Contents of Report
01
02
03
04
05

Foreword
Preface by Dean
Concept Paper
Details of Module
Schedule of Activities

3-4
5-7
8
9-12
13-14

Day OneResource Person: Zia Ahmad Khan
10306 Zia Ahmad Khan CV
07
Humaneering Brochure

15-17
18-19

Day Two & Three
Resource person: Prof. Dr. Ismail Wali
08
09
10
11
12
13
14

Prof. Dr. Ismail Wali CV
Synopsis of the Lectures
Style and Structure of Judgment: Basics
Principles of EffectivenessModern Writing Modern Strategies
Judgment Writing: Practical-I
Judgment Writing: Practical-II

20-23
24-28
29-35
36-44
45-49
50
51

Day Four
Resource Person: Mr. Niaz Muhammad Khan
15
16
17
18

Mr. Niaz Muhammad Khan CV
Elements of Court judgement (Power Point Presentation)
Admissibility of Evidence (Power Point Presentation)
Interpretation of Law in Judgment Writing (Missed, Time Constraints)

52-54
55-59
60-63
64

Day Five
Resource Person: Dr. Khurshid Iqbal
19
20
21

Dr. Khurshid Iqbal CV
Contemporary Trends in Judgment Writing: A Literature Review
Report of Participants Visit to Balahisar Fort

65-69
70-73
74

Day Six
Resource Person: Prof. Dr. Ismail Wali
22

Judgment Writing: One Word Vocabulary

75-94

Concluding Ceremony
A
B
C
D
E

Annexes
Address of the Chairman/Hon’ble the Chief Justice
Address of the Director General
Address of the Class Rep Feed Back
Graphical Evaluation; Resource Persons
Group Picture

95-98
99
100-101
102
103

Page |3

Foreword
All praises to Almighty Allah, Who bestowed upon us the duty tochange the attitude and improve service delivery through capacity building.
The first report of the first ever training in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Judicial Academy is inyour hands. To what extent we have been successful in our effort, will be, of course, assessed
after seeing the attitude and work of the Judicial Officers who are now back to their work
stations. But our effort, commitment and hard work can also be hopefully assessed by going
through this report.
The Academy aims at capacity building of the justice sector institutions and to help establish therule of law. With this aim, it started work. Our hon’ble Chairman—Chief Justice Dost
Muhammad Khan—provided us dynamic leadership. Conversion of old court rooms into
attractive halls, congested iron shades into lush green lawns and installation of state of the art IT
equipments, coupled with designing of a well thought out course in light of literature review andtraining needs assessment (TNA)—within a short span of three and half month—is cogent
evidence of the deep commitment, strong will and demonstrable capability of our team.
Soon after its appointment, the team, in its first meeting, proposed to hon’ble the Chairman that ahigh quality course on judgment writing should be the starting point. It was decided that aliterature review may be carried out and training needs explored. The Dean—Dr Khurshid
Iqbal—was assigned the task. He, after carrying out a literature review, designed a questionnaire
in consultation with senior judicial officers, senior lawyers and hon’ble Judges of the High
Court. The questionnaire was circulated. The responses of Judicial Officers depicted three mainareas of attention: perception bias, language and legal skills. Keeping in view the said areas, theDean designed a course, in consultation with the resource persons. All this was done under mysupervision and Chairman’s guidance. Finally, Almighty Allah blessed us with the opportunity to
conduct this training.
The task was enormous but thanks to the Almighty, we proved triumphant. It was only possible
through a team work. I must acknowledge relentless efforts of Muhammad Salim Khan, SeniorDirector Administration, who made the stage ready for the show. It will be injustice if I do notappreciate the day and night efforts and pain of the Dean before as well as during the course.
Asghar Ali Salarzai, Admin Officer is the foot soldier of the Academy. He played the role of an
efficient coordinator between the academic and administrative wings. I must say that he did it at
the heavy cost of his family comfort! Muhammad Aamir Nazir, Senior Director Research joined
us late. He helped us in designing and printing of certificates and folders. Besides, I am gratefulto support staff of the Academy; they worked selflessly and smilingly, adding to the success ofthe show.
My thanks are due to all the resource persons: Mr. Zia Ahmad Khan, who, despite his busy timeschedule, happily visited the Academy to deliver lectures on perception lock; Mr. Niaz
Muhammad Khan, Registrar, Islamabad High Court, too, made his way to the Academy, by
rescheduling his high profile official engagements in Islamabad; Prof Dr. Ismail Wali taught us
the delicacies of written English; his task was to make us understand the essence of our course

Page |4

theme: ‫ودﻻ وﻻ ﯾﻤﻞ‬،‫( ﺧﯿﺮاﻟﻜﻼم ﻣﺎ ﻗﻼ‬Tr. The best speech is one which is precise, speaking and freefrom boring length.)
I must thank UNDP. Without its support, it would have been impossible to conduct the training
course. I must also appreciate and acknowledge the support of the World Bank, which provided
us the IT and other interactive electronic equipments through its KP’s Governance Support
Project. The Bank’s help made possible the interaction between the presenters and theparticipants.
I feel greatly honoured to forward the report of this historic training. The report is selfexplanatory, innovative and ground breaking in Pakistan’s emerging judicial training profile.

Hayat Ali Shah,
Director GeneralPage |5

Preface
As judicial training is gaining universal currency, judgment writing is increasingly becoming a
popular subject of judicial education and research.1 Even in countries, like the United Kingdom(UK), where judgments were traditionally used to be delivered orally (called speeches; dialogues
between the bench and the bar),2 there have been concerted efforts to formalize judicial decision
making and penning it down.3 The bulk of literature demonstrates that two countries—the UnitedStates (US) and Australia—have pioneering contributions to research and teaching on the art of
judgment writing. In the US (where court judgments are called opinions), research on judgment
writing could be traced back to 1960s. Robert A. Leflar, for example, conducted empiricalresearch in 1961. Its focus was who the judges write judgments for. 4 Judge Ruggero Aldister has
made significant contributions to the subject. His book Opinion Writing, commissioned by theWest Publishing Company, published in 1990, was based on the Senior Judge Seminars
sponsored by the Institute of Judicial Administration at New York University in 1970-71, 19731982 and 1985. The second edition of the book has appeared in 2009.5 Joyce J. George's
Judicial Opinion Writing Handbook first appeared in 1981; its fifth edition has appeared in2007.6 Other contributors, cited by Judge Aldister, include Charles G. Douglas, Richard A.
Wasserstrom, George Rose Smith, Dwight W. Stevenson, B.E. Witkin, Elizabeth, A. Francis andJames D. Hopkins, to name but a few.7 Most of these pieces appeared in the famous Judges'
Journal. The Australian contributions date back to early 1970s; their publication commenced inearly 1990s. The Rt Hon Sir Frank Kitto wrote an article: "Why Write a Judgment?" in 1973,
which was published in 1992. Key contributors include Justice Kirby, Justice Mahoney, Justice
Gibbs and Justice Alsson.8 It appears that the Australian Judges initially focused on judgment
writing by the Judges of the superior courts. In other jurisdictions, too, the trend on judgment
1See, generally, Justice Mahoney, “The Writing of a Judgment”, 6(1) Judicial Officers Bulletin(1994), p61. See also
an extended version of the article in the form of a paper Justice Mahoney presented at a Judicial Conference 18 July
1996, available in Papua New Guinea (2007), Supreme Court, National Court & District Court Notes & Materials
on Judgment Writing, pp 9-224. It could be accessedathttp://www.pngjudiciary.gov.pg/jecpng/doc/pdf/4c_notes_for_new_judge.pdf (last accessed 10 Sep 12).
2
Judge Gerald Lebovits, “Judgment Writing in Kenya and the Common-Law World”, 1 Kenya Law Review (2008), p
3.
3
The UK Judicial Studies Board issues an Equal Treatment Bench Book in May 2004. The Book has been updated
up to 2010, which is available at http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/publications-and-reports/judicialcollege/Pre+2011/equal-treatment-bench-book.htm?wbc_purpose=Basic (last accessed 10 Sep 12).
4
Robert A. Leflar, ''Some Observations Concerning Judicial Opinions", 61 Columbia Law Review, 1961, pp 810-5
Honorable Ruggero J. Aldister, Meehan Rasch and Mathew P. Bartlett, "Öpinion Writing and Opinion Readers",
31(1) Cardozo Law Review 2009, pp1-43, pp 3-4. Also See, Aldister, "Opinion Writers and Law Review Writers: A
Commentary and Continuity of Approach",
6
See Joyce J. George, Judicial Opinion Writing Handbook, Hein & Company, 2007; second, third and fourth
editions were published in 1986, 1993 and 2000, respectively.
7Charles G. Douglas, "How to Write a Concise Opinion", 22 Judges'Journal, 1983, p4; Richard A. Wasserstrom,
The Judicial Decision: Towards a Theory of Legal Justification, 1961; George Rose Smith, Ä Primer of Opinion
Writing for Four New Judges", 21 Arkansas Law Review, 1967, p 197; Dwight W. Stevenson, "Writing Effective
Opinions", 59 Judiciature, 1975, p 134; B.E. Witkin, Manual of Appellate Court Opinions, West Publishing Co.,
1977 (California Center for Judicial Education and Research); Elizabeth A. Francis, "Faster, Better Way to Write
Opinions", 27 Judges'Journal, 1988, p 26; James D. Hopkins, "Notes on Style in Judicial Opinions" 8
Judges'Journal, 1969, p 49.
8
Justice Kitto, "Why Write Judgments?", 66 Australian Law Journal 1992, p787; Justice Kirby, "On the Writing of
Judgments", 64 Australian Law Journal, 1990, p 691; Justice Mahoney, "The Writing of a Judgment", 6(1) Judicial
Officers Bulletin, 1994, p61.

