Lexington Books Rhetoric, Persuasion, and Modern Legal Writing: The Pen Is Mightier

Classical rhetorical techniques can enhance the persuasiveness of Supreme Court opinions by making their language clear, lively, and memorable. This book focuses on three techniques-"invention" (creation of arguments), "arrangement" (organization), and "style" (word choice)-in the work of Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., Robert Jackson, Hugo Black, William Brennan, and Antonin Scalia, respectively. The justices featured here contributed to the Court's rhetorical legacy in different ways, but all five rejected the magisterial opinion style of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries in favor of a more personal and conversational format. As a result, their opinions have endured, and even modern readers who cannot recall the justices' names understand and embrace the ideas expressed in their legal writings and apply those ideas to current debates. Practicing lawyers, professors, and students can use this book to study legal writing techniques and make their own writing more persuasive. Review Words matter. The Pen is Mightier reminds law students, lawyers, and judges alike that they can matter most when legal acumen is coupled with great writing. Choosing five gifted justices, Brian Porto conveys with admirable clarity equal to his subject a truth writers of judicial opinions learn sooner or later: how you say it is as important as what you say.--Jeffrey Amestoy, former Chief Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court and author of Slavish Shore: The Odyssey of Richard Henry Dana Jr.Rhetoric, Persuasion, and Modern Legal Writing is an incredibly informative and interesting analysis of what turns good writing into great writing using the examples of Supreme Court Justices.--Heidi Gilchrist, Brooklyn Law SchoolProfessor Porto offers a provocative and practical study of how revered Supreme Court Justices from Holmes to Kagan have exploited rhetoric and argumentation. Both the excerpts and the author's insights will be invaluable to judges and advocates alike--Ross Guberman, president of Legal Writing Pro About the Author Brian L. Porto is professor of law at Vermont Law School