlocutory orders. Passies: There were no authorities cited by the court initejudgznent. Active: The court eited no authorities its judgment. Passive: Itwas sugrested by Engr. Peres that the sub- tission of anew bid by the evatractor be r- quested by Julia Active: Mr. Perez suggested that Julia ask the con tractor to submit a new bid, [Nota bene: Watch out for statements beginning with: “there infare/washwere” or “it i/was” These dant awe ee Oe ee are usally. passive or else wordy. Again, "See Mad C.Wyaeh, Plain alih or Layers 30 (Cation ademie focus on the “actorsction-abjee” rule to make Pres Se 108 your sentences brie‘smpetney Raed Aeprach 1s hoped that estat inactive form: “We hope that you were not inconvenienced by the may thus be IL USES OF THE PASSIVE VOICE 1. When the thing done is meve important to know than the doer. Example: ‘The subpoena was served on January 4, 2007. “My mother was bitten by a dog. “My grandmother was hurtin that bus collision. 2. When the cctor is unknown the passive is the normal construction, Example: XY pawnshop was robbed last week. "The plants were cut lastnight 3. Foremphasis, the passive used at the end ofa sentence, Bxample ‘As Manny Reyes walked past the door, he was nabbed by journalist TIL, MINIMIZE NOMINALIZATIONS [Nominalisctions are veroe used as nouns. They are called “buried verb,” that is, base verbs converted to nouns that ‘not only hide the action but make one's writing abstract and vverbooe, Example: ‘Nominal Verbs sin appreciation of ates [makes « donation [Donates zal [provides euppsct supports Us in conspiracy IConspiring [riey are)in agreement [(They) agree [im aceordance (with our rales) (toour rales) In proximity (with eachother) [proximate (to each other) (afraid) ofthe exposure afraid) of exposing, (am) in reat [received (dis actin violation af tho rules |i uct) vilats he rules ‘eThey) give contributions [(They)gontribute puts up an investment. vest make assumptions ese [draw conclusions ICouclude lake action, ‘A way to detect norsinalzation is to recognize that they are verbs couched in noun forms, typically ending in “ment,” “tion,” “anes,” “al” “ary,” “ancy, “ity” of “sue.” The vigor that verbs used to convey (eg, appreciates) is replaced by an abstraction (eg, in appreciation), resulting to = slower and ‘weaker proce Habitual use of nominalzation attracts surplus ‘ua unnecessary words For example, why write: “Please make a summary why you are interposing an objection tothe plaintiffs motion.” when you can state: * “Please summarin. why you object to Uhe plaintiffs or beter ti “Please summarize your objections tothe plaintiffs motion.” ‘The statement: “Our client hopes that you are considering the possi- bility of reconsidering your decision.” may bo restated: Our client hopes that you will reconsider your Aocision.” or better still: "Our client hopes you will change your decision.”LoAL warms ‘nCumpetney Babel Approach ‘The statement: “My sisters are in accord with your proposal, but it it is your desire to sustain delay our fumily wil not hesitate to decide to ake a stand opposite to yours” smay be writen: “Ay sisters agre with you, but you intend to cause delay our fail wil oppose yo.” Unearthing those buried verbs results in quicker and tighter language. Thess verbs are usually buried in prepst tial phrases and to uncover them, the prepositional paces tre nceesarily deleted. Brample: Before "The city provided asitance to the flood vitims Aer "The city asised the fod vets. Before have a belitthat for every drop of rain that {alla a flower grows After " elieve for every drop of rain that fall a ower grows. At tne center of law is people of flesh and bones that ac: ‘They are not just fuzzy figures of abstractions. Complainants complain or demand, not fle complaint or make demands, Defendants answered or coursercleimed, not interposed an answer or raised their counterclaim, Judges rule, not just make ‘ruling. Unions strike (past tense: struck), not held a strike OF eourse, not all nominalizatons are bad. One or two in «page might ad variety tothe writing and eut sie monotone. ‘What one must avoid is their habitual use, for they rather than give vigor to one's writing. . UNDERSTANDING PARTICIPLES ‘A participle is a vor’ used as an adjective or noun. Tt ‘is sometimes called a verbal,” meaning a noun or adjective sunk ACTIVE VOICE formed from a verb. As adjectives they are used to describe nouns, eg, the erying lady, mangled composition, interesting ame, surprising” experience, surprised guests. Ax nouns, Darticiples are called gerund which are verbs ending ining™ ‘and used as subjects or object in a sentance. A. Use of participles ‘The prosent participle indiaths a continuing action or state. Ib ends with “ing” and used with the verb fo be, Example: Sho wos taking. They were playing. I have been eating, ‘The past participle i used with the verb “have” to {orm past tenses, Example: “We have walked” “She has sung." “The dog has eaten.” B. Minimize the use of participles when you can One can minimize nominalization by avoiding participles. The past participles above fr instance ean be ‘converted to: ‘We walked," and "She sang,"-The dog st.” PREFER THE POSITIVE FORM Sentences in the positive are more direct and definite, hhonce are better “eceved by the reader. The use of negatives, particclarly double negatives, ean be distracting, aside from the fact that it takes more worts to express a negative idea a the examples below show. As a rule, it «better to phrase one ideas in positive form. Uso the negative only when denying, nd not when asserting. Negative Pesitioe {id not fellow roles disobeyed was not present absent not ul nnocent could not remember forgot ot 100 man Tow not un-Christian Christian not invalid valid not unlike ke {id not show dissatisfaction [eatsied“A Competency Base Appraach ‘VL. MINIMIZE AUXILIARIES OR CONDITIONALS. Ausiliaris “helping verbs” sid in expressing the tense, mond or voi of another verb, eg, may, might, can, could, Sean age he oes meeey sot ms (CHAPTER VI a ctrecT caetind iors cai nee Fae LEGALESE ne in 120 might hood bk, nie Bete: is ~ Suge Mark PP, Legs Writing ‘Dial 122 if you wish to order the books. ae e ks ae Poor: “Gobbledygook! may indicate a failure ts think clearly, a contempt heiehciess trientine: foron ns ornare pry mare beth Aen hat eee ter nl conti ee afr domes” pean ~ Micha ons Natinsl Conner Cone, Bagland i edo ent da mc free Per Srveospiniiipden: oto oasgan ‘You can make it. to simpler forms ane expressions Better 1. LEGALESE ‘You will make it, Legalese — also called the “rational” legal writing style, {sone that use abetrus legal vocabulary making lgal writing cor speaking dificult for non-lawyers to understand. Legalese ‘oaks the real message under the layers of long sentences, ‘multiple modifying phrases, abstract terminology and needless argon. Many people, lawyers among them, believe that legal ‘writing must involve legalese In its defense, they say: 1. Legalese is more precise and less ambiguous than plan modern Eugiish; as such it i more resistant to {lsintorpretation when read by other legal professionals Tt ety ren tative of he pebing ature) "Man the manner in which he action or ciion expend hy ve it steed whe actu Ju romans 3o Le0A wr curren vt o ‘A compete Based Aproch TOA 2. Legaleso — in the sense of using high levels of abstraction Leyalese Suggested “replacements” Covers all contingencies and covers the lawyer in cases of unexpected attacks. ‘large number of 3, Lawyers, judges and even clients prefer it. ‘amumber of Advoestes for the use of plain language disagree. Legalese has more circumlocutions and tends to be more ‘abstract, hence more ambiguous than plain standard English. Convoluted: “Whereunder the party of the first part ays and indemnifes the party ofthe second part Dormuant to th third clause of the absve mentioned pargraph.” ‘Better: “The first party agrees to pay the second party ‘pursuant te the third clause of the above paragraph.” (or third clause of paragraph 2) ‘That legalese must cover “all contingencies” opponents ‘ay that "no document ean possibly cover all fontingencies; rather, lawyers should cover only is reasonably expected Wordyin attempting to cover “all!” contingencies: ‘Ante-noptial agreement) “Bach party shall have the right todispose ofany or all ofhis or her separete property by inter ofos of testamentary tsansfer including by wil, truator gift or by any other disposition.” Batter: Bach party may dispose of his or her separate ‘roperty inter vivor oF Mortis eausa without prior a ‘content of the other.” sets ad desist ‘The argument that lawyers, judges even clients prefer reumatanees in whi ‘second (verb) now or currently because wordy, arcane and pompous Iangunge it debatable. True, aces comnisaohi of outdated even ornate language (eg. “affant sayeth naught” cee for “end? or nothing further”) is wil used. Bu the recent trend Fema is for plain English. [:oncerningtie man Bxamples of legalese and their simpler counterparts: aera contiguous to 3a ie Ais demonstrate "Sex eap Steves, Lap Language Pin ond Simpl, Misr Bor Bl at wantca WRITING ccunerer vt « pee TTRCALESE eapite the Taek that [despite or though individual [person does not operate to [does nat inquire lak donate ive is able to lean due tothe fact that because, since Is binding om binds [during the course of during desirous of ante during the time that [while dispositive of [disposes of ‘echelon tunable to feannot lucite eee ‘thas been determined —lomit try ho lon bjestive (noun) ‘herve ate ‘ona number of ecasions often or souseties ‘on the part of by ‘owing t the fact thai [because or since [when or where ‘period oftime ____ltimeor veriod | or under permit or allow personnel [people Erenara point in time: ime or point zy portion [part or given that possess ave in point of fact Tet (or omit aliogether) ‘procure in reference to t [provide ive Pin regard to fabout provided that itor bat fauring provision of law. le in the event that when arshaso. indiate ‘or say or mean rata of speed« tans ws cayrmyn ° eee ‘sina ST fala a aa mee eae el eee a fe en ot ronda It : a ander mies ip ——S a 2! a 7 "i sd i) ibe oF Wie Cid conra™ seu ten hanged othe contrac ne tees eth coma = fet em S| rs ser a eet [ser — {subsquertiy after or ater — a sioeareee — ae fee hi slice Es =e bere hs ee folie! manera — eae fn ese ‘termination lend (sometimes) = |eeoted que treet [beneficiary (of trust) oar ioesase eld en entursa mars [foto anbar cd theft hat