Kim M. Baker has been teaching writing in academe and business for 19 years. As the Writing Specialist, Professor Baker supports all law students as they work to improve their writing skills, beginning in Legal Methods first year and continuing through seminar papers, writing samples, test...
Students often ask me to suggest ways they can improve their writing. Believe it or not, one of my first responses is READ! Yes, there are many writing exercises you can do to improve writing skills. But do not overlook the power of reading to improve your vocabulary and to see how good writers put sentences together.
Interestingly, many lawyers are not only good legal writers, but they are also novelists (think Grisham) and poets. Yup. Poets.
So if you love good writing, check out the website below, Strangers to Us All: Lawyers and Poetry for a comprehensive discussion of why lawyers make good poets and for links to poetry by lawyers. Lawyers see "the world in a nuanced way that demands it be addressed with a special language, language that calls attention to itself and sets itself apart by form, rhythm, and practice."