It’s become an article of faith that lawyers are poor writers. That isn’t really fair. The problem is not with lawyers’ writing, I think; the problem lies with lawyers’ tendency to overwrite. Ask a lawyer for a tune and she’ll give you a symphony. Ask for a snack and he’ll bring you a three-course meal. Today’s idea will sound summertime-frivolous at best, but I urge you to consider it. Get your lawyers to write poetry. Specifically, get them to write legal poetry.
Originally published July 13, 2011Sign up for our free newsletter.