at eon lor aera sere the instant ease this case [ex contract in contract; contractual oer) ote a a TEcuer ingballall cones are dsngsshl = - \\what is probably meant is “this| ee hapotbent anmetintleale Jease is different”) jest. — ao Tens alec iat lta ra] ls Sales eter ree fen eee on ae Ses ss = cert =< ee ean i fp teers nail now Sw ioe ne ints Seesaw eat ici ie sent eae ee te al _ eae cays Tima Cha me et ore pretties B a ee KStte vi tm when ne enn help Bolow faa fit of es ew Eres scmting so ctisad lear with tat engl =s SS ‘ore understands cunerpertas = : = re a TE A Ger, he nt 4 Mel np! Se, eA = as ‘Tromp Company 2002 pp 1647.A compeeng aed Approach aid tad [ia thats the itor the antecedent) lexcent this that; the fone ofa kind, unique legally competest lean slate wal rom hiss from that; om here (thereat Iusere; ate therefore fori for them therefrom laway; fom it from Phat herein there in it thereof rit [until then; then fabenever, fwhereat a where si [wherein [where whens in which whomsoover whomever lwhosuaver [whoever | CHAPTER Vill ‘TECHNICAL LANGUAGE “But do not give it to 0 lawyer’ clerk to write, forthe use a legal Thand that Satan himself will not understand.” = Cervantes Purpose ‘To be able to distinguish between the lay and legal sense of con.mon technical terms, I. ORDINARY WORDS WITH SPECIAL LEGAL MEANING Legalese is not the sume as technical legal vocabulary “hile the former is best avoided for plainer language, technical terms form the bedrock in the literature of any profession. Legal terms convey ideas inthe legal world searely expressible clsewhere. Examples are ceriorari and res judicata, Those in the legal profession are expected to know them, There are also “ordinary” words which Uhivugh ime sequired peculiar legal meaning. They are likewise part of the vocabulary of the legal profession. Below is alist of everyday words with special ‘meaning in the Ingal con TL EXAMPLES ‘Common Meni Tage Meg fbaract Jac something there [x a summary of writing ial rather than fcclration a speeding =>vaca ree curren, " eer ae oT lace 7 arene SSE EE =a ea aay eS ai ssa a cece rae ae eee meee eal rehome Pgs oy a fee eee ea yeasts te fee ee Seectereeen fewest ea — ceoeecie [ates ening a at ating pair oF af + ea at gr sor Seer aes Se Sa Se Leche raat ees oes |discounted pri: eat dena easing le la ape i ——EEE ice ‘mata ae. ou or ig tgeding i cur a abr [any excuo wo nvid amo he specif efnae that ee ae tema arn eeometeremertns tee Sen ee eer erie Jet ser ice athe enston oe ow] me [ptiation Jat by the partis names] ec eed i vl eestor ee ris mame ca at te ea i et etn eas cee ee is system of eacoplionjan organeed system of eee [|i "ianmating atta rena en from tsb [ea Civ Coe a =| pane eed cee et eee ie umtveneataaat | jatorabieeapableobeing colored” [apparentiy true snd vali eae \ieg., colorable claim of an| ae (esate i is eae oe eee jceptive (eg., & colorable| Sat ease tre te eb itt co me ae Leer Jcomplaint | grievance [plaintif?s initial pleading} i jin a civil suit; a formal] pees ee arama ra i by legisinture [conclude [to finish; to deduce |to formalize an agreement frm Yea re Ss | |dtendant ity, to take Jrvate property foroperson to nother. othe lfcument by which the bransfr is accomplish jexamplary aerving as a god xame eo ware couarren vin ® ACompetent Based Approach ‘THcHINICAL LANOUAGE, [consideration respons Kindness (covery [eho nding of eamethingpetic! tavetgntion {hove new lafrmation “held by the jth prt, by compulsory favstioning of partis [nso a collection of companies [rtzenses and procures Srorking together toward document [resem wl [interested [nt interest Pneving 0 personal or [inane interest at stake land" therefre able lender a far and impart lain fnsraction |e buldingta erature the understanding or intr aisporiton demeanor or neiation |e final dstor—inacin lretation of «writing fin a proeeding Us nl oe contac listibuion ef ete fasractive postive: promoting established by operation Jucording to iter farther development fat law veg, consructive [structees n'a wil by Howiedge,” constructive finery ean Eves —__lainmisa jawity Jownersip: tho difrene|ustico based on principe fntinuance [ie ato of remaining inl postponement ofa tial or Ietween the ale of sf floss rather Un the aac states a meucl [oder juckcal proceedings [boperty cad che amount state aad common law [antl anathr date wert om i Iemedies ther than money he tranfer of Toler fiamages in real property from one co he sin a wil oF contract he “elena tne jgment__* ferving esa bod exami Js debilitating physical Ja logalincapacty eg. | lenaition Insanity re [io “store py altho restore lea “health eth emulates is dter ether rms in remesring defects lchavir, eg, exemplary (damager more than one te or[the money tata defendant lama lincdence of damage” "|x ordered pays plant] [expectant [pregnant fetingenheakd ot al lo comyente forthe ntores in property| a {damage caused act trv hing thing thst 8 Judge bas ldemur Jtoobject on moral te adi all the fata ta letermined to bes true| (sounds [a plaints peation, bt [whcther i really iso et deny that they state a indigo act bedrest p Irrnish—Jaemcthing added to alta attach property being] fo granted [plate of food toad alr )held. by a third person [depos io dethrone a monarch to take somoand’ teatime lamentation or favor eg, bank deposit tthe |ny in a sworn deposition; to| ! Idepositor) in order to pay| letiny the eid depositors debt [devise Jin think wp scheme orto pans on real property Ieartay ool, a rumor liestimeny about « stato] lasing someting lnmcone thru ll ment, writing, oF ther (ably Jssertion made "otsde| the court and offered ints endence prove te tataera oe ees ee eee econ eerie oo re |to sign at the back of al cr la peaeeea eaters ao ee alan eee ee eee fer Saree ieace ae oe ec cea Ss (ieee fend a eee Gis inka eto eee ed samme | ain Sea erent as repent eee aac RETR aieeeeseee ee cere eo aman ee : io Pls (lea eee eee a ee it ee eee a eee eee fecremee * Yarecmes ra ee eee ee ee Sein fd een Sesion eciea eee ee ore erates raat are anet tease |ment, eg, know all men by| bata idee fut [notorious |widely-known for somelof common knowledge, so] [privy ee eee er aac ee ee ht gee i poets Raacdenague [process [a way of doing something [a writ or summons, «g., to pl ed tsa: bea Sree ae heen hee aaa Rae sae Heim Ee SSS a Leena ea omeaee mas aero ee ee yy bemelaaee se ae fel obi ieee iasooseg neater nae eg ee ene | omelets mae EGeo wae curren vt » comp et Ach wot Ft eae Pipes —[ocaas lly mater [pot ie = apo [etter eva |otr ec tater [Rei [soe ewe [Ecaarere | fsieise inca ortnerny [astra a feat [sea een eeament tening tiny leer io ms ma lument, ogy shel [recall [to remember something [a petition and election to| pan lnventery of staan) [amine sens ump] sea eae eed fveke way scare impress [receiver fa telephone handset auestal pety seesot [used to anteente 0 do sain cere fesariy ar eater rane ee torclved aber ck bend drt __|erpeeding eet Spite [recover |to get over, as an illnese;|$0 win money damages in) [self-help [motivational and self: extrajudicial remedy for a} Noel Sct ar ant rx inert let n [eee [improvement tp [orone is pant Jervaat Ja dame epee ley epee cma [reform jto change the system [to change the wording of a| — ee, fnerdcttogecrdet [wring och ax ntact Jari —[entaceerpir he formar Jet rts tnngit[ordoc tn order Mahe Jenn» leg ae onde eneabl rt cary | lat aes pst. oa es {ent ofthe nae foe oreo sre sibila- Werapy Er dependants of el t Lenses ie atari bas en [tase — Jt put toe sie: t0 fo overtures coviinn| inpechcd bythe ota estan nds forsome [or sae « egment | les searantation of ren Lear ener’ fae ae batik —Jerevra frie Je sno tance ta face or charg] ogal remedy, sack seb sere betwen fetes a cc freer nes ands [aha ever whats hear «i Sing recto the ete insrucons "a Feat fraer in oa can an i ere xt larecry wed See be retro prom rac ha ee [eer out coca tere caatin song wit the servers re ac tote sateen pr what war donee lathe textegs common ecw tarpon cae rao ly tx return, elon ears [Sipe a faa lee we ase sappienestl wring Frcntare — |e petunia [ale ny oer ma ache to a proped a sme ed wih te ienton st eter an tartans pte stienetngs wring soe sr ete foe a paw escenly Suing ‘ater prov setae rina tothe main document leg fesimpleAcampetin Base Rprich [Racing atu, nk ving noah oa ao in acotrovery eo seper Jenking scorer med CHAPTER IK ees Rociee rmettng or rotin LEGAL WRITING HABITS To AVOID Jan order ea ayo [ark oi; tostap workin to expunge ater AED ae ene lope cata reare are 0 tht ordinary es liga tse Bnalish i beneath a professional’ dign', Spence sare ot | ait should be when ordinary English s Bad Bnglish nena orvwhen tos languone is eter, But ordinary English is va loving eg aTalla ft sunpend a raning not always bad Enaish, and lv language does ot Iecnaa stigmas [epee nerd ‘logy sy it beter, more prciaely” |trust Jeonfidence end relian=© [an agreement whereby the = Mellinkoff, The Language of the Law lo venesne {rast ge loa et. Perot eto were ope Be nble to recognize, and thus avoid using outdated and multi- Nerte beneath syllabic phrases n one's pleading, documents and memoranda. haakal enn aes ee ‘The flowing are generally considered wordy, somewhat out: seve Tesi ibaa ain sen dated and unhelpfl in god lal writing, hence must be avoided eee meres Sven possible They ate nt ungrammatiea, and ar easly unde itr awe alle to {hood when addressed to fellow lawyers. However, now-lowyers ind lanes al them difical and overs formal. The trend in modern legal writing lrcleon and sinter detens infor plain and clear word ange. Thus nies we write a Homan ldo guy, stance by there i probably no need fo overuse Latinizms Hike sui generic, in showing ht the plait persona, per sirpes or mens rea, Others, they sound Hike egal [acted in bed faith and ‘affectation’ to the lawman. Ordinary readers generally find it hard (ees eee taanderstand them. Its bet to old sing them whenever 2: can lst, he mh comen pe Into egy mort come __\with denn hands Legal Aectations Plain Language fetinon mak se somating—| fam cr an injntzeJoomothing tat ete. farther meet another meeting Spa injry or fable ta re fea é detriment egalight | bos mentioned mentioned above acento next tne "Bars G Ta and Justice Foundation, Canter fr Contig atin, the ‘Auton Naina UniversAcompetncy Based Apron “LbcaL WHITING HABITS 10 AVOID [advise you that of har also affix our signature nee so [aforementioned nceforth from now on roby herewith ere things considered Drersunder [below ‘a consequence of into ari our signature sgn noted previous ver Pout. fas oon ‘acknouledge receipt of [thank you for las you would be aware of "Lam grateful for [thank you for [ascertain find out [Tappreinte your [thank you for yo lat an early opportunity soon. [Lean confirm that a this point in time Inow/at present [Lrefer to your letter dated later of your earliest convenience |as soon a possible [rvegret the delay / the dlay ie [Lam sorry forthe delay [aac hereto Ittached j/ere fread (be in aorordance with accords with I trust this addresoes your |Thope thisanawers your question] ly rte: because of neers [commence commencement [tart [Lui be pleased to [ram happy to [completion fend Irwish to advise that Ideave out) leonsiderable amount of la Jot ofimany / much If wuld appreciate tif pleasewould you plonseveould you! ated ot i lease dispatch send oul be rata t [blease/vould you pleaseeould you emanating rom loming om please mbar on art essa ie that ie endeavor te ina imely wane os son a ponies frat land others In eccordance with tion T|under scan 12 etcetera land soon ineoniuntion with ith rienced dl dla : in consideration because of lesremety cc excess of more chan ilitate fenabie order to te | ied to aid not elation to about zal [ll within the responsiblity | — is reaponible Tor espe lo about zal lor inspite of the fa tha although oui he duration of daring the course uri he purpose of lator ma the cont 1 our consideration your decsln for your decison the majority of canes lm moa canes rehaith immediatly [inthe vicinity near cand send in this regard eave oat Iurtherdeselopment more developmentinew develop inthis epee eave ot) ments in vl of the fat Tha cause ther tomy eter concerning [tam wing again about} linform sou inform you hat lit yoiby because of thi 7 so therefore rr [as follows i send [eranepire happen. lunatle to feannot |undertake todo so and so |will ust) doo and so beri [check Jeondiem bia [trough /by way of bie ely whereas ely fore ously to edi to (walk drive) |walked/drove started to walk rive) let you havelgive you more information it ant to elause 12 junder clause 12 [orrecifixirepair ti about Acme Bl Agra {no wRiNG HABITS 70 AVOID a alia among oer e about plicable is made pendent on upon depends on [need ated in isin Iequrement need ‘ole theca that — lit seams that fan considered that 1 hk tha live tha seal al incumbent on nee t/gou should ew he mato =o a the matter agin my considered viet hat [I think th belive tha laid (the said document cin Slete ai, the decumentcen ould Be noted that lame (the jewelry may Se soldlreplace “aid with & pronoun, or a ly the notary cuctioning the| Grete i altogether. For example! ion same! [thie jewelry: may be sold by ner lhe otary” suctioning “Ito re Aand [athe jewelry may be sold by the ible omount tioning notary” sme lek = heading expt |shoui it be necessary if nesssary | en [ould you require more ou need more information red ~Thsppencelook place zs inbrmation a pe should yu wish Ifyou want to you Tike Sin sal Jigfcant amount loaf mach / ma ae : fats go an ie/ the existing state ina to bout aa [ubsent edbised that I2save ou) subecquently ater eee ee ubsantial amount of [aos much 7a ith me itunderstanding informaWunstted understanding | a eaiaeiaaea Jake theater with contact about the matter ies considered lserefore line oy mistake regretted [Lam sorry forthe dlaymistake6 ca. wenn ‘Acomteney Bed Approach fant [because with «view of Io with due regard for aking into sesount with immediate effect straightaway / immediate with reference to [about with respi [about ‘may caret [about will be required need to you should etter of the 20° instant etter of 20 May CHAPTER X OBJECTIVE LEGAL ANALYSIS “He that will write well in any tongue must follow this counsel of Aristotle: to spea asthe common people do, to think as wise men Llojanehoutd every man understand hm, andthe judgment of wise ‘men allow him.” = Roger Ascham, Torophilus (1545) “Be short be simple, be uma” ~ Sir Ernst Gowers, himself barrister: Purpose: ‘To write an interoffics memorandum with the following parts: a) heading, b) issue; c) brief answer, d) statement of facts; And) discussion, 1. OBJECTIVE LEGAL ANALYSIS ‘Tis type of writing provides @ bolanced and objective ‘iseussion of legal ine. Precedents and authorities that {govern the question ate cited, Legal advice and recommendation fre likewics fered. Examples: Inter office memoranda and opinion letters toa client M1, INTER-OFFICE MEMORANDUM. ‘Also called the “objective memorandum” is_usually propared by junior associate or paralegal and addressed to a —~Gorers (GEM, The Complete Pen Ward Penguin Boss, Landon, 3 (Geen nd Wie ds pS‘A competeny Bases Approach senior partner giving an objective analysis ofa logal question. While letters to clients may also involve legal analysis, an inter-ofice memoranda being addressed toa lawyer for poss ‘court action, demand a more detailed research replete with Tegal citations. A. Parts Zan Inter-office Memorandum ot ‘Memorandum Heading Bxample ‘10: Ally. Marito R. R.yes, Partner Reyes, Reyes and Associates FROM: Atty. Julio N. Delfin, Junior Associate SUBJECT: Declaration of Nulity of Marrriage Marita Lansang v. Procopio Bantu DATE: December 10,2006 the date the memo issubmitted) ‘Memecanda headings can be structured In many ways, depending ‘upon the practice of the firm. Usually ‘atandard memo heading is required ‘employees, Some are pre-rinted, Heading Information which are not aligned vertically must be avoided since it looks unprofession Example 70: ‘Atty. Marito R. Reyes, Partner Reyes, eyes and Associates FROM: Atty. Julio. Delfin, Junior Associate SUBJECT: Declaration of Nulity of Marriage ‘Marita Lansangv. Procopio Bantugan DATE: December 10,2008 ‘TheIssue alsocalled the“Question Presented") = states in question form the issues wought to be ‘resolved by the memorandum. The following must be cunrre x, o ‘onsecTIVELEGAL ANALYSIS specified: the law, the core issue, and the legally relevant facts that have bearing on the issue. ‘The reader must understand the question without having to refer to the facts. Poor: Whether plain is entitled to declarason of mulityof marrage. etter: Whether the behavior of the husband (the “yposing party”) in joining a cult that advo cates foe love and sex (begining his college ays) amount to peychological incapacity as ‘defined under Art 36 of the Family Code ‘This part should also itewize other sub-issu tucial tothe overall determination ofthe ease ‘Example (eub-issues tothe main iv above) Whether the acts of the plaintifwite (as ‘atient?) in abandoning the eetjugal home and children amount to“in pari d>ieto" thereby denying her of remedies under the la. ‘Whether dhe plants stil entitled to custody of the children in apite the fest that, though still ‘minors, they are over 7 years old For a tort or damage suit, the issue may be staved as follows: Poor: Whether the niece can recover for negligent Infietion of emotional distrecs ‘Better: Whether, under the Civil Code, a nice who witnessed her aunt hit in a ear accident ome 10 meters away ean rover damages {rom emotional trauia, Guide questions: Have you + remained factual bjctive? + summarized your question clearly, concretely? Brief Answer (also called the “conclusion”) ‘The “Answer” i the response tothe “que-tion presented,” hence may be “yes” “no" or “maybe not.”compton ase preach ‘This part s:romarizes the elements ofthe law and how the facts apply tothe elements. Cite the weakest = wel as strongest arguments why the court would ely decide in favor of the firm's elient. Then give your eeommendation. Bxample: “Yes. The Supreme Court defined Art. 36 of the Pamily Code as that incapacity of a party to comply with the essential elements (of marriage. Suen incapacity must ante-date ‘the marriage, and be of such gravity as to bye incurable. Active suppor, antedating the ‘marriage, to a cult that advocates free scx ‘amounts to a wholesale rejection of the entire concept of marriage. The wife's leaving the conjugal dwelling suggests the depth of her ‘suffering from her husband's incapacity rather lity tthe ease, I recommend filing the Guide questions: Have you ‘+ answered the question ence? ‘+ stated what law or rule i applicable? ‘+ summarized the reasons leading tothe answer? ‘+ given your recommendation? Statement of Fucts Give a summary o the facts, including name of firm's cient, the name and address of the opposing party, tne nature of relationship between the client and opposing party, the type and date of contract entered into between the partes, and other relevant details. It is proferabe to state all the material fats, preferably in chronologieal order. A material fact is fone upon which the outcome of the ease will depend, tis something that wil affect the ease ane way or the other Include all material procedural facts (eg, ‘ORICTIVE LEGAL ANALYSIS ‘names and residence of parties, and their children, time and place of happening of material event say ‘of marrage in nullity cases, date of separation, et) fs well athe substantive facts, manifestations ‘of respondent's behavior indicating paychalogi Incapacity, that the same antedated the marriage and is of such gravity ast Le, possibly, incurable.) In the statement of facts, itis preferable to use “objective” and "neutral" language. Opinionated: Respondent isu hopeles alcoholic oF ‘Heiean inveterase drinker. Objective: Respondent drinks at least 6 bottles “of beer a day. Opinionated: Procopio made the plaintif his punching bog. Objective: Procopio struck plaintif'on her head thereby cutting the upper part of her Guide questions: Have you ‘+ incuded all Tegal significant fats? ‘+ iven enoush factual background? + considered the best way the facts can be presented (chronological or tpieal)? + used objective, neutral ange? “+ included both favorable and unfavorable facts? Diseussion Discussion ie the heart of the msmorandam ‘This section asks you to explain the law and the facts, A deductive (general to specie) method is ‘recommended, Begin your discussion with the ‘thesis paragraph. By this is meant that you Ihave to announce right in the first paragraph your ‘conclusion to serve a8 a "road map" or "tour guide” to your analysis. The thesis sentence answers the ‘question: “what is your pointTe ca warnive Acempeteney Bae Approach Beyin your paragraph with the thesis state- rent, [tis advisable that the statament be in affirmative form. Bxample: Monogamy ie the bedrock of mar riage. A husband who