Page |6

writing training courses, workshops and seminars, guest lectures and conferences, is growing.
Those worth citing are India, Kenya, Papua New Guinea and Thailand.9
This Academy realizes that it should become part of the global training and research community,
in general and on judgment writing, in particular. The above brief literature review indicates that
it is imperative for a judicial training institute like ours to appreciate the significance of thegrowing body of legal scholarship on the art of judgment writing. The Academy has a mandate
for research. It will encourage research in judicial education. It may thus exploit the existing
legal scholarship in this key area of judicial education. The existing literature also shows that
despite differences in national legal systems, similarities do exist in the structure andorganization of judgment writing, thus providing evidence of best practices. It is also gleaned
from the growing body of literature that efforts are underway to systematize judgment writing
skills of judges. One may argue that though an art, judgment writing is growing like a science.
Judges are professional writers. Their judgments should not only be clear, precise and succinct,
but also honest and respectful that will serve the ultimate purpose of justice.
As this Academy was established early this year, it was decided that a training course on
judgment writing should be its foundational training activity. For this purpose, the Dean carriedout a review of the current literature on judgment writing (cited herein). Alongside that, theAcademy also launched an indigenous Training Needs Assessment (TNA) exercise. The purpose
was to explore the needs of the judges of the District Judiciary. A questionnaire was circulated
amongst all districts. For the sake of the objectivity, anonymity was ensured. Even then,unfortunately, the responses received reflected a perception bias. However, the responses clearly
depicted that there was indeed a need for training on judgment writing. In light of the literature
review and TNA findings, the training under report was designed. The concept note, annexedherewith, contains aims and objectives and key outcomes of the training and modules. As thetraining course was an in-service refresher course in nature, the main focus was on twodimensional practical aspect of judgment writing—language and substance. Serious efforts weremade to hire the services of experts of the highest profile. Each module was explained in twoways. First, focus and second skills it will build/enhance. It was also realized that judicial
decision making is not confined to mere judgment writing. As noted above, judgments must be
honest and respectful. Thus, while applying a diverse approach, two modules focused on
attitudinal change: perception lock and its impact on judgment writing and sociologicalperspective of court judgment. The focus of the former was: understanding the psychology ofjudge-craft. The skill to be taught was to break psychological barriers to reach a just conclusion.
The latter focused on sociological importance of judicial decision making and the skill was tounderstand the social importance and impact of judgment. A third module—Contemporary
Trends in Judgment Writing: A Literature Review—aimed at a comprehensive review of existing
literature on the subject. This module was selected for reasons, such as, to create awarenessabout existing legal scholarship on judgment writing; to explore best practices; and to arouse aspirit of research-based reading on judgment writing. The participants also provided their own
judgments, on which they gave feedback to each other. They were asked to re-write their
judgments, applying the skills they learnt.
9

See the West Zone Regional Workshop, 2008 and the Advanced Course on Management and Judicial
Administration, 2006, of the Indian National Judicial Academy; the Judicial Colloquium of the Kenya Judicial
Training Institute, 2009; Judgment Writing Workshop of Papua New Guinea, 2001; the Thailand-Australia Mature
Administrative Law Program, 2007--at all these events papers were presented on Judgment Writing.

Page |7

Shortcomings, however, did occur. First, one lecture on "interpretation of laws in judgment
writing" and a study circle on Order 20 CPC, scheduled for evening, were missed. It suggests
either the resource person could not properly manage the time or the topic was toocomprehensive to be efficiently dealt with in the given time. Second, the Academy could not
manage to complete the exercise of re-writing judgments by the participants, on the last day.
This was because of the lack of coordination between them as well as the Academy. The lapse on
the part of the Academy, however, is due to lack of human resources. This deficiency may becovered in the post-training assessment. Third, feedback on performance of individual resource
person was not sought. A feedback questionnaire was circulated amongst the participants on thelast day of the course. Fourth, the module on English language seemed too lengthy.
This was the first training course the Academy conducted. We made all possible efforts to designand deliver it in a befitting manner. This course will run for all judges of the District Judiciary infuture, albeit with some modifications. We hope, it will not simply prove as a tool of judicial
capacity building, but will engender critical thinking about sound judicial decision making inwider and diverse perspectives. We attempted to lay a foundation in the key area of judgment
writing. We will make further efforts to cement this foundation not for ourselves alone, but also
to make it a trend setter for other judicial schools in the country and to enrich academic andpractical knowledge about judicial decision making in the perspective of capacity building andthe rule of law.
The Academy carried out an initial evaluation itself. Following a two-ways approach, theparticipants and the resource persons were requested to provide feedback on each other. The
Academy also intends to seek a third party evaluation that will be made part of this report infuture. My thanks are due to all resource persons and participants who took keen interest in the
training course. My thanks are due to Dr Niaz Shah, Senior Lecturer, the University of Hull, UK,for sending me some key articles on judgment writing, which proved greatly helpful.
Dr Khurshid Iqbal,(District & Sessions Judge)
Dean FacultyPage |8

Concept Paper
Training Course on Judgment Writing‘Judgment writing is the hardest of the legal arts to master’. While there is a significant body ofliterature on judgment writing skills, there is a near consensus among judicial pundits that good
judgment writing depends more on practice than theory. Caseloads have a telling negative impact
on a sustainable good judicial style in judgment writing.
Pakistan’s 2009 National Judicial Policy and its rigorous monitoring by the judicial leadership,
has generated tremendous pressure on the judges of the District Judiciary. There is a growing
perception in the legal fraternity that fighting delay on war footing has led to the delivery of
hasty judgments. While the avalanche of the caseload has been visibly melting down, it is now
time to divert attention to improvement in the quality of judgment writing.
A quality judgment, as commonly understood, requires that is should speak for itself, be concise,reflect good writing skills, appreciate the readers’ needs and litigants’ wants. Appreciating thefact that the essence of judgeship is the delivery of judgments, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Judicial
Academy plans to conduct its first training course on judgment writing. The underlying objectiveof this course is the development of one word vocabulary linked with the writing skills of judges.
The guiding principle is an Arabic idiom:‫ودﻻ وﻻ ﯾﻤﻞ‬،‫( ﺧﯿﺮاﻟﻜﻼم ﻣﺎ ﻗﻼ‬Tr. Best speech is one which is précis,speaking and free from boring length.)
The training curriculum and module will be designed on the basis of the needs of the judges. The
Academy, however, intends to follow a participatory approach by seeking the in-put of thetargeted trainees. To this end, the Academy has prepared a questionnaire, which is sent herewith
for your valuable responses and views. The prime objective being training needs assessment, theAcademy intends to ensure anonymity of respondents. Please do not write your name, nor put
your signature on the questionnaire, which may be sent on the address given in the attachedletter, as soon as possible.

Page |9Training Course on Judgment Writing
Reference
Training
Duration
Participants
No. of participants
Lectures per day
Other activity
MethodAssessment

T-1/2012/judgment writing/01week
Judgment Writing
One week: 6 days
Civil Judges/Judicial Magistrates
25
02Case study
Participatory, practical
Gradation by the Academy,High Court, for example, Inspection Team

Designed by

Dr Khurshid Iqbal, Dean Faculty

Aims and Objectives
While quality in judicial opinion writing has always been a top priority of the judiciary in all
countries, in recent years there has been a growing concern about it in Pakistan. Arguably, one
glaring reason is the mechanism of time bound disposal of cases proposed by the 2009 National
Judicial Policy (Policy). The concern is that the mere disposal is and should not be enough.
Another reason is a general need of capacity building as part of continuing judicial education.
The main aim of this training is to build capacity of all judges of the District Judiciary, in the key
area of judgment writing, both in regard to expression or language (effective communication)and substance or content (judicial aspects, such as appreciation of evidence). The principal dutyof a judge is to deliver judgment after announcement of the decision in a case. Judgment writingis thus a vital part of judging or ‘judge craft’. There is no worth while training on the linguistic
mechanics of judgment writing. Hence, judgment contains lapses which potentially harm judges’
credibility and efficiency as communicators of facts and legal analysis of law and evidence. It is
for this reason that judgment writing has been selected as the first training at the Academy. The
training has been designed in the backdrop of a questionnaire survey—an indigenous training
needs assessment—of all judicial officers, including those working in the special courts andtribunals. The training will generate and encourage critical thinking about judicial opinion
writing. A pluralist and diverse approach will be adopted to build professional capacity of thetarget participants. The participants are strongly advised to actively participate in the training,which will be firstly, graded at the Academy, and secondly, subjected to post-training impact
assessment.

P a g e | 10

Key outcomes
The participants should be able to







Understand the basic concept and procedure of judgment/order writing
Learn necessary skills for appreciation of evidence and application of substantive andprocedural laws and precedents
Explore and understand current global trends
Know and follow judicial opinion writing in the perspective of Islamic law
Strengthen theoretical foundations to know and understand the process, flow, models,
mediums, types, barriers to and principles of effective communication
Be sensitized to the problem areas of English, and sharpen their skills for writing
effective and self-contained judgments

RequirementsThe participants are advised to critically read the training material prepared for them.
Send to the Director General (DG) a copy of two judgments: one civil, one criminal,
which they rank as the best. The judgments will be assessed before the training. At theclose of the training, the participants will be asked to rewrite their judgments, applying
the skills they learnt in the training. The participants will be asked to assess their work
themselves as well as by the Academy.
Post training impact assessment: an inventory of skills will be prepared, which will besent to the concerned District & Sessions Judge, who will be asked to make assessment
and report to the Registrar of the Peshawar High Court and the DG of the Academy.