philanders fn is an aetive member and sup- porter of a cult that espouses free fe is thus incapable of esmplying ith the essential requisites o; mar ring: State the rule o the applicablelaw, and discuss ther seaning. ‘The thesis statement must have legal support Cite authorities Explain how the law applies to the set of fact, Pint the facts that ft o the elements of ‘the law or authority ted Discuss other relevant authority ‘After the opening paragraph, subsequent paragraphs can discuss the facts of other relevant eaces Reiteratebefly the conciusion. CHAPTER XI LEGAL OPINION LETTER (TO A CLIENT) “Never write a letter while you are angry.” = Chinese Proverb “The art of art, the glory of expression and the sunshine ofthe ight of letters, is simpici'y.” Whitman Purpose ‘To be able to write “eamplota” opinion letter (to client) ‘consisting of a) m heading; b) concise statement of issues; c) brie fnnswer; d) statement of facts e) discussion: and f) conclusion and ecommendation, To avoid superfluous, overly formal, tactless ot hackneyed expressions common in letters. A legal opinion letter, lke the interofie memorandum, giv-e aan objective legal analysis ofthe client's legal problem. Unie the inter-ofice memorands, letters to client are addresced to persons ‘without any legal backgrovnd, To be elective, one must be sensitive to the level of understanding and needs of the cions. ‘ie itor ‘ust be written ‘1 plsin and simple language accesible to the understanding ofa lay person. ‘The letter has tro goals 1. togive the cliont a case diagnosis ~ the client is helped totinderstand how the law applies this situation and to explain to im his logal rights and obli 2 tocome up with legal rseommendations ~ the purpose of the recommendations isto enable the client to reach ‘8 decision what to do with his or her legal problem. TsA competena Bae Approach client must be given the available options as well as the strengths (benefits) and weaknesses (risks) ofeach. In evaluating the options the following are considered: expense length of time involved fora particular remedy including possibility of delays), areas of the case that are strong or weak, extent of preparation involved and the client's partisular concerns. It is not the purpose of the letter to sway the cient to adopt a particular course of action but only to hip him understand the situation from eal standpoint tobe ale to make an intrmed PARTS OF AN OPINION LETTER. 1. Heading and Introduction ~ ‘The heading consists of the letterhead of the Jaw firm, date, name and address (inside address) of the client, salutation anda short introduction, Example: Pariente Law Ojpce 921 V.Ramn Av, Cebu City December 10, 2006 ‘Me, Marina Jeliano — Klassen 2 Liebestrose Berne, ‘Switzerland ‘ie, Fowible divorce procedings between Filipina ‘ond Swiss husband. Dear Ms. Klassen: You requested lega opinion from our law firm ‘regarding a ponsble divorce between you and Your usband. 2, Iasuels and Brief Answer — much like inan inter: ‘office memorandum, the issue sought to be resolved fn the opinion letter is stated in question form, The ‘answer likewise directly answers and summarizes ‘how the law applies tothe fet. compre x 6 [LEGAL OPMMION LETTER (TO ACLIENT) Bxample: You asked about the implications of you or your husband getting a divorce in Switzerland as far os Philippine lows are concerned. (Our answer isa divoree obtained abroad (e4., Switzerland) upon the initiative ofthe Filipina wife 4 void and connot be recognized in the Philippines. ‘This ie because the Filipina is governed by Philippine luce relative to her marital status whether ohe to in the Philippines or abroad. Ifthe divorce was fled in ‘Switzerland at the instance of "he alien husband, the same may be recognised as valid the Philippines, centtling the Filipina wife ~ in this ease, ou ~ 9 ‘remarricge. This presupposes that absolute divorce {allowed under Swiss fa.” ‘Statement of Facts and Discussion State facts relevant wo the issue and discuss ‘how the law applies the fact. Example: In your leer, you slated that “irreconcilable sifferences isa groin for divorce in Switerland. You further stated tat forfour years now, you and ‘your husband ean hardly agree on anything. That Your marriage had Become “hell with your husband “semingly “enjoying” tose yo suffer ‘The Family Code of the Philippines is explicit: “where a marriage betioen a Filipino citizen and @ foreigner is validly celebrated and divorce is ‘thereafler validly obtained abroad by the alien ‘spoure-copacitating him or her to remarry, the Filipino spouse shall hove the capacity t0 marry ‘under Philippine aw.” Conclusion and Recommendation In the conclusion one reiterates the anser to the question raisod inthe isuel.” The recommen dation answers the question: “What do you propose the client would do? It states the proposed solution to the issue,n. _Acampetney Based Spprach Example: ‘As stated, a divorce obtained in Switzerland is valid in the Philippines if it was secured atthe in ‘tance of your husband. We recommend that you talk ‘with your husband and ask if he e filing the divorce. Otherwise, considering hie possible “psychological ineapacit:" you may opt to flea petition for declara ton of nullity of your marriage based on prycholot ‘al incapacity under Art. 36 ofthe Family Code. Sincerely yours, ANDRES C. PARIENTE. Legal Counsel (Optional) “We have relied upon information, Both oral and written, furnished to us by our client, and hhave assumed that all such ‘information are true dnd corvet. This opinion is limited to the matters xpresty stated inthis letter anc no opinion may be Implied beyond what has boon stated.” WORDS AND EXPRESSIONS TO AVOID IN LETTERS: ‘They being supersiuous, overfurmal, abby, tactess or hackneyed. (According to our records [Ofien superfluous aia can be ounwmen [LEGAL OPINION LETTER (TO A CLIENT) this me [Attached you will find [At the earliest possible moment [Atan eaely date [Atthe present time iow [Atthis writing Beiter, Now [At your earliest [Over formal. Better, Soon (Communication |Absiract and formal. Beir) telephone message, leter, report We have duly |investgated Bech and ever [Contents noted |Superfluous (To) dato we have not [Overormal. Beiter, We hawe nai received) [rot recived His desired that we Uinactive, weak, and long-winded IBeter, We want to rceive or [We'd appreciate receiving [Duty ie superuous [Wach or every is sufficient by itself [Bary date _lortireewooks, Better be specif, May mean too or three days or tc] Enclosed pleased find [Better here sor I enclose [Esteemer [Ota fashioned [Even date (meaning [Better be specific. Say, Your leer] tho) amount of Ph ray loday) lt this mornin ‘Acknowledge receipt of _|Overformal. Better, We thank youl eieieven toa B letter for your letter [For the reason that [Because (please) advise Wetter, inform or tll_unles| [Forward [Send or ship [___lactuolly soliciting advice —_ [Por your information | Supefluous (Check in theifor theta [Check or remittance) for Ph | lferewith [Superfiuous per your letter fing t or As mentioned in Pe aa az ping Rms and Harry W. Hadas, asic Ltr Writing, The New Internationa Weer Compehnte Dinar fie Bagh Langu, By Mop Eton, Tien Pes Intrana 08 Fron [Weak and waually superfluous Avoid, especialy as dangling par- lieiple before complimentary close lof etter. You may say: We lok fr jward to seeing you on your next} Irn tothe eit =)compte Band Aprech {GAL OPINION LEPTERTO ACLIENT) si inasmuch aa jut say, Bocause [Pronoun [Shout not be omitod” Pocus] {We are) in eseiptof [Overformal. Better, We have lof risk of sounding curt. Avid, received or [ods receive. Senin check to [Thank vou for. \day.” Better say, We have resived| Hinarder to ust 2,10 [the goods and’ are sending you In reference t [Overformal. Avoid. Better, about | four check to tn regard to [Just say, about | [Proposition (Avoid using the term to mean In reply we would wish to [Overformal. Avoid. task.” “To ship this order during| ln the nature of Just ay, ke lhe Christmas rash willbe a| It isthe hope ofthe [Thope dificult proposition ie not as good| lundersigned las “To ship this ond during the| [Kindly let us know |Rindly I old fashioned. Please lt (Christmas rush wil be difficult’ Eee ee ar [Pursuant to yvar order |Overformal. Better aay, folloing| et etc | oe iach ca a ee ie eae eee eae rma areata rem [Line |Sometimes inaccurately used in| tlre ne ah, ae ries a JOften inaceurately (or colloqui- [Replying (to), Regarding, a epee ora eta yor ta itr at fora tt" ae ra rey reer ame eee ee ae ere areata a [Our Mi i Ba MEETS On Jsame satisfactory," We received oe isan. ome |the goods and found the sare eee oy ae umes lanager, ete |State |Not as good as the simple word aaa ee fit faa |stead of, The legal queries asked| eer cas ee | Lecaraesoriramena fmt ntment ean ee ce mesos ft mae ae z| fee ae ree eel ee ee fa a ee aa ee [eC mri ogee We — =e fauna or are, $e [Valued |Format. Avoid expressions like Fe gaia Be nd fee ea Heenan a7 — Re aca = _ |an action by the firm. Otherwise, it| Las‘ACampetns Base Approach [Wish to say [Savi [Would i (the) writer [Overformal. Dont hesitate to say IL (CHAPTER Xil PERSUASIVE LEGAL ANALYSIS. “Tn contest, a word or phrase may havea plain meaning inthe sense ofa clearly appliable meaning even though that meaning is ‘not tne onty possible meaning. To toke a trivial example, it could ‘ot seriously be suggested thatthe warning on a box of matches ‘hoop onay From children’ is unclear or obscure or even eapable of ‘more than one meaning. .in contrast, the ane words in writen directions hy «doctor to a patient might have an entirely different ‘but plain meaning, especialy if he document indicated thai the ‘patient had a compronoed immune system.” ~ Colby Corporation Pty Ll Commissioner ‘of Paxation (2008) “Context is always important. Take the example ofthe statement “The chicken ia read fo act This can either refer ta cooked. ‘hicken ora hungry chicken. The contest alone will determine the meaning.” = Chief sustice Spigelman, New South Wales Supreme Court Purpose To oe bie to write pleadings, motions and shart appellate brief sin their proper format. 1. PERSUASIVE LEGAL ANALYSIS: ‘A persuasive document attempts to convines a third party to decide in favor ofthe writers client. The third person may be ajudge or arbitrator before whom the lawyer argues to win case ors opposing party before whom dhe lawjer sends a TT deal Cour Ausra ReproAcompetenr ase Approach demand Jeter. Persts-ive legal writing addressed before a judge are called pleadings, motions and briefs. Persuasive documents, much lke an objective interafce ‘memoranda, may state logal issues, cite authorities and invoke precedents. The diference is in perwiasive documents the Author will argue in favor of only one approach to resalving the ‘igpnte. A neutral stand ia not expecta. A. Pleadings Pleadings are the writte> statements of the 1es- pective claims and defenses of the parties submitted to ‘the court for appropriate judgment They are the written declarations of affirmation on one side and denial by the ‘other. The rules require that every pleading shall contain ina “methodical and logical form” “pain, eencise and direct statement” of the “ultimate facts” relied upon by the pleader for his claim or defense” Statements of mere cvidentiary fuets must be omitted. If the defense relied ‘upon i based on law, th pertinent provisions ofthe law land their applicability tthe case shall be clearly cnd concisely stated.» 1. Purpose "The purpoce of pleadiugs is to define for the ‘court the issues of laws or fact raised bythe partes ‘As pleadings are the basis as to what evidence ‘would be presented in court, itis important that the statements written there are definite, Bare statements in a pleading which merely aver that acts were done in bad faith without stating the facts ‘thowing that the acts were done in the manner alleged, 40 not establish ny right or enuse of ation” ‘Roger Die, 7 A 052 "Ballard Mllng Coy Ine, Fst Farmer Miling Co, Tn 108 SCRA, ’ PERSUASIVE DEAL ANALYSIS 2. Kinde of Pleading ‘The complaint? counterclaim? crosselaim,* third (fourth, ete>party complaint or the con plaint-inintervention asset the claims of «party ‘The defenses of the other party are alleged in the ‘answer to the pleading asserting a claim against ‘him. In turn, the answer may be responded to by a reply" 8. Parts of Pleading ‘The parts of @ pleading are: a) the caption; by body of the pleading: e) siguature and address; 4) verification; and e) certification against forum shopping ‘Caption — the exption sts forth name of the court, b the tite of the action, the court docket number, if assigned and d) the designation of the pleading (ie., the type of case boing fled, eg, Collection, Mandamus, Damages, tc). In the title of the action, the names of the tet arta rece cae aie wp cee a eaters eerie ie aera Socereu eee eee eats Sime aie ears SSecciey aea epete rg eaten mae coerce oeemecn toca comer sig inion Taine eee taney panne petrreretrepeaeamn eae Reena ee ete eee Eee Seah ae sateen = at enters Sa‘competency Based Aprach partios are indicated. They shall all be named in the original complaint or petition. In subsequent pleadings itis sufficient to include only the name ofthe first party on each side with an appropriate Indication (eg., adding after the name of the frst party the phrase etal" meaning “and others Example: Republi of the Philippines REGIONAL TRIAL COURT ‘th Judicial Region Branch 12 Cebu City JULIETA L. TARNATE, Plaintiff, CIVILCASE NO. 445, For! REPLEVIN® PERCIVAL T, BALUARTE Defendant 1, Body of the Pleading — ‘The body of the pleading eet forth the type or kind of pleading filed (eg., Complaint, Answer, the statements of the party's claims or defenses, the relief or remedies prayed for, and the date of the pleading ® ‘The body ofthe pleading consists of i. Paragraphs — which contain the allegations of the party's claims or defenses Bach paragraph contains a statement of a ‘ingle aet of circumstances,” as far us that caa be done with convenience, and each are ‘numbered for easy identification. A paragraph ray be referred to by its number in the subscquent pleadings PERSUASIVE LBGAL ANALYSIS BL Headings — are necessary when ‘wo or more cases of action ae joined. The first shall be titled “frst cause of action:” the Second, “second cause of action” and so forth In the answer, the paragraphs are prefaced: ‘tanawer tothe Bist cause of action” oF answer tothe second cate of action” and so forth.” li, Reliefand date — the pleading shall specify the relief or vemedies sought and may ‘add a general prayer for ‘suck further or other Felief gs may be deemed just and equitable” very pleading shall be dated.» Bxample: (Complaint for Replevin) ‘COMPLAINT PLAINTIFF, by counsel, unto this Honorable Court respectfully states and prays that: 1, Both plaintiff and defendants are Filipinos, of age, and residents of Brgy. Pardo, Cebu City; 2. Plaintiffis the owner of jeep, valued. at Twenty Thousain! (P20,000.00), iy doveribed as follows: 8. etatethefacte consisting the wrongful detention of the above property by the defendant); Plaintiff has demanded of the defendant the delivery of the subject Ta th bev ft al” aati pr! eta emiine ort ale ate para win rlrng tas umber rope a ‘epern ap nto totecover eon arse propery ma, ‘Rae Court Ral ae co aoe Some 1017 988LGA waemsc ‘ACompetncy Had Aopen property but the latter refused and Continues to refuse to do s0. WHEREFORE, it is prayed: ‘4, ‘That the property in question be ordered delivered to the plain D. if material delivery is not pos- sible, that def=ndant be ordered to pay plaintiff ite actual value ‘of P20,000-00. © That defendant be made to pay ‘the costs of this suit 4. Itisfurther prayed that plaintife be granted such further relief ‘consistent with law and equity. Signed this 8th day of January 2007 in Cebu City. © Signature and Addresses ‘The rules require that every pleading must be signed by the party or his lawyer. The address of the party oF his couneel most be stated. A post ‘office Box address is not al‘owed. The signature of the lawyer constitutes © sertieate by him that he hhas read the pleading, and that to the best of his knowledge, information and belie? there is. good around to bupport it. He Iikewive certifies that the pleading is nov interposed for delay. ‘Some legal consequences: ‘As a rule, an unsigned pleading produces no legal effect, but the court may alle if it was due to inadvertence and not for delay. A lawyer who ‘) deliberately Hes an unsigned pleading’ b) sins {pleading in violation of the Rules; e) alleges scandalous or indocont matters; or ) fails to ‘promptly report tothe court a change af his address, shall be subject to appropriate disciplinary action= Example: MARINER T. PULIDO ‘Counsel for Plaintift 231 Burgos Street, Ormoc City TBP Lifetime 0654702, PTR No. 4768599, ‘Jan. 7, 2007, Ormoe City Verification The rule is pleadings need not be under oath, verified oF accompanied by sworn statements, The ‘exception is when the law or rule provides otherwise Pleadings covered by theruleon Summary Procedure must be verified. How is. pleading verted? A pleading is verified by an affidavit stating that the affant has read the pleading snd that the allegations therein are “true and correct of his knowledge and belief,” » pleading required to ‘be verified which contains @ verification based on “information and belief” or upon “knowledge, information andbelieforlacks proper verification, shall be treated as an uncigned pleading.” e Certfeation aginst Shopping ‘Forum shopping isthe actof fling the same suit indifferent court. It isan act of malpractice tha proscribed and condemned as trifing with the courts ‘and abusing their processes. I is improper conduct ‘that tends to degrade the administration of astica ‘The rules require the plaintif? oF principal party to certify under oath inthe complaint (or ether Initiatory pleading) asserting a claim for relief, oF {in a sworn cortifcation annexed and filed with the pleading that: a) he has not commenced any action filed any elaim involving the same issues in ny court, tribunal or quasi judicial agency and, to the best of his knowledgs, no euch other action or claimre tere eae e ee ee oe ene eres Ap eee ce suet reo grr mpc ee a rr Se oe aca 21 we cad to orpar i fr pending, he shall report that fact within five (5) foregoing petition and the same are true days to the court where the complaint (or initiatory Sees aa iy een ae cece nemunas 2 Sgrtay serene: Setar ee ee a eens Seo eee es ere ama Sao ears eee a ae sri Soames Seber cnc Sree eee Ries er a eas ore See eae remit Se eee Sea eee | seen sean ‘The submission of a false certification or non- beeen! hacer See esoasnaee [EM Wr WEENRCE there here ee ars SS ees See ee Hecate ive Dinas Cas ae aie eee eee eee ae Peete ieee alee oe ee, pea Reruns pba OC ‘cgninat forum shopping: Ormoe City, Philippines. TEPUBLIC OF THE PEILAPPLNES 5 seen nea cor mus Pie permis See eee eee ee eae en cmos aa Sema SULIEEA to TARNATE, of oat Seer ah cues oes Se ey gee ae eee ee ato alin eel an pines, uiter having been duly sworn to in fand inexpensive disposition of every ction and Ee epee sn ne nd ue nose Se een oe ener eatenaca warms compen Based Approach 5, Receptions to the Rule on Liberality ‘The Handbook on the Law on Pleadings by Marcial 0:7. Balgos" Identified 6 instances when the rule on liberality was not applied. These are: ‘When the uncertainty and ambiguity in the allegations are systematically utilized as a tactic to trap and confuse the adverse party. Where the answer is “evasive,” and the ‘uncertainty and ambiguity are adopted a5 actis” to “confuse the plaintiff" as to what facts must be proved or what issues must be tet, the Supreme Court refused to allow the ‘validity ofthe answer and sustained judgment ‘on the pleadings” When the allegations are so framed that they fare so vague stv? uncartain as to leave the ‘court guessing a to what the pleader wants ‘The Supreme Court struck down a pe tien which enumerated the several orders ued by the inferior court, but did not state ‘which of the orders are being questioned by the petition. The petition was declared “vague” land “indefinite” and the Court added that the “administration of justice” is “not a matter of guess work, saying that the courts should “not hie lef to conjectures in the determination of ingues,” o "be led to,.error or injustice by ploringin the midst of uncertainty and divining {the intention ofthe parties or their counsel.” When from the inadequacy of the allegations it appears that the pleader is suppressing facts PERSUASIVE LEGAL ANALYSIS the Workmen's Compensation Commission sand the petitioner merely attached copy of the ‘questioned decision in his petition, the Court ‘rejected the excuse that counsel was under time preasure saying thet is “no justifeation for the suppression of material and vital fet... In the same case the Court reiterated the Aoctrine in Canetev. Wislisenue (36 Phil. 428, 482) that “exhibte or annexes witached ‘sa ‘complaint o petition do no take the place of allegations of ultimate facts constituting the cause of action..which the pleader is under obligation to plead concisely and specifically as his pleading had no anes, under pain (of peremptary diamiseal of his comp!=ist or Information 4. When the allegations are notin accordance with, or are violations of, order of « court. Where the comment (on petition) required of respondents consists ofa “terse and Taconic two-page pleading,” the Court found ‘the pleading too skimpy and did uv address to the principal queetionsazed™ (© When the allegations are intemperate, deroga- tory o fale. Offensive or intemperate language +2: ‘be expunged from the records Motion ‘A motion is en application for relie ther than by @ pleading.” Its a request made ta judge for an order hot part ofthe judgment ~ directing some act ta be done in favor of the applicant. All motions must be in writing ‘except those made in open court and shall state) the ‘material tothe disposition ofthe ease. Where the alisgation® in petition for review fled to include the ratio decidendi of Taal lng Orit Trane. Cv. Workmen's Compensation Commision Se alee ee eee ceed aoe ‘ine nla ee nota Marna 25084 27 ot it 30mg Ou Cn v Dela Contato? SCRA 102LRGAL warn Acampetne Base Approach rulief sought to be obtained; b) the grounds upon which ‘the mation is based; and c) if required by the rules oF ‘neceseary to prove the facta alleged, shall be accompanied thy supporting aMidavits and other papers: 1. Kinds of Motion a Be parte — an application made to the {url n the abwence and usally without the Knowledge of the otser party. This mation may beacted upon without need of roe esring as itis based on the aasumption thatthe rights tf the adverse party would not be prejudiced by the ruling, Bx porte motions are however an exception, The rule equies motions fo be Tard with notice tothe oer party at Test 3 days before the date ofhearing™ Example: Urgent Br Parte Motion for Postponement 1. Litigated — one made with notice tothe other ary giving that party opportunity to eamment Ur oppove the motion. very written motion Stall beset for hearing by the applicant He fotce ofthe hearing shall be served ensuring ite reeipt by the other pare atleast 3 days ‘aire ‘ {ord cause sets te hearing on shorter natice= Example: Motion to Dismis ‘& Motion of course — a motion for relief to ‘which the moving party is entitled as a matter fright and not of discretion onthe part ofthe Court and which requires no investigation of the truth of any allegatior or suggestion on which i ie founded. ‘Example: Motion for Execution (when the Aecision has become final and executory) PERSUASIVE LHGAL ANALYSIS Pro Forma ~ prv forma motion is literally, ‘2 motion in form only. Tt sone which has the form but not the substance of « motion and is resorted solely to gain time or to delay the proceedings. A motion for reconsideration it ro forma when it does not specify he findings fr conclusions in the judgment which are not "supported by evidence or which are contrary to law making express reference to the pertinent ‘evidence or lgal provisios" © Special Motion — A motion directed to the is sad Cross your fs and dot your i He writes his “tyt's" uncapitalized. 2. The plural ofsingle-digit sus fs formed by adding. 1 erilten in figures Maltipledigit numbers in figures, dates and single digit numbers which are spelied-out are pluralied by imple adding ans, There er need to put an apostrophe. Bxample We must walk in 2, (Better: We must walk in toe) ‘Segregate the bills by 508 ‘That was done in the 1970s. 8, Uncapitlized abbreviations are plaralized with x ‘The plural ofa capitalized abbreviation is formed by ‘adding an ¢ without an apostrophe. Example: He has «string of PRD, yot remains humble. Bring your ed's tothe pene. CONTRACTIONS AND ABBREVIATIONS 1. The apostrophe stands for omilted letters in ‘contractions and 2biteviations. Generally, however, contractions convey infumality and should not be used in formal legal writing, though such restriction is not as rigidly ‘enforeed today. {A conversational law review article may be allowed to contract words to covey a friendly, infor- mal tone Example: ‘aren't, ont, can't, wouldn't, Dep, Natl, Assn* 2, The apostrophe marks the elison of letters, or ‘numbers in a date where the century referred to ‘understood. Bxample: “round (for around, (fx over,’ (for 1963) note: the apostrophe should rot be eanfused svith the prime ign, eg, 5 to indicate fet. Parenthesis ‘The parenthesis (pl. “parentheses) i either or both upright curves used ta aot off ‘seful but non-essential le Bath, «unr ptm tation pbb by the Harve Lan ‘Revi Aan uns et the Caan Law Hv, he erty ot ‘Penman La vi td Yea Hero ae the pop ‘hierson Dep, Noland Awe, Thw ALWD (mn of ag Wing ‘Diol ich som pri renal gman Sects nd fre {afl ena wing. alr pd pdvecy programa en US, Canadian tol Anata nw eer eve wi the spntope ad enema {Seine berate Dept Noland wt‘Acampeteny Based Aprach word c= phrase in a sentence. The parentheses tone down the segregated material. the writer intends to highlight the phrase, the ong dashes’ are sed, Example: ‘The witness (pale and shaking) was grilled during the eros-examination. ‘The witness — pale and shaking — was grilled during the croc-examination 1. Inparenthetis! matter giving extra information or comments use the parentheses Example ‘The Philippines (1946) and India (1947), ined independence a year after the other. ‘The ADR Act of 2004 (R-A.9285) does not repeal but complements and improves on the ‘Arbitration Lats of 1955 (R-A.876) He plans to inite friends (mostly ex seminari ‘ans tothe party. 2, Toindicate an abbreviated referenee toa long name, parentheses are used Bxample: ‘The University of the Philippines CUP") gave ‘hima magna cum lend. Peter Mechan and Nate David (defendants?) {led their anawer. Marto O. Lowa, represented by his nephew Reuben Onting (collectively referred. to a8 “plaintiff, moved to refer the case to the Philippine Mediation Center. Note: The use by some writers of “hereinafter ‘oferrd to as" (defendants) is unnecessary, and may ‘be shortened to “defendants.” Tee dates PUNCTUATION 8. Parentheses re used to set off numbers or eters ‘enumerating subparts of a statement. Example: “igchildren are (1) Aencas James ,(2) Anthony Lawrence, and (3) Ariston David. Quotation Marks Quotation marks may be double (*" or singe ¢ Periods and commas are placed inside the quetation marks. Other punctuations (eg., colon, semi colon, ‘iuestion mark, exclamation point) are placed outside, ‘Unless the question mark and exclamation point are part ofthe quoted materia. Rules: 1, Only short quotations (under 50 words) are enclosed by quotation marks, Those with 50 weeds or more do rot use quotation marks; instead, thay are written fs black quotes, are single spaced nd given special [eft and right indenons. Beanple: ‘The Supreme Court in De Borja v. Onsingeo, 24322 “"R, October 1, 1962 ruled:"Insanis, ara ground for voiding an act, doesnot mean a toll deprivation of ‘reason but only an inability, from dfet of perception. Imersory ard udgment, todo the actin ques*on.” People v. Formigones, 87 Phil 661, held that for in sanity to be appreciated of an exempting ercum- stance, there must be: ‘complete deprivation of intelligence ix ‘committing the act, that is, ‘hat the oe- ‘cused be deprived of reason, that there be ino responsibilty of his own ots, that he ee ih! he ea ermet, ht there bea complete absence ofthe power to discern, or that there be a total depriva- tion of freedom ofthe wil.‘A Competancy Based Approach 2, Innested quotations (quotation/ within quotation), alternate between the double and single quotation, Example Dag Hammarshjold said: “your responsibility sata?’ you can never save yourself y not gene 3, Ifa word or phrase is referred to as such (without sing to is meaning) in a sentence, it may be quoted fr italieied. Example: Emily Dickinson referred tothe gvave as her “Tle cottage” Emily Dickinson referred tothe grave ar be ile cottage. 4. Words used ironically or with a different chade of meaning are set af by quotations Bxample: His “wife wil soon arrive. £. Quotation mars set off @ nickname if written between the ist and last names. Example: Marianito“Rianing” Ramos Bracket Bruckets enclose the writer's own comments into ‘an otherwise verbatim quotation, indicate his own words Substituting original words in a quotation, or any other {ngertions, deletions oF changes within quotations 1. Baltorial comment Brackets are used to indieate one's porsonal comments in an otherwise word-for-word quotation. Example: _Eme son said that “love isthe adamantesn an ‘extremely hard substance) shield which makes Blow ridientous.” ‘Substitution or omission of a letterfword (to ‘agree in tense, number or gender with rest of the rentence) Brackets can suggest that the word/s aro not part ofthe quotation but rather substitutes to the original. The bracketed matter may also indicate fan omission of a Teter or word to make the quoted ‘matter conform tothe tenaé, number, or gender of the rest ofthe sentance Ifa letter i not eapitalized in the original but must now be capitalized, that etter must be bracketed. Do not italiize brackets. Example: Meister Eckhart famous tenet is only if the “hand,.eraes (wil i} write the true thing.” (ote: the original quote reads: “Only the hand that frases ean write the true Ching.” ‘Thomas a Kerpi’ words hed lingered: “i ‘you seek rest? You were only erated to labor” (Wate the original: “Why do you sek rest? You were ‘only ereated to labor”) Addition, translation or clarification ‘The bracketed matter may Hkewise indicate ‘addtional information, including the translation or clarification of a data quoted, Example: “The review placed (Margaret Mitchell's Puli {er Prise winning story] Gone Wit the Wind at the ‘pinnacle of Hollywood moviemaking.” "It’s a caso of cceasio fait furem {opportunity sakes the thief” Sie ‘Sic, which is Latin for “thus,” is inserted in brackets directly after a quoted word to show that the material is quoted literally, and that in the ‘opinion ofthe person quoting the word/s immediately preceding the Tail it errenonus or doubtful‘A Competency Based Approach 2, Innosted quotations (quotation/s within quotation), alternate between the double and single quotations, Example: Dag, Hammarshjold said: “your responsibility isa to 7 you ean never save yourself by a nat. ees 3, Ifa word or phrase is referred to as such (without going to is meaning) in a sentenee, it may be quoted 6 taiceed Example: Emily Dickinson referred to the grave a8 her "little cottage.” Emily Diccinsen referred to the grave as her ite cotage 4. Words used ironically or with a diferent shade of meaning are set off by quotations Bxample: His “wife will soon arrive. 5. Quotation marks set off @ nickname i written between the first and last names. Example: Marianito "Rianing” Ramos Bracket Brackets enclose the writers own comments into ‘an otherwise verbatim quotation indicate his own words Substituting original words in a quotation, or any other insertions deletions oF cnangea within quotations 1. Rditortat comment Brackets are used to indicate one's personal ‘comments in an atherwise word-for-word quotation. Example: Emerson sai that “love isthe adamantean {an ‘extremely hard substance] shield which makes Bow ridiculous.” unre xv ast ‘Substitution or omission of a letteriword (to ‘agree in fense, number or gender with rest of the sentence) Brackets can suggest that the word/s are not part ofthe quotation but rather substitutes to the original. The bracketed matter may also indicate fan omission of «leter or word to make the quoted ‘matter conform tothe tense, number, or gender of the ret ofthe sentence, Ifa fetter isnot eapitalizod in the onginal but must now be capitalized, that letter must he brac ted. Do not italicize brackets. Example Meister Hokhar?' famous tenet is only if the “hand. erases (wil i] rite the rue thing” (ote: the original quote reads: “Only the hand that ‘erases ean write Ge true thing” Thomas a Kempis’ words had lingered: Die you sek rest? Vou wore only erated to labor” ‘The bracketed matter may’ likewise indicate additional information, induding the translation or ‘arfication ofa data quoted Example: “The review placed (Margaret Mitchell's Puli tser Prize winning story] Gone With the Wind at the ‘pinnacle of Hollywood moviemaking” "esa ease of eccasio fait furem {opportunity smakes the thief)” Sie Sic, which ie Latin for “thus 1 brackets diretly after a quoted word to show that the material it quoted Iteraly, and that in the ‘opinion ofthe person quoting the words immediately preceding the “ee” is erroneous or doubtful,TT eer epenin ptt ‘A compeeny sed Appa Example: Inher diary she seribbled in birdie sratches “Truthe ate] shal et you fre.” 5. Phonetics Phonetic alshabets and symbols are bracketed when written in a sentence. Example: “The Spanish vowel {u) sounds ike the (ul in rule Ellipsis: Ellipsis and eclipse have the same Greek root word leipein meaning leave. Elipsis are marks written as for" to indieate the omistion of a word or words in & sentence. The dt. are also used to indicate a protracted pause in a dialogue. Although asterisks are sill used {oday to mark deleted parts, the rule in legal writing is to tase only ellipsis dot. ‘The rule is rather simple. Three ellipsis dots indi cate the omission of one or more words in a quotation Four dots (three ellipsis o's and a period) are used ifthe ‘omission occurs at the nd ofthe sentence. Fllipsis dote are not used at the beginning «fa ‘quotation. A bracketed and capitalized first letter in @ ‘quotation will indicate thatthe beginning of the sentence ‘ad been omitted Example Leo Tolstoy once asked: “IIs there any book of the lax so lear to each man as tha written in his heart?” ‘The bracketed letter suggests that the beginning thas been omitted, and that ellipsis dots are not needed. "The all quotation reads: “Where i there any book of the law so clear to ‘each man as that written in his heart?” PUNCTUATION. ‘Long pause ina dialogue is written with an ellps 1. feel Lam, ah enitled.to the property.” Asterisle ‘Also called “star,” asterisks are used to indicate footnotes, references or omissions. The note indicated by ‘an asterisk usually placed atthe botiom margin of a ‘document. ingule ‘Also called the souidus oF diagonal, the virgule is ‘that diagonal stroke indiating “or options Example: Iki allright to woar shoesleippers in class. Vie andlor Willi may withdraw from this account "The virgleis also used inthe following: 1. fractions ea, 2/3) 2, dates eg. 4/24/07) 8. ta indicating breaks when poems are written con- Unuously (eg, The araue my litle cottage is/ Where, heaping house for thee!T make my parlor orderiy/ ‘And lay the marble ea.) 4. when per is used, e4,, 90 kmh. The virgule here ‘means in relation to. 5, im abSroviatins,eg., NA, meaning not arlicable, fand JA, meaning quality assurance. Dash, ‘The dash may belong (called the em-dash) or short (he en-dash) Em Dash Em or long dashes indicate a sudden break in. a sentence — to amplify, define explain or summarize the ‘matters before the dah, They often substitute the colon, uch as to introduce a lit, oF st off appositives. Dashes fre however less formal than the colon.A Campetney Base Approach Example: ‘The truth — that’s what I wanted to hear from you. (sudden break amplifying matters) My favorite fruits are tropieal — mangoes, papayas ‘and pineapples. ist) ‘Two of his four sons have doctorates — Mar and James. (appositives, explaining tw) Appearingin pairs, em dashes substitute or commas and parentheses. Parenihetical matters may be set olf by Tong dashes instead ofthe parentheses, Example: ‘He broke down ~ unexpectedly ~ while testifying. Our countrys main geographical divisio.s ~ Luzon, Visayas and Mindonao are represented a sce in the flag. In typewritten texts, em dashes are writin: as two hyphens. No space must appear before or ater the dash. One must not use a comma, seini-colna or colon directly before of ater em dashes, Asem cashes are strong and ‘emphatic punctuations, they should be used sparingly An overuse creaes a choppy effect in the sentence. Bn Dash ‘The en or short dash looks like @ hyphen, and means through o upto. Example: 2963-2007, Monday Saturday Ampersand (&) "The ampersand symbolizes and and short-euts the word, It is not used in formal writing, except as part of corporate naming siyle, eg, American Telephone & ‘Telegraph Co. when the company wants itself tobe known, using the punctuation. In ease of government agencies the word is used, eg, Department of Public Works and Highways When the ampersand is used instead of the comma inthe last two iteme in a series the comma isnot used, eg, the law firm of Flore, Palmera & Go. CHAPTER XVI CAPITALIZATION, ITALICS, BOLDFACE, ‘UNDERSCORING “In the past, very fess lawyers thought much about the design oF Tok oftheir document. Apart from giving «litle thought o a numbering system, they often Ie all matter of styl: and layout to the typist, And ofcourse, there were some documents that had tobe in a preseribed format, or typed on a set form. But communication ‘xperts have cong known that document design has an important fect on the readers ability to rea, find, understand and use the ‘information in a document. That makes good design an essential clement of pan language writing.” = Michele M. Asprey, Plain Language for Lawyers [University of Michigan) researcher found that the students were more likely to acept the inatructions typed in Aral, and were ‘more tilling to acton them, then were students reading The inetretions typed in Brush, (looks similar to this) 1 ems ie students mistook the case of reading the instructions or the act of virtually doing the exercises ii Purpose: ‘Tobe able to observe the rules of capitalization, ities, boldface and underscoring. A. CAPITALIZATION RULES A. Proper Nouns Proper nouns and their derivatives are capitalized. ‘The personal pronoun is capitalized. Example: Philippines ~ Filipino ‘Sigmund Freud — Preudion‘ACcmpetaney Based Approach Cebu Cxbuano Teame, saw, I conquered. Exception: Derivatives of proper nouns which trough long usage had acquired independent meanings are not capitalized. Example: 1a par betchoy, pancit malabon, american bread, venetian blinds, manila paper a. Academic Degrees and ‘itles Academie degrees are set off with a comma after a person's name and are abbreviated. ‘The ‘degrees and their abbreviations are capitalized, e4 Ruby R Mercado, MSN. When bachelor’s degree, master’s degree and doctorate are used. generally (eats My wife has two master’s degrees.) they are not capitalized, ‘An academic title is capitalized when used for rally, eg., Dean Renato Imperial, but nt capital curren cot ‘caPrraLuuation, AACS BOLDPACE, UNDERSCORING [Bachelor of Sence in] BSEN. or BSN. Nursing Doctor oF Juridical Science |JSD.or DIS. or SID. or D.JurSe. Ture Doctor 3D. (Doctor of Jurisprudence, equivalent to LR.) ‘Master of Arts MA or AM. (ertium magister) Master of Business MBA Administration Master of Laws 1M egum magister) Doctor of Education | B&D. or PRA, al Doctor oF Jsaieal Suence |JSD.or DIS. or SID. or i "[Dafur Se. Doctor Laws LUD. degum doctor) | Doctor of Philosophy Ph.D. or dotorate {zed when uted asa modifier eg, school oflaw dean b. Addresses Renata Imperial. When bachelors degree, master Stroot names are capitalized. Compass points degree and doctorate are use® generally they ave not are abbreviated and capitalized when they appear capitalized, ‘Gfter street names, 4, Broadway Ave. SW., but are ‘writen out when written before the street names, Dogrees/Tiles Abbreviations Ca 727 South Expressway, Coba City. The following fare post oie abbreviations for street addresses (Resistant Professor [Asst Pro [Note that fist letters are capitalize. [Associate professor [Assvc, Prof Bachelor of Arts BA. or AB. Alley Aly (artium baccalaureus) [Aresde Are. Bachelor of Laws oe. [avenue Ave. Aegum beccalaureus) Boulevard Biv Bachelor of Filosophy Phil. or PhB. Branch Br philosophiae ocealaureus)| S es oo (Causew (caw. Seria GENTURY MANUAL OF STYLE 258260 Printon Language I state, Babar Ana Wipe Hood Lessor, Te Pip et Gre es Toss rs(Center co Cirle ie Court ice Crescent [Cres Drive De. zl Expreseway Repy Extension Yen Frees er (Gardens ans [Grove Gry. re Heights Hts, [Highway Hwy Lane a. Manor Mow. Place PL pal Plaza er eo ay Point PL. [Rod Ra. Rural R. Square sa | Stree se Tersee sare le rai Ga Turnpike Tpke. Viaduct Via. [Vista Vis. | © International organizations Names of international organizations and agencies are =a,italized. Example United Nations, General Assembly, Secretaria, Se- ‘curity Covnel, Trusteeship Council, Beonomic ‘and Social Council (COSOO), International Court of Justice ‘caPreatszamton,rrALICS BOLDFACE, UNDERSCORING BCOSOC agencies: International Labor Organization (ILO); Food and “Agriculture Organization ofthe United Nations (FAO); United Nations Educational, Scientific, ‘and Cultural Organization (UNESCO); Inter hnational Bank for Reconstruction and Devel opment (IBRD or Worid Bank) International ‘Monetary Fund (IMB), World Health Organi _2ation (WHO); Universal Postal Union (UPU); Usited Notions Childrens Fund (UNICEP) International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Tternational Conference on Population and Development (ICPD or the Cairo Population Conference) Exccutive and legislative bodies [Names of executive and legislative bodies, their derivative and short names, the names of their fiers are eapitalized. Example: Republic ofthe Philippines Office of the President, President oj the Philippines, ‘President, Presdatial ‘Beacutve Assistant Congress of the Philippines, Congress, Sente House of Representatives, House, Speaker of ‘the House of Representatives, President ofthe ‘Senay Seeretary General House of Representa fives, Seoretary of the Senate, Sevace Bill No 2671, House Fil No. 5654 Bangho Sentral ng Pilipinas, Central Bank, Central Bank Gover: nor, Droartment of Buelget and Management ‘Scoretary of the Deparinuent of Budget and ‘Management e. dudicial bodies 4. The Supreme Court and the word Court referring to it ao capitalize. Bxampl Supreme Court of the Republic ofthe Philip pinesca. wernt Acampetency Based Appech Philippine Supreme Court ‘Supreme Court the Court ‘The names of international courts are capit- lied Example: International Court of Justice, International Criminal Court 1CC), International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia aery) fii, The names of courts other than tne Supreme Court are capitalized in lel doruments but lowercased elsewhere Example: Court of Appeats (in pleadings and brisfs) ‘She appealed to the court of aojeale last year. (Gn non-legal documents) Exception: Court is eapitatizod when referring to a judge ‘or branch whore the care is pending. Bxcanp!a: This Court holds the defendant in defout Historical vente [Names of historical and cultural events, and specifi conferences, festivals, games are capitalize. Example: World War 11, Games of the XXV Olympiad, Ath ens Olympics, 1979 Miss Universe Pageant, Munich ‘Agreement, Missouri Compromise, andung Confer- ‘enor, Berth Summit, Fourth World Conference on Women Geographic names i, Names of oceans, lakes, rivers, mountain, is- lands, continents are capitalized including the ‘CAPITALIZATION, FEALICS, BOLDFACE, UNDERSCORING ‘generic torms oceans, lakes, rivers, mountains ‘and ialands Example: Sulu Sea, Manila Bay, Lake Mainit, Cagayan River, Me. Mayon Plural: Lakes Lanao and Mainit Exception Generic terms used in the plural after two oF more geographic naises ae no eapitalized, Example: ‘Sulu and Philippine seas, Lingayen and Leyte ‘ulfs, Cagayan at Til rivers i. Landmarks, parks, monuments, buildings are capitalized Bxample: Rizal Park, Quezon Memorial Circle, Sears Tower 4H, Popular nicknames of places are capitalized Example Queen City ofthe South City of Pines fv. Geographicladminisratve divisions and names of organized bodies are capitalized Example [Northern Hemisphere, Japan, Far East, South ast Avia, ASEAN, U5, (used as an adjective, punctuated) but USA, UK (counties whose ab- breviations are formed by their initial letters are capitalized and may be unpunetuated. ‘Titles of legal, literary and artistic works Example: 1 LegalACompetency Band Approch Philippine Constitution, Bill of Rights, Civil Cade’ of the Philippines, Code of Pro- fessional Responsibility, Ruler of Cour, Clerical ‘Error Law (RA. No. 9048), Alternative Dispute Resolution Act of 2004, State of the Nation ‘Address, ‘Republic Cement Corp. v. Court Of Appeals, 198 SCRA 734, Treaty of Paris, Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations (1961), Vienna "Convention on Consular Relations (1963), Vie:1a Convention othe Law of Treaties (1968) iL Literary/Artstic ‘Mario Vargas Llosa's “Aunt Julia and the Seripturiter” is a. remarkable coming-of ge uel Hamlet ‘Sonnets rom the Portuguese ‘My fevorve painting isthe Mona Lisa ‘The Moonlight Sonata is Beethoven's Opus 27, Number 2 fi, Titles of books Beyord Feelings: A Guide to Critical Thinking twas written By Prof. Vincent R. Ruggiero Brand sames and trademarks are capitalized Example: Cortal Sprite Chow King 2 Beginning of a Sentence ‘The firs letter ofa sontonce wa complete quotation {s eapitalized. The beginning of headings are eapi- talized, Short and centered headings signaling the start ofa main ecction are all espitalized. ‘CAPITALIZATION, rEALICS, BOLDFACE, UNDERSCORING Example: Direct quotation Kahlil Gibran said: “Thou art my brother because you are a human. ..we are equal and made of ‘the aame earth.” Indirect quotations are not capitalized Kahlil Gibran exhorted that tuman beings are ‘brothers, equal and made ofthe same earth Partial direct quotations are not capitalized; ‘quotations following that are not capitalized. ‘You are my brother, Gibran said, because “you area human. Libran said that Tyou arelmy brother because ‘you area human...” But Gibran said:"1You arel my brother because nu area human.” ‘The boginning of direct questions are capital: ized, Indirect questions are not eapitalized. Example: Direct Questions Direct questions being sentences in themselves rust be capitalized even though appearing within a sentence. They are usually preceded by a comma, dash and a cal, Example: ‘the accused's expression seems to ask ~ Do T ‘really deserve the sentence? Thave 000 you the second time: Where do you tive? Indirect Questions ‘An indirect question ea declaratory statement which doesnot needa question marker a capitalized Deginning (of the question‘nCompetane Had Approach Example have to ask you the socond time where do you live Common nouns or adjectives forming part of a ‘Proper noun are Pxample: Common noun/adjective Proper noun avenue Jones Avenue park ‘Rizal Park eum Angat and Pagtinabangan Pams national (adj) Philippine National Bank city ‘Makati City (but, ety of Makati) department Edueationand Defence Departments A common noun used alone and representing a reper noun is capitalized Example: Court (referring to the Supreme Court or any court ‘hearing a particular case) Director (referring ta particular regiona director) Mortgagor-Mortgagee, S.llr Buyer (once they are ‘dentfied in a contract) Definite article “the” is capitalized when part ofan official name or ttle Bxample: The Cove v. CA. (title ofa ease) “The” is lowereased when not part of proper nouns, ‘6g sthe Philippine Daily Inquirer, the Twante, the Bureau of immigration Particles in names Particles in names such as de, del, de i, van or von are capitalized, except f they are not capitalized due to lusage or are preceded by a forename or title. CAPITALIZATION, rHALICS BOLDFACE, UNDERSCORING Example: de la Vietora (not capitalized through usage) Del Valle (or del Valle, because of usage) TTALICIZATION RULES Ialics are used to emphasize parts of a sentence oF to indicate that the word italicied is referred to as euch word without reference to + meaning. Brame: Students are required to submit their papers on-line. (emphasis) ‘The ampersand represents and. (word is referred to as sch word) tates are likewise used in introducing unfamiliar words or foreign phrases not yet inenrporated to English. Example: Alopecia, or baldness, is rarer among Filipinos than among whites. (Ora ot labora (pray and work) is « Benedictine mottoCHAPTER XVI LEGAL CITATION “The measure of success for legal writing is not how wll drafters manage to sound lke lawyers but hex well they achieve ‘accuracy of content combined with plainnest of expression.” “Thave made this letter longer than usual, only Because I didnot ‘have the time to make it shorter.” ~ Blaise Paseal (1623-1662) Purpose: ‘Tobe able to cite ones sources correctly. 1. LEGAL CITATION Legal citation is the practice of referring to one's sources. ‘Among these are the Constitution, dzcsions of the Supreme Court, laws, rules, ordinances, tsaties and academic writing of logal scholars Il, SUGGESTED GUIDE TO LEGA" CITATION: A. Constitution A. Philippine Constitution CONST. Art I, See. 3, par.2 CONST. (1973), Art I, Se. 2 (year is indicated ifthe ‘onatitution it no longer in force.) 2. Foreign Constitutions JAPAN CONST. Art 1V. ya Rr Comminion a Vira Neprt No 9, ai Engh and he Law, ‘ppc pl Drang Mana 30 Jone 00 "Sec USP Lae Ree Se Ce. {GAL CITATION P Codes and Laws 1. FAMILY CODE, Art. 98, par.1 2, Initial citation ofa law ‘An Act Defining Violence Against Women and their Children, Providing for Protective Measures for Vietims, Preceribing Penalties Therefore, and for (Other Purposes, Republic Act, 9262, Se. 3 (2004) 8, Subsequent citation ofa lew: 1A, 9282, See 3 © Cases 1. Supreme Court Initial citation Kuroda vs, Jalandoni, 83 Phil 171 (1949) b, Directly succeeding citation rata & Subsequent but not directly succeeding) citation Keroda, 88 Phil. at 172 Advance shoots (advance sheets are generally ‘used only when the reported versions are not yet publisied) People v. Marivie Genosa, GR. No, 136981, ‘January 15, 2004 2 Courtof Appeals People v, Collanes, 37 0.G. 1804, (Court of ‘Appeals 1926) D, Books 1. Single author. Cite the name, Boo title, page section ‘or paragraph) and year ofpubliction M. MAGALLONA, FUNDAMENTALS OF PUBLIC INTERNATIONAL LAW, 250 (2005)LacaL warms ACompetony Base Approach 2 Twoor more authors B. ALBANO, E. ALBANO JR & M. ALBANO, CIVIL LAW REVIEWER, 900 (2004) E.Internet Sources Internet sources maybe citod by giving their exact ‘web address. The date of site visit must be included, Bxample: Online Etymology Dictionary, https/www.etymon- line-convindex php?term=memorandum, last visited Now ember 6, 2000 INDEX ne ‘Academi Degrees and Titles, 156, ‘etive Voie, 4 ‘purpose, 5 ‘Ad Hominem Abusive, 50 ‘Ad Hoominem, $7 ‘Ad Hominem Tu Quogue, 37 ‘Ampersand, 154 ‘Analogical Reasoning, 28 possible types of, 28-30, Appellate Brie, 4-5 Appellate Roles (1907 Rules on Ausiliares, 62 ‘Avoid Misplaced or Dangling Modifier, 20 concept, 20 Avoid ofthe Ambiguous Pronoun Ref=rence, 22 concept, 22 Tow to, 23 1 Procedure), 118 Bandwagon, 43 Brief, 118 ‘contents of appellant’ brief, 115-116 ‘contents of appellee's bref, 117 ‘Siificaner of, 117 Capitalization Rules, 155-164 (Circumstantial Ad Hominem, 45 Cacity, 16 purpose, 16 Collective Noun, 124Crose-

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