ModulesOn the basis of a two-pronged strategy: language and substance, the training course offers thefollowing modules:

LANGUAGE
Conveners: Prof. Dr Islmail Wali, PhD in English,
Professor
Institute of Management Sciences, Peshawar
01
Style and structure of Judgment: Basics, Lecture=01
Focus: Structural aspects and style of a judgment.
Skills: Structuring and writing a judgment.

P a g e | 11

02
Judgment writing: Principles of effectiveness, Lecture=01
Focus: Four Cs of effective communication.
Skills: Concise, clear, correct and complete.
03
Judgment writing: Modern strategies, Lecture=01
Focus: Avoidance of verbal pitfalls.
Skills: Words to avoid.
04

Judgment writing: One word vocabulary, Lecture=01

Focus: Consistency.
Skills: To develop consistency.
05
Judgment writing: Practical-I
Focus: Evaluation of a judgment.
Skill: To evaluate a judgment.
06
Judgment writing: Practical-II
Focus: Writing a judgment.
Skill: To write a judgment (To re-write your own judgment, applying the skills learnt).

SUBSTANCE
Resource Persons:
Mr. Zia Hassan, Senior Instructor (retired), NIPA, Peshawar
Prof Dr Johar Ali,
Chairman, Department of Sociology,
University of Peshawar
Mr. Niaz Muhammad Khan,
Additional Registrar (Admn), Peshawar High Court, Peshawar
Dr Khurshid Iqbal,
Dean Faculty, the KP Judicial Academy, Peshawar
01
Judgment writing: a sociological perspective
Focus: Sociological importance of judgment writing
Skill: To understand the social importance and impact of judgment
02
Contemporary trends in judgment writing
Focus: Critical analysis of a range of research articles on the art of judgment writing.

P a g e | 12

Skills: Modern techniques of judgment writing.
03

Elements of a court judgment

Focus: Procedural and substantive elements of judgment.
Skill: The Dos and donts.

04

Appreciation of evidence in judgment writing

Focus: Conscious understanding and application of rules of evidence.
Skill: Avoiding irrelevant and selecting cogent.

05

Interpretation of laws in judgment writing

Focus: Juristic understanding of text of laws.
Skill: Translation into judgment writing.

P a g e | 13

One-Week Training Course
Judgment Writing for 25 Civil Judges / Judicial Magistrates(27th August to 1st September 2012)
Schedule of Activities
Monday 27th August 2012
8:00 AM
8:15 AM
8:20 AM
8:25 AM
8:35 AM
09:00 -- 11-00
11:00 -- 11:30
11:30 -- 01:30
5:00 -- 7:00
Tuesday 28th August 2012
08:00 -- 09:30
09:30 -- 11:00
11:00 -- 11:30
11:30 -- 01:30
5:00 -- 7:00

Registration of the Participants
Recitation from the Holy Quran
Dua
Welcome address by the Director General
Instruction regarding house keeping
Perception locks, impact on Judgment
Writing
Tea break
Perception locks, impact on Leadership
Dua
Study Circle "Humaneering"

Judgment Writing: Modern Strategies
Judgment Writing: One Word Vocabulary
Tea BreakJudgment Writing Practical 1
Dua
Study circle group discussion on
one word vocabulary(The coordinator shall avoid giving
input to the participants)(By Mr. Zia Ahmad
Khan)(By Mr. Zia Ahmad
Khan)(By Dr. Ismail)(By Dr. Ismail)Wednesday 29th August
2012
08:00 – 10:00
10:00 -- 10:30
10:30 -- 12:00
12:30-- 01:30

Judgment Writing: Principles ofEffectivenessTea BreakStyle and Structure of Judgment Writing
Judgment Writing Practical 2
Dua(By Dr. Ismail)(By Dr. Ismail)(By Dr. Ismail)P a g e | 14

5:00 -- 7:00

Study circle review of an old judgment,
writing of short order

Thursday 30th August 2012
08:00 -- 10-00
10:00 -- 10:30

Appreciation of evidence in judgment
writing
Tea Break

10:30 -- 12:00

Elements of a court judgment

12:30 -- 01:30

Interpretation of laws in judgment writing
Dua
Study circle Order 20 CPC

05:00 -- 7:00

(By Niaz Muhammad
Khan)(By Niaz Muhammad
Khan)(By Niaz Muhammad
Khan)

Friday 31st August 2012
08:00 -- 10-00
10:00 -- 10:30
10:30 -- 12:30

Judgment writing: a sociologicalperspective
Tea BreakContemporary trends in Judgments Writing
Dua
Leisure day (an excursion on the
choice of the participants)
Academy Night to be organizedby the participants which shall include
a dinner with a dignitary
Re-writing of the Judgments already provided
by the participants after applying the skills
learnt.

Saturday 1st September
2012
08:00 -- 10:00

Five minutes presentation by each participant
about what they learnt during the week.

10:00 -- 10:30

break

10:30 -- 12:00

Arrival of the Hon’ble the Chairman
Concluding ceremony
Certificate distribution
Concluding address by the DG
Concluding address by the Chairman
Dua
Photography(By Dr. Johar)(By Dr. Khurshid Iqbal)

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Judicial Academy of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Judgment Writing

Prepared by Dr. Muhammad Ismail Wali

Synopses of Lectures

P a g e | 25

Judgment Writing
Conceptual Background: Besides legal knowledge and judicial wisdom, writing a judgment is askill involving orthography (how thoughts are turned into symbolic patterns on paper/computer,grammar and punctuation (mechanics of English), idiomatic structures (which are governed byconventions) and semantics (study of meaning). The core objective of these lectures is tosensitize the participants to verbal strategies for writing legally effective and stylisticallypersuasive judgments.
Synopses of Lectures

Lecture-1: Judgment Writing: Structure, Style and Mechanics
Brainstorming Question: what psychic component governs all our activities as humans?
All human activities are governed by the ego, the regulator of our waking life. The process of
judgment writing is no exception to it. If the ego malfunctions, semantic distortions occur in a
judgment. Therefore a judge should empty his/her mind of all those contents which may
negatively affect his/her judgment. The presence of such contents may impair their objectivity,
impartiality, fairness and sense of justice. And without these values both the structure and styleof a judgment lose their effectiveness.
This lecture focuses on the basics of structure and style of judgment before familiarizing theparticipants with the strategies of professional writing. Usually, the structure of a judgment
comprises of 1) information on court, judge and his/her station; 2) case and its file No; 3) title ofcase; 4) introduction; 5) facts; 6) evidence analysis; 7) reasoning; 8) application of law; 9) order;10) signature/seal/date. The style of a judgment depends upon diction, structure of sentences andparagraphing to organize ideas for an effective management of language. Words are the building
blocks of a judgment; hence knowledge of words and their denotative aspect is essential for
judgment writing. Collocations are fraught with difficulties for non-native users, and throughthis lecture participants will be sensitized to the usage of words in English. Words, phrases andclauses are combined to make sentences for generating extended units of meaning. Sentences
may be simple, compound or complex, depending upon the ideas on the mind of a user.
Sentences are combined to form paragraphs. A good writer organizes his/her ideas into easily
graspable paragraphs, each having a thesis statement.
Writing is a difficult process, and all professional writers follow certain formal steps for
producing an effective piece of writing. These steps are: 1) planning, 2) drafting/writing, 3)
revising, 4) editing, and 5) making a fair copy. Like all other organized activities, judgment
writing needs strategicplanning for effective communication. Planning includes making an
outline of paragraphing a judgment. The outline should be based on the notes of a judge which
he/she has been taking for the final version. Keeping in view the contents of the outline, thewriter should proceed to commit it to writing on paper/computer in detail. After writing/dictating the first draft, the writer should let it “cool off” for some time. After the “cooling”
process, comes the stage of revising. Revising is usually a process of searching for gaps inmeaning and organization of ideas till the end. The third step is that of editing, which is
conducted for grammatical and punctuation lapses. After editing, the writer makes a fair copy of
the write-up. The fair copy should finally be read for complete satisfaction.

P a g e | 26

The outcome is that both attitude and aptitude are required for producing a legally effective andstylistically persuasive document.

Lecture-2 Judgment Writing (Principles of Effectiveness)
Brainstorming: what is language? Come up with a working definition.
Judgment is a micro medium of communication, and communication is a process of sharing
ideas with sender/writer at one end and reader/receiver at the other. The essential elements ofcommunication are: 1) sender, 2) content, 3) medium, 4) audience, 5) context, 6) feedback. This
chain completes the process of communication. The sender should have both knowledge andskill for framing his/her content according to the needs, knowledge level and cultural dynamics
of the audience/receiver in the proper context. In a judicial context, the structure and style of ajudgment, besides its legal and constitutional aspects, should also function as a public instrumentof communication for knowledge management and research purposes.
Experts incommunication usually refer to certain principles for making a piece of communication effective.
In this regard, conciseness, correctness, clarity, completeness, coherence, consistency andcourtesy are thought to be essential for delivering a message effectively.
Conciseness refers to the economy words to make one’s meaning easily understandable.
Conciseness saves both our time and energy. Conciseness is attained by confining to the words
for the intended meaning. Removal of redundant material and avoidance of repetitions makes ajudgment concise. However, conciseness loses its value without correctness: grammar andpunctuation. Conciseness and correctness refer to the verbal skills of a writer; however, clarity
comes from analytical and critical thinking. Clear ideas turn into clear sentences. Completenessrefers to the inclusion of all relevant facts and figures in the relevant portion of a judgment.
Consistency involves both structure and style.
Inconsistency in structure or in style breeds
confusion, making our meaning blurred. Coherence refers to the organization of ideas in a
judgment. Courtesy means that the wording of a judgment should not be discriminatory based on
race, ethnicity, sex, colour or creed.
This lecture also contains examples and exercises to clarify each principle. The theoreticalframework as outlined above prepares the participants for peer-reviewing each other’s judgmentsfor practical purposes to internalize the principles of effective communication. After doing thissession, the participants will learn skills how to apply the principles of conciseness, correctness,clarity, completeness, consistency, coherence and courtesy.
Practical: the participants will re-read rewrite their judgments to search for lapses (if any)
keeping in view the principles of effective communication.

Leture-3 Judgment Writing (Avoidance of Pitfalls)
Brainstorming
Guess the meaning of “judicial Heroism.”
This session is complementary to the previous session on principles of effective communication.
The core objective of this session is to familiarize with the concept of avoiding verbosity,
unnecessary repetitions, ambiguity, overuse of legalese, and judicial heroism. The term “judicial

P a g e | 27

heroism” has been coined here to epitomize the intellectual environment of a judge to impose
his/her legal knowledge on the reader, which breeds verbosity, unnecessary repetitions,ambiguity, overuse of legal jargons, unwise use of modifiers with the result that the reader isimpressed by the big and difficult words without being clear on what the judgment says.
This session contains sample judgments and relevant portions from world constitutions how“judicial heroism” is practiced, which makes a legal writing open to different interpretations.
Through this session, participants will be sensitized to the concept of clear thought and clear
language, so that common readers should understand their rights and duties, which will prepare
the way for good governance, development of civic sense leading to legal empowerment.
After doing this session, participants will be able to know the problem of “judicial heroism” andmake their judgments reader-friendly as far as possible.
Practical: Participants will be engaged in re-writing the samples for learning how to avoid
verbosity, unnecessary repetitions, ambiguity, and overuse of legalese.

Lecture-4: Judgment Writing: Plain English
Brainstorming
What do we mean by Plain English?
The seminal objective of this session is to introduce the concept of Plain English Movement in
the world, especially in legal/judicial contexts. It is pertinent to mention here that billions ofdollars are spent on drafting legal documents, and the followers of PEM have succeeded inentering into the judicial culture for working for making legal documents easily understandable.
The followers of PEM recommend to 1) use words of Anglo-Saxon origin, 2) to avoid
nominalization, 3) to prefer active voice, 4) to minimize legalese and Latin terminology. The
followers of PEM argue that simple words are more effective than difficult words; simple
sentences (one idea one sentence) are more easily graspable than compound and complex
sentences.
Plain English Movement is active in Australia, Canada, England and America. PEM focuses on
easily understandable language in legal contexts including judgments. To support their view,
PEM activists usually refer the judgments of Lord Denning. In this session, judgments written byLord Denning will be used as resource to introduce participants to the concept of Plain English
as reference guide for learning simple verbal strategies, avoidance of nominalization, legalese,
Latin terminology, and use of active voice.
The session will enable participants to learn how to apply the strategies propounded by thefollowers of PEM.

Lecture-5 Judgment Writing: One-Word Dictionary
Brainstorming Question: what do we mean by One Word Dictionary?

P a g e | 28

Language is a very complex medium of communication. Language is an ever-evolving
phenomenon. Language is the product of the environment in which it evolves. As non-native
users of English, we have to learn its mechanics, which is lifelong process. English has been
evolving for the last fifteen centuries with three major shifts (Old English, Middle English, andModern English) in its history. During its evolutionary history, English has absorbed words from
Latin, Greek and French including Arabic, Persian, and many other languages of the world. An
introduction to the basics of etymology will help participants understand how to guess themeaning of a word.
The term “One Word Dictionary” has been coined to conceptualize all those words which
compresses many shades of meaning into one word, and this word makes our meaning concisely
precise, saving both our time and space given the constraints of judicial officers. For example, ananimal which feeds only on grass and grains is called herbivore; 10 words compressed into one
word. An animal which lives both in water and on land is called (12 words) is called amphibian.
The word for a person who pleads cases at courts on behalf of others is (15 words) a lawyer. In
legal contexts, the term “murder” covers all shades of killing in an unlawful manner. The
sentence “evidence is clear that he/she has committed murder” is enough to clarify other shadesof meaning associated with the details of an individual case whose mechanics may be different
from any other act of murder.
The participants will be motivated to think of and make a list of such words so that a database of“One Word Dictionary” will evolve with the passage of time for future references. This exercise
will sharpen the verbal skills of the participants for saving their time and space.

P a g e | 29

READING MATERIAL
Style and Structure of Judgment: BASICS
A: Conceptual Background
1. Legal experts agree that judgment writing is an art, not a science; and can be learned,
practiced, and improved. Learning an art is a process of bringing changes in our thoughtprocess which is governed by the king within called ego. The ego filters every piece of
information before accepting or rejecting it. It is not easy to control the way our egos
twists and distorts the given piece of information. In your case, the ego functions under
the persona of a judge whose authorial presence commands silence and dignity in the
courtroom, and here sitting in a classroom environment may be a boring experience foryou.
2. Judgment Writing is not one word but two—judgment and writing. Judgment is theoutcome of a civil/criminal case which follows the process of decision- making. And
writing it on paper or dictating it to a clerk is different which needs your verbal skills totransform your legal knowledge and judicial wisdom into a written form. The written
form should not only be readable and understandable but also comprehensible to an
average reader. If you succeed in achieving this objective, your judgment be will called
effective from communication perspective.
If only a few lawyers can read, know,
understand and comprehend it, it means neither your judicial wisdom, nor your legal
knowledge and nor your verbal skills have worked well. It means you are in need of
improvement.
3. Because a legal judgment is not a private but a public document and as such requires
wrestling with many myths before making it a public document. What are these myths?
a. I know and understand what I have written; or at least the lawyers know and can
explain it to their clients.
b. Being a judge I know each and everything about laws and their application, andknow how to write them.
c. Others are either ignorant or they need not know the contents of the judgment.
d. I am an expert, and there is no need of planning, revising, and editing a judgment.
e. The judgment contains nothing for future reference.
The following module addresses the myths that may spoil your reputation and damage yourcredibility and destroy your professionalism.
What is a judgment? Barring its technical definition found in codified terms, a judgment is theoutcome of a civil or criminal case usually involving two parties represented by their lawyers. A
judge makes the third party, an impartial observer and evaluator of what the parties claim, andhis/her judgment follows the legal formalities required in a given system of law. It is the logicalconclusion of the process of submission of a case, its hearing, pleading, evidence recording,cross-examining and arguing. It requires the active listening skill of a judge to differentiate what
is fact and what is fiction from the very beginning.

P a g e | 30

Therefore it is a tough job to impartially monitor, examine and finally evaluate the claims in thelight of law or laws applicable to them. Here the legal knowledge and judicial wisdom of ajudge come to his/her aid. However, without skills of verbal communication, which involves 1)
generation, 2) organization, 3) production of your evaluation of a case in the form of a judgment,
legal knowledge and judicial wisdom just remain conceptual constructs.
Functions of a judgment:
1. A Public Instrument: it means that rights are created and obligations imposed
through a judgment. These rights and obligations refer to people in society.
Therefore, it is a public instrument. And any technical error in a judgment may
wrongly affect these rights and obligations. Who is responsible for this error? You.
2.

An act of communication: A judge communicates with the parties through a
judgment. Thus a judgment is a medium through which legal communication flows.
A basic objective of communication is to inform. To inform the parties what to bedone and why. If you do not get this objective, you fail to perform your professional
duty.

Structure of a judgment:
1. Statement of the problem: what is the issue the parties have decided to contest? Thissection refers to who/what/when/why of a judgment. Or who sought what when and why.
A selective strategy should be used while making this background to your judgment. Thissection arouses your readers’ curiosity to know more about the problem or dispute underjudicial consideration.
a. Typical opening sentences:i. Appellant moved the court on ….. for….
ii.

The case refers toiii. The case came to the court for hearing on

2. Facts): this section refers to the facts agreed upon by the parties and the facts disagreed.
The disagreed facts are said to be difficult to handle, and may create complications for ajudge to articulate. The facts should be written in a systematic order. A brief analysis offacts enhances the legal merit of a judgment. For example
Facts agreed upon by both parties: Plaintiff A is the owner of House Nr. ... in ... . Defendant B
has rent this house based on a rent contract with A dated ... . The house was given to B on ... .
Both parties agree that it was in good shape at that date. The contract expired on ... . B returned
the house to A.
A’s Claim: A claims, a court judgment ordering B to pay 500 $ to A within 10 days after receiptof the judgment including 10 % interest rate since date….and ordering B to bear all the costs ofthe court proceeding including the costs of A's lawyer.

P a g e | 31

B’s Counter Claim:
B claims, that the court fully rejects A’s claim and orders A to bear all court proceedings costs
including the costs of B’s lawyer. Position of Party B: a) Allegations of facts by B: B concedesthat the house is damaged. But B says that he is not responsible for this damage because on thesaid day he was absent and did not use the bath tub but a heavy rainfall flooded the whole house.
Furthermore he says that the damage at the house can be easily repaired for only 150 $. b) Legalpoint of view of B:B thinks that A has no right to claim 500 $ from him because the law does notallow A to hold him responsible for damage caused by superior force, in this case by a rainfall
flooding.

The defendant has to pay damages to the plaintiff. According to Article ... of the Civil Codesomeone who negligently violates the property of some other person in an unlawful way and thus
causes damage is obliged to pay for the compensation of this damage. In the given case thedefendant B has rented A’s house in good shape but returned it to A with water damages. These
damages were caused by B negligently letting overflow the bathtub. The water damages wereneither caused by heavy rainfall nor flooding but were caused by the action of B who is obliged
to use A’s property respectfully. As a result of B’s negligent treatment A’s house had to be
repaired for 150 $.”Findings of Facts:
This part of the judgment must show the facts the judge bases his/her decision upon. It also must
give a short reason why disputed facts are regarded to be proved by the judge due to his/herweighing of the relevant evidence. Example

The water damage at the house was caused by B but the repair only costs 150 $. The court
gathers this from questioning the neighbours of B who testified as witnesses that during the rent
period there were no heavy rain falls at that place at all. There is no reason not to believe theseneighbours. They testified the same facts independently of each other and did neither show
sympathy nor a negative attitude towards B. The Khmer Institute of Democracy - 76 Furthermore the public meteorological report corroborates these testimonies. Additionally, thecourt inspected the house of A and of his neighbours finding that the neighbours’ houses did notshow any signs of heavy rainfall. As the house did not have any damages at the time of renting it
to B but had damages when he moved out all this indicates clearly that the damage was caused
by B letting the bathtub overflow. But the questioning of a plumbing expert and two different
repair offers presented by B show that it costs only 150 $ to repair the damage.
Application of Law: Law remains a cherished ideal without application. And it is theapplication of law to a claim that makes it false or true.
Reason for the Decision:

P a g e | 32

Every party has a right to receive a judgment which shows the reasons. A judgment without areason would make it impossible to file a well founded appeal against the judgment. So the rightto appeal includes the right to know the reasons of a judgment. The duty to give a reason for the
judgment also makes it more difficult for a judge to hide his/her true motivation for making the
judgment which may have been not so much influenced by the law and the facts but more by
payments of one party or by the sheer lack of the judge’s legal knowledge.
The reasoning of a judgment must convince the parties that their position has been fully
considered. It must show why some facts given by the party are regarded to be important andothers are regarded not to be important. Furthermore the reasoning of a judgment must show theapplication of the relevant law provisions step by step, article by article and law term by law
term.
Bad Reasoning: It is not a sufficient reasoning just to use the phrase“having seen all facts and the law the court decides...”.
The defendant has to pay damages to the plaintiff. According to Article ... of the Civil Codesomeone who negligently violates the property of some other person in an unlawful way and thus
causes damage is obliged to pay for the compensation of this damage. In the given case thedefendant B has rented A’s house in good shape but returned it to A with water damages. These
damages were caused by B negligently letting overflow the bathtub. The water damages wereneither caused by heavy rainfall nor flooding but were caused by the action of B who is obliged
to use A’s property respectfully. As a result of B’s negligent treatment A’s house had to be
repaired for 150 $.”Note the following in the above:
1. Plain English
a. Simple words and simple sentences. Only corroborate /support
b. No modifiers even to point to some bias.
c. No inter alia or other such terms.
d. Facts are clear to grasp. No ambiguity

3. The law applicable: the next section briefly refers to the principles of law applicable in agiven case. Without this section, your judgment loses its merit.
4. The Reasons (see section E below): Without reasons the conclusion loses its value andmeaning. This section refers to the question “why.” And it is reasons which make yourconclusions and inferences legally rich and strong.
5. Conclusion: this section refers to the result of your findings. B damaged A’s house.
6.

Order: the actual wording of what is the outcome of the whole exercise. Relief isgranted.

P a g e | 33

7. Right of Appeal
Note: the body of a judgment varies from judgment to judgment depending upon its nature,
scope, facts and figures as evidence, aspects of claims, and so on. In an ideal situation, the bodyof a judgment contains 1) relevant facts and figures regarding claim, 2) evidence and, 3) a brief
statement or reference to the law applicable; 4). A judge may interpret a law for clarification. An
essential part of the body is the portion of 5) giving reasons for a judgment, which make itlegally persuasive
B: Mechanics of Judgment Writing:
1. Taking Notes: Experts suggest that a judge should keep a diary (not a sheet of paper
which may be misplaced) to note figures, points, and references for future use.
Warning 1: never rely on your memory which often malfunctions so pathetically thata structure turns upside down.
2. The Writing Process: Any professional writing usually passes through the following
steps:
a. Planning:i. Making up your mind and managing time and space constraints
ii. Outlining/Sketching the judgment on paper (notes)
iii. Breaking up the whole into parts
iv. Each main idea should contain enough potential to make a para.
b. Drafting/Writing: Using your pen or fingers in such a way as the thoughtprocess should turn into words according to the sequence outlined.
i. While writing, focus more on the flow of thought process than on
language.
ii. Write a judgment (if not long) in one sitting.
iii. Keep it “cool” for ten to one hour depending upon the nature and gravityof the judgment.
c. Revising: Then read it again
i. To organize your ideas more logicallyii. To fix transmissions properly, making them more meaningfuliii. To rephrase if the verbal structures do not suggest the meaning that you
want to provide
iv. Read it again as if written by someone else.
v. Editing: read it for lapses of grammar and punctuation
1. Grammar lapses may turn your meanings upside down:a. Example, witness A said that he had seen her cross theroad/crossing the road.
b. Mr. B stopped to smoke a cigarette/ Mr. B stopped
smoking.
2. Punctuation lapses: wrong of use punctuation marks cause
semantic confusions :a. The judge said the lawyer was a fool. (read it without
punctuation).
b. Mr. A failed to convince her however he tried.

P a g e | 34

It is commonly said that there is no such thing as good writing, there is only good
rewriting. Preparing a draft judgment is hard work. But the hardest work begins when thedraft Judgment is finished. Good editing ensures that a judgment is lucid, thorough,coherent, concise and has transparent reasoning. It identifies flaws, such as the use of
discriminatory language. Justice Mukharje
C: Style of a judgment: In our age, all legal experts agree that simplicity is the soul of its style.
Formula: simple words make simple sentences, and simple sentences generate easy meanings toknow, understand and comprehend.
Simple Vocabulary: your inventory of skills should contain a shelf for simple vocabulary, or
you can keep an authentic source for easy access to a store to simple words.
Simple sentences: technically, a sentence containing an actor (subject) an action (predicate).
Note: the term subject is explainable here: look at the following sentences:






A judge may laugh. (a judge/subject, may laugh, predicate).
A good old judge is laughing.
A good old but intelligent judge is laughing.
The judge being young gave a romantic colour to his judgment.
The good old but intelligent judge wrote a clear, concise and legally persuasive judgment.

Or sentences may be compound or Complex. But simple sentences are easy to punctuate.
Punctuation becomes problematic if a sentence runs a long and tortuous course.
Points to ponder:
Remember!
1. You write your judgments for others to read. Any negligence or inefficiency (verbal or
technical) on your part will render a judgment ineffective.
2. Writing is more difficult than speaking, as in writing we use only symbols without being
strengthened by postures, gestures, facial expressions and paralanguage strategies. A reader
sees our words, not our face and body. Hence every word should be written with intellectual
clarity.
3. Reading samples of modern judgments may enrich your verbal skills.
4. Write in one move but to rewrite again with your focus on organizational development andverbal structures to make it effectively communicative.
5. Check your language for discrimination on ethnic/racial/sex factors.

P a g e | 35

Judgment Writing- Principles of Effectiveness
There are external and internal factors that may affect the substance of a judgment. External
factors may come in the forms of recommendations or threats. Internal factors may come fromthe thought process of a judge as a human being; because our thought process is affected bypersonal problems, memories, any mishap in one’s immediate surroundings. Sometimes it so
happens that a judge may develop a particular mindset, and observers note it to designate thejudge as “pro-poor,” “pro-rich,” “pro-woman,” “pro-business” and so on. There is no formula tofix these problems. What we expect is that a judge should behave like oxygen after putting on his
robes. He should follow the easy to preach but hard to practice principles of Independence,
Fairness, Impartiality and Competency. These are, I think, ideals which a judge should ever
try to pursue for maintaining promoting justice in society. I leave the topic for your conscienceand judicial wisdom to consider after quoting the following:

There are many instances in our judicial history which serve as land marks and torch
bearers for our guidance. I may relate an instance in the day of President Ayub Khan when
Justice Abdul Aziz Khan was sworn in as the Chief Justice of the High Court of West
Pakistan a move was made that President would address the Judges of the High Court ofWest Pakistan Late Mr. Justice A.S. Faruqui objected to this move and ultimately it was
decided that the President would have with the judges. During this meeting the President
started a sort of discourse and when he said that some of the judgments of the court are
obstructing his newly introduced reforms, a frail but firm, dignified and sober, calm and self
composed judge stood up an objected to such remarks and observed that the judges performtheir duties in faithful discharge of their oath and according to law without fear or favour,affection or ill will and the moment they feel that they are unable to fulfil their oath theywould not hesitate to lay down their robes. He was late Justice A.S. Faruqui the embodimentof courage, character, honesty, integrity, dignity and learning. His viewpoint wasvociferously supported by late Justice Wahiduddin Ahmad another model judge known forlearning, uprightness, firmness, caliber and courage. These are the judges who are livingmonuments for our guidance.
Structural Elements:
1. Organizing your ideas
a. It is a cognitive skill to arrange your ideas in systematic way.
b. Clear your mind of other constraints/noises which may affect the flow of yourideas.
c. Break up the whole into its parts, with one topic for each part.
d. Each paragraph should revolve around one main idea.
e. Your ideas should flow in such a way as to guide the reader to their logical end.
2. Development of Argument: in philosophy, the term syllogism is used for developing anargument based on logic.
A killed B (claim/specific premise)
Evidence proved that A killed B.

P a g e | 36

A is convicted.
A did not kill B.
Evidence did not prove that A killed B.
A is acquitted.
Claimed damages to his car caused by B.
Evidence proved the damage.
B failed to defend his/position.
Relief is granted to A.
OPP (Opposing Part’s Position)
FLOPP (Flaw in Opposing Party’s Position).
How to manage your writing for effectiveness?
Principle 1 ConcisenessConsider your meaning first. Meaning determines your words and sentences:
A killed B on May 25, 2012.
A willfully killed B on May 25, 2012.
A brutally killed B on May 25, 2012.
A killed B with a knife.
If your meaning is clear on your mind, words and sentences will follow it.
Conciseness means economy in the use of words. Don’t be generous in using words; sometimes
generosity lands you in poverty.
For example, here’s a common sentence found in prospectuses:
“To

err

is

human,

toforgive,

Parody Version:
To err, whether willfully or through negligence, is human, whereas, to forgive is divine

Examples:In the year 1980 (in 1980)
By means of/by (three words can be replaced with one word)
By reason of/because ofby virtue of by/ under
for the purpose of todivine.”P a g e | 37

for the reason that/ because
in accordance with by/ underinasmuch as/ sincein connection with with/ about, concerningin favour of/ forin order to/ toin relation to/ about, concerningin the event that/ if
in the nature of/ likeprior to/ before
subsequent to/ afterwith a view to/ towith reference to/ about, concerning
Pruning Sentences:
Due to the fact that the death of the previous captain had to do with a quarrel over a black hen,the effect is that of providing a preview of what Marlow himself will face in the future.
Because the previous captain died after a quarrel over a black hen, Marlow understands what hewill face.
NO PERSON HAS BEEN AUTHORIZED TO GIVE ANY INFORMATION OR MAKE ANY
REPRESENTATION OTHER THAN THOSE CONTAINED OR INCORPORATED BYREFERENCE IN THIS JOINT PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS, AND, IF GIVEN OR
MADE, SUCH INFORMATION OR REPRE- SENTATION MUST NOT BE RELIED UPONAS HAVING BEEN AUTHORIZED.

The foregoing Fee Table is intended to assist investors in understanding the costs and expenses that a shareholder in the Fund will bear directly or indirectly.
Analysis:
Clarity: it is not clear who intends.
Style: the sentence is too long to give us the information intended.
Revised:P a g e | 38

This table contains the fees and expenses that you may pay if you
buy and hold shares of the fund.
Here’s another example:
The proxies solicited hereby for the Heartland Meeting may be
revoked, subject to the procedures described herein, at any time
up to and including the date of the Heartland Meeting.
Revised:You may revoke your proxy and reclaim your right to vote up to
and including the day of the meeting by following the directions
on page 10.
beforeWe will provide appropriate information to shareholders
concerning…
after
We will inform shareholders about…
beforeWe will have no stock ownership of the company.
after
We will not own the company’s stock.
beforeThere is the possibility of prior Board approval of theseinvestments.
after
The Board might approve these investments in advance.
beforeThis Summary does not purport to be complete and is qualified
in its entirety by the more detailed information contained in theP a g e | 39

Proxy Statement and the Appendices hereto, all of which should
be carefully reviewed.
after
Because this is a summary, it does not contain all the informationthat may be important to you. You should read the entire proxystatement and its appendices carefully before you decide how
to vote.
Omit superfluous words
Words are superfluous when they can be replaced with fewer words thatmean the same thing. Sometimes you can use a simpler word for thesephrases:superfluous simpler
in order to toin the event that if
subsequent to after
prior to before
despite the fact that althoughbecause of the fact that because, sincein light of because, sinceowing to the fact that because, sinceAlso, your sentences will be shorter and easier to understand if you
replace a negative phrase with a single word that means the same thing.
For example:
negative compound single word
not able unable
not accept rejectP a g e | 40

not certain uncertain
not unlike similar, alikedoes not have lacks
does not include excludes, omits
not many few
not often rarely
not the same different
not … unless only if
not … except only if
not … until only when
"In this situation, I am of the opinion that the evidence that Mr Harris has
given is somewhat inconclusive."
Alternative: "Mr Harris' evidence is inconclusive."

The following description encompasses all the material terms
and provisions of the Notes offered hereby and supplements, andto the extent inconsistent therewith replaces, the description of
the general terms and provisions of the Debt Securities (as definedin the accompanying Prospectus) set forth under the heading“Description of Debt Securities” in the Prospectus, to which
description reference is hereby made. The following description
will apply to each Note unless otherwise specified in the applicable
Pricing Supplement.
after
We provide information to you about our notes in three separate
documents that progressively provide more detail: 1) the prospectus,2) the prospectus supplement, and 3) the pricing supplement. Since
the terms of speciﬁc notes may differ from the general information
we have provided, in all cases rely on information in the pricing
supplement over different information in the prospectus and theprospectus supplement; and rely on this prospectus supplement
over different information in the prospectus.
Due to the fact that the death of the previous captain had to do with a quarrel over a black hen,the effect is that of providing a preview of what Marlow himdelf will face in the future.

P a g e | 41

Because the previous captain died after a quarrel over a black hen, Marlow understands what hewill face.
Correctness: In communication, correctness usually refers to the mechanics of language andpunctuation.
A language is the product of its culture. And culture is a very complex phenomenon. The
idiomatic part of a language from the cultural side, though the grammatical part may be covered
under rules. In other words, grammar partly covers a language; for the idiomatic part we have tokeep our reference books handy. Look at the following sentences:
The judge enjoys to read the judgment written by his/her predecessor.
The judge is understanding my point.
The lawyer asked a tough question from me.
The accused entered into A’s garden.
The accused was in the grass/on the grass.
The judge is at home/in the house.
The picture was in/on the book.
The accused then went to the bank.
The wire is alive.
Write it with a black pen.
This shoe is not of my size.
The concerned parent is here.
This is a nice old judge.
The judge came at 10 am to the court.
Misplaced modifiers:
Being an excellent lawyer, I do not doubt your competency.
Being an excellent lawyer, your competency is beyond doubt.
Waving his tail, the lawyer came towards the dog.
Waving his tail, the dog came towards the lawyer.
Use modifiers judiciously:This matter came before this court for argument on the 6 day of September 2000. Plaintiffs,
Maru and Koa are alleged that the National Housing Commission forcibly and unlawfully
removed them from their house at Tokarara, thus violating their rights under the Summary
Ejectment Act. The Housing Commission denies these claims and seeks to dismiss the action
summarily.
Punctuation:
Use simple sentences to avoid complexities of punctuation.
Sample Judgment

P a g e | 42

It happened on April 19, 1964. It was bluebell time in Kent. Mr and Mrs Hinz had been marriedsome 10 years, and they had four children, all aged nine and under. The youngest was one. Mrs
Hinz was a remarkable woman. In addition to her own four, she was foster-mother to four otherchildren. To add to it, she was two months pregnant with her fifth child. On this day they droveout in a Bedford Dormobile van from Tonbridge to Canvey Island. They took all eight children
with them. As they were coming back they turned into a lay-by at Thumham to have a picnic tea.
The husband,
Mr Hinz, was at the back of the Dormobile making the tea. Mrs Hinz had taken Stephanie, her
third child, aged three, across the road to pick bluebells on the opposite side. There came along a
Jaguar car driven by Mr.Berry, out of control. A tyre had burst. The Jaguar rushed into this layby and crashed into Mr Hinz and the children. Mr Hinz was frightfully injured and died a little
later. Nearly all the children were hurt. Blood was streaming from their heads. Mrs Hinz,
hearing the crash, turning round and saw this disaster. She ran across the road and did all she
could. Her husband was beyond recall. But the children recovered.
An action has been brought on her behalf and on behalf of the children for damages against Mr
Berry, the defendant. The injuries to the children have been settled by various sums being paid.
The pecuniary loss to Mrs Hinz by reason of the loss of her husband has been found by thejudge to be some £115,000; but there remains the question of the damages payable to her for
nervous shock – the shock which, she suffered by seeing her husband lying in the road dying,
and the children strewn about.
Use of Active Voice: Use of active voice makes your style vibrant:
B was killed by A.
The accused was assisted by his two sons, three brothers and five friends.
His two sons, three brothers and five friends assisted the accused in entering the house.
He was acquitted by the jury.
The jury acquitted him.
The event was seen by the witness.
The witness saw the event.
The case was decided by my predecessor.
My predecessor decided the case.
It was reported by the engineer that the bridge was structurally sound and safe.
The engineer said that the bridge was structurally sound and safe.
It is hereby recommended that…
I recommend that…
Consistent with the aim of using plain language, expressions such as “hereinabove mentioned" or"it is therefore ordered, adjudged and decreed" should not be used. There are suitable substitutes

P a g e | 43

for such words and phrases. By writing clearly and concisely, the subject matter being discussed
should be apparent, without resort to these expressions.
There is no purpose in saying, for example:"After reviewing all of the evidence, and weighing carefully the competingarguments advanced by the parties, I have decided that..."Completeness: If conciseness is exclusive in the sense that we make our statement concise by
excluding redundant material, we make our statement complete by being inclusive of all relevantmaterial.
Three witnesses appeared for A to affirm that the gun alleged to be used in the killing was with
C, one of A’s friends. Witness 1 said this, 2 that. Your leave out the third. It is not complete.
To be short, a complete judgment is one who each section is complete in all relevant respects.
Clarity: If several laws sit together to get at the meaning of a judgment, it means the
judgment is not clear. In many cases(where laws do not provide us enough guidance toproceed), their nature is so complicated that a clear judgments may not be possible. A
judge may recommend many options in such situations:
Scenarios:
A and B are husband and wife respectively. Their contention is over the custody of theirchildren. They have two children: a son (seven years) and a daughter (5 years). A claims
that his wife is a drunkard and comes home late at night. The children suffer because ofher drinking habit. Therefore, the children should be given in his custody.
His wife claims that her husband watches pornographic films in presence of the children
which is potentially dangerous for their psychological health.
What should be the solution?
And clarity may be affected by the use of ambiguous structures:
The evidence is partially consistent in supporting A’s claim.
Witness B was not mature enough to state his/her version properly.
The law may also be interpreted as
Witness C’s words were ambiguous.
For details, see Clarity Number 51 May 2004
Editor in chief: Michèle Asprey
Journal of the international movement to simplify legal language<http://www.clarityinternational.net>

P a g e | 44

Judicial Academy of Khyberpakhtoonkhwa
Judgment Writing - M 3Modern Strategies
Reading and Writing Practice-1
Prepared by Dr. M. Ismail Wali as guided by and in Consultation with Dr. Khurshid Iqbal,
Director Academics-Judicial Academy.
This module has been designed to sensitize our judges to the way judicial culture has undergonea change in the world.
Many a Judge whose honesty and integrity are not doubted, give room for being branded asJudges with recognized disposition or ideology. Depending on his ideology or leaning, he ends
up earning the sobriquet: a "landlord Judge" or a "tenant Judge"; or as a "convicting Judge" or an"acquitting Judge"; or as a "pro-government Judge", or an "anti-establishment Judge"; or as a"pro-rich Judge" or "pro-poor Judge"; or as a "pro-labour Judge" or a "pro-management Judge";or as a "relief-oriented Judge" or a "technical Judge"; or as a "liberal Judge" or a "negative
Judge". Of course each Judge, as a human being, is bound to have convictions, prejudices,
notions, philosophies and views which may unconsciously influence and mould his decision andreflect upon the manner in which he administers justice (net).
There are some things that a judge should not do. I shall, with deference, take three examples.
First, he should not use language open to misunderstanding. “On this evidence I believe it
important that the judge indicate whether he has been influenced by such matters and,sometimes, how. otherwise an appeal court may be prevented from doing justice by amisunderstanding of what the trial judge has done. I cannot find that the plaintiff did …”, when
what is meant is: “On this evidence I am not satisfied that the plaintiff did …”. “Can” suggeststhat “it is not possible to find” and that, of course, may, be a mistake of law. If you say “can”
where you mean “should” you invited reversal. This applies also to the use of metaphors. Theyaredangerous.
Say
what
you
wish
not
circuitously
butdirectly(http://www.pngjudiciary.gov.pg).
Remember! Words behave like a naughty child. In a judgment every word speaks; allsentences have precise meanings.
Collateral damage (we hit the wrong building); friendly fire/an inadvertent attack on one’s
own troops; executive action/a CIA term meaning getting rid of people, especially the leadersof foreign countries; equity retreat/stock market crash; previously enjoyed/secondhand;rightsizing/firing a significant number of staff; substandard housing unit/slum; tax basebroadening/tax increase.

P a g e | 45

Note: Words which were codes during World Wars have entered common vocabulary. It means
words, like snakes, keep are changing their meanings.

Your message falls into disrepute, if people cannot understand you. In the mid-1990s theAustralian government regulated the superannuation industry. The drafters wrote a monstrous
piece of legislation. Arthur Andersen, the large accounting firm, pointed out in one of its
newsletters that 599 pages of laws and explanatory memoranda were needed to do this: “multiple
sledgehammers are being used to crack the odd peanut?" Few of the people with superannuation
understand this legislation. The lawyers and accountants also struggle. This law is in disrepute.
Australia now passes over 10 times as much federal legislation each year than it did in 1960.
The Income Tax Assessment Act is almost 50 times longer than it was when first introduced in
1936. The former 120 page document now bulges at an unwanted world record of 5,000 pages.
It has an unfriendly numbering system. Puzzle over the ponderous s 159ZZZZH. Many of its
terms defy understanding. [4] Try weighing the Corporations Act. It comes in at over 3 kgs. It
fattens away in Canberra. Compare that to the mere 300 gms of the Canadian statute. The Tax
Law Improvement Project is trying to clarify and shorten the tax law. Much can be done. The
Goods and Services Tax legislation of 1999 [5] is hard labour. It is laced with jargon like“creditable acquisitions” and “input tax credits”. It is a young monster, with over 1,000 pages oflegislation and explanatory memoranda, so far. In short time there have been hundreds ofamendments to it. The legislatures are treating too lightly their great power and duty of draftinglaws for the people. The power should be used sparingly. And the drafting should be of thehighest quality (http://www.scribblerspublishing.com).
The above quotes refer to the difficulties faced by legislators, lawyers, and judges while writing
legal documents. Today the judicial norm while writing is to be simple as much as possible.
Because it is simplicity that makes a judgment readable and understandable.
Sample:I have told you of my years as Master of the Rolls. I have heard many cases and delivered many
judgments. Those of interest to the profession are included in the Law Reports. But those of nointerest to them are not. On Monday mornings ordinary folk come to my Court - without
lawyers - to make their applications. From time to time they conduct their own cases. Or rather,shall I say, I conduct them for them. No one should be at a disadvantage by not having alawyer. I know that litigants in person can be very trying. They can be very wrong-headed.
They will not take "No" for an answer. They would exhaust the patience of Job. Often I tellthem: "I am afraid we cannot help you." They go away disappointed. They may try my patiencebut, as I have already said, I try never to lose my temper.
If we analyze the above passage, each sentence carries one idea. Each sentence is simple—
having one subject and one predicate—neither compound nor complex. No clichés and nolegalese. No redundancy.

P a g e | 46

It happened on 19 April 1964. It was bluebell-time in Kent. Mr. and Mrs. Hinz had beenmarried some ten years, and they had four children, all aged nine and under. The youngest wasone. Mrs. Hinz was a remarkable woman. ...”. His short sentences, easily understood, speak to
the litigants. He is not speaking only to experts, the lawyers. Lord Denning called his judgments“short stories”: “I state the facts, I give the merits, and then show the way to a just result.
Legalese is not recommended today; avoid to use phrases of Latin/French origin, or indirect way
of saying things, circumlocution. Say it directly!
1. Legalese is an overformal writing style that uses legal jargon, archaic legal language, andFrench or Latin phrases (such as res ipsa, voir dire, mens rea, and locus standi) in briefs,
motions, agreements and other legal documents. Legal professionals, both new andexperienced, sometimes believe that using legalese commands respect and elevates theirwriting. In truth, legalese hinders comprehension, promotes ambiguity and can makeyour writing stiff and archaic. Archaic vocabulary: legal writing employs many old
words and phrases that were formerly quotidian language, but today exist mostly or onlyin law, dating from the 16th century; English examples
are herein, hereto, hereby, heretofore, herewith, whereby, and wherefore (pronominal
adverbs); said and such (as adjectives).
2. Loan words and phrases from other languages: In English, this includes terms derived
from French (estoppel, laches, and voir dire) and Latin (certiorari, habeas corpus, prima
facie, inter alia, mens rea, sub judice) and are not italicised as English legal language, as
would be foreign words in mainstream English writing.
Avoid to use clichés, words/expressions which are too old to give any fresh meaning; a cock andbull story; his better half;
Examples of circumlocution
No vehicle shall be turned so as to proceed in the opposite direction within an intersection, or
upon any street in a business district, or upon a freeway, expressway or controlled-accesshighway, or where authorized signs are erected to prohibit such movement, or at any otherlocation unless such movement can be made with reasonable safety to other users of the street
and without interfering with the safe operation of any traffic that may be affected by such
movement.
Accident Report
The party of the first part hereinafter known as Jack and ... The party of the second part
hereinafter known as Jill ... Ascended or caused to be ascended an elevation of undeterminedheight and degree of slope, hereinafter referred to as “hill”.
Whose purpose it was to obtain, attain, procure, secure, or otherwise, gain acquisition to, by any
and/or all means available to them a receptacle or container, hereinafter known as “pail”, suitable
for the transport of a liquid whose chemical properties shall be limited to hydrogen and oxygen,the proportions of which shall not be less than or exceed two parts for the first mentioned
element and one part for the latter. Such combination will hereinafter be called “water”. On theP a g e | 47

occasion stated above, it has been established beyond reasonable doubt that Jack did plunge,
tumble, topple, or otherwise was caused to lose his footing in a manner that caused his body tobe thrust into a downward direction. As a direct result of these combined circumstances, Jacksuffered fractures and contusions of his cranial regions. Jill, whether due to Jack’s misfortune ornot, was known to also tumble in similar fashion after Jack. (Whether the term, “after”, shall beinterpreted in a spatial or time passage sense, has not been determined).
Verbosity and unnecessary complexity have crept into our statutes. Using a computermeasurement technique, the Victorian Law Reform Commission reckoned that you need over 22
years of formal education before you could understand the Australian Income Tax Assessment
Act. In other words, you would need to have a couple of university doctoral degrees. Sir Harry
Gibbs condemned the same statute: [2] "Such a law [as the ITAA] reflects no credit on thesociety which tolerates it." Gibbs quoted Professor Ross Parsons , who has likened the
expanding tax statute to a super nova.

Points to ponder and remember!
1. Make a list of words for use while writing a judgment. Keep a standard dictionary always
heady, and a standard book on style and writing.
2. Revision is essential. Read your judgment twice and thrice to note any ambiguity or
obscurity created by 1) uncommon words/expressions and legalese.
3. Read your sentences to make them simple rather complex/compound.
Exercise:
The prisoner has been indicted for that he, on the twentieth day of January, 1843, at theparish of St Martin in the Fields, in the county of Middlesex, and within the jurisdiction of
the Central Criminal Court, in and upon one Edward Drummond, the said Daniel
McNaghten, a certain pistol of the value of 20s,
loaded and charged with gunpowder and a leaden bullet (which pistol be in his right hand had
and held), to, against and upon the said Edward Drummond, feloniously, wilfully, and of hismalice aforethought, did shoot and discharge; and the said Daniel McNaghten, with theleaden bullet aforesaid, out of the pistol aforesaid, by force of the gunpowder, etc, the said
Edward Drummond, in and upon the back of him the said Edward Drummond, feloniously,
etc, did strike, penetrate and wound, giving to the said Edward Drummond, one mortal
wound, etc, of which mortal wound the said Edward Drummond languished until the 25 th ofApril and then died; and that by the means aforesaid, he the prisoner did kill and murder thesaid Edward Drummond.
What did we learn?
1.Writing is difficult but writing a judgment is more difficult.
2.Writing is a heroic task which can never be performed without hard work, patience, constantpractice and commitment to one’s profession.
3. Keep a standard dictionary handy!

P a g e | 48

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice,insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, andsecure the Blessings of Liberty toourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish thisConstitution for the United States of America.
The Senators and Representatives shall receive a Compensation for their Services, to beascertained by Law, and paid out of the Treasury of the United States.
Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or in adheringto their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort. No Person shall be convicted of Treason unlesson the Testimony of two Witnesses to thesame overt Act, or on Confession in open Court.
The Citizens of each State shall be entitled to all Privileges and Immunities of Citizens in theseveral States. A Person charged in any State with Treason, Felony, or other Crime, who shallflee from Justice, and be found in another State, shall on Demand of the executive Authority of
the State from which he fled, be delivered up, to be removed to the State having Jurisdiction of
the Crime.
PR E A M B L E
WE, THE PEOPLE OF INDIA, having solemnly resolved to co
nst itut e Indi a into a S OVERE IGN S O CI ALIST S E CULARDEMOCRATIC REP UBLI C and to s ecur e to all its ci ti zens:
J U S TI C E, s o ci al , e co n o mi c an d p o l i t i c al ;LI BERT Y of thought , expr ession , b eli ef , f aith and worsh
ip;
EQUALI T Y o f st atu s and of opportun it y;and to pro mot e amo ng th em al l
F R ATERNI TY assur ing th e dignit y of th e individu al and t
h e unit yand int egri t y o f th e Nation;
I N OUR CONS TI TUENT ASS EMBLY this twenty-s ixth d ayof Nov emb er, 1949 , do HEREBY ADOPT, ENACT AN D GIV
E TO OURS ELVES THIS CONS TI TUTI ON.
The principles of absolute trust and faith in the Almighty Allah, nationalism, democracy andsocialism meaning economic and social justice, together with the principles derived from them as
set out in this Part, shall constitute the fundamental principles of state policy.

P a g e | 49

Judgment Writing: Practical – I

Focus: Evaluation of a Judgment

Skill: To Evaluate Judgment

 The Participants are asked to evaluate each other
Judgments.
 They provided useful feedback to each otherP a g e | 50

Judgment Writing: Practical – II

Focus: Writing a Judgment

Skill: To Write a Judgment (To re-write your own
Judgment, applying the skills learnt

 The Participants were asked to re-write their own
Judgments, applying the skills they learnt.

P a g e | 51

P a g e | 52

P a g e | 53

P a g e | 54

Elements of Court Judgment
ELEMENTS

Good

Bad

Objective
Clarity
DirectELEMENTS OF JUDGMENT

By
Niaz Muhammad Khan

Subjective
Ambiguity
Long winded

Distinct

Mixed

Coherent

BrokenStraight

Pretentious

LogicalConfused

EasefulSpeaking
Plain
ConciseBoringSilentium
Laboured
ProlixBalanced

Lopsided

Egalitarian

Biased1

5

TOUCHSTONEJUDGMENT• Valid, persuasive, strong, cogent arguments.
• Defective measuring tool.
• Identification of errors.
• Bias as a virus.
• Efficiency.

• Public Instrument• Act of Communication• Exercise of Professional Skills

6

2

Objectivity and Subjectivity

WHY JUDGMENT?

• Three witnesses deposed about truthfulness
of Mr. A; but I had the occasion of interaction
with Mr. A three time – each time hedefrauded me.

• For Judge– Guide– Oversight– Mistake• For Litigants– Transparency– Predictability• For Public at large– Rule of Law– Audit– Accountability

7

3

SUGGESTIONS ON HOW TO BE
OBJECTIVEJUDGMENT Vs CODE OF CONDUCTIDEAL JUDGMENT

CODE OF CONDUCT

According to law

Learned in law, law abiding, wise in opinion

Objective

Detached and balanced

ConsistentConsistent

Avoid disparaging remarks

Cautious, polite and courteous

Avoid decision in indignation

Forbearing, patient and calm

Devoid of mistakes

Meticulous

No consideration other than legal

Abstemious, untouched by greed

Devoid of favourtism

No fear or favour

Unbiased

Not influenced• LISTEN. EVERY TIME WE LISTEN TO SOMEONE ELSE’S
VIEWPOINT, WE GIVE OURSELVES THE OPPORTUNITY TO
BECOME UN‐DECEIVED.
• EVALUATE OUR ASSUMPTIONS. IT IS IMPORTANT TO
RECOGNIZE THAT EVERYONE HAS A BIAS, AND THAT WE NEEDTO UNDERSTAND AND TO MANAGE OUR OWN BIASES. WE
NEED TO BE AWARE OF THE ASSUMPTIONS WHICH WE ARE
MAKING. KEEP ASKING, “WHY DO I THINK THIS IS TRUE?”
THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH HAVING ASSUMPTIONS,JUST AS LONG AS WE HAVE THE CORRECT ASSUMPTIONS.
8

4

P a g e | 55

Cont..

LOGICAL• EVALUATE OTHER PEOPLE’S ASSUMPTIONS. WE SHOULD BE
ALERT TO CLUES IN WHAT PEOPLE SAY WHICH MAY INDICATETHEIR ASSUMPTIONS. THIS WILL GIVE US INSIGHT INTO WHY
THEY BELIEVE WHAT THEY BELIEVE.

• Avoid Non Sequiturs– "Non sequitur" is Latin for "it does not follow." When anargument is a non sequitur, its conclusion does not follow
from its premise(s). This term is often used to refer toparticular types of arguments that clearly do not follow
from their premises and never could.

• For example, any argument that takes the following
form is a non sequitur:• Step 1: If I am a goat, I am a hoofed creature. Step 2:
I am a hoofed creature. Step 3: Therefore, I am a goat

9

13

Cont..

Clarity Vs Ambiguity• It is clear that this argument does not follow. Even if
the premises and conclusion were all true, theconclusion is not a necessary consequence of thepremises. This sort of non sequitur is also called"affirming the consequent."• Another common non sequitur is this:• Step 1: If I am in Rome, I am in Italy. Step 2: I am notin Rome. Step 3: Therefore, I am not in Italy.
• The speaker could be in many other places in Italy.
This sort of non sequitur is called "denying theantecedent."
14• Subjunctive thinking makes the process more complex.
• Clarity of thought means explicit accountability for yourthinking, it does not mean that you will get the rightanswer.
• Challenges– Emotions continually attempt to overrun our intelligence. The byproducts are revenge, lust, greed etc rather than rational thought.
– Idiosyncratic bias – specific to individual.
– Cognitive (bias) or inappropriate thought process.
– Implicit bias.
– Flood of irrelevant information.
10

TOOLS FOR IMPROVING CLARITY
OF THOUGHT

BIASES• Recognition of prejudices• Sifting of relevant facts• Verification of data
• Externalize thinking by using pictures, maps and writings• Ask for criticism at initial stage• Write points in tabular form
• Draw diagram to chart out your flows• Focus on one thing at a time
• Self belief• Holistic approach11• Cognitive bias is a pattern of deviation injudgment that occurs in particular situations,leading to perceptual distortion, inaccurate
judgment, illogical interpretation– Evolved mental behaviour (emotions, motivationssocial influence)– Adaptive (heuristics)– Bounded rationality – limits on optimization andrationality(lackof
appropriate
mentalmechanisms) – mental noise and distortions
15

P a g e | 56

COHERENCE

Cont..

• It provides continuity in thought process and reader does
not lose interest.
• Divide writing into sections.
• Separation between sections can be implied or explicit.
• Put headers before a section start to explicitly let readersknow of the separation.
• Start with an introduction and end with a conclusion.
• Edit your section independently first before working onthem as part of the whole.

• Cognitive dissonance – discomfort by
conflicting cognitions• Implied bias – hidden or unconscious – arises
conceptually as to why discrimination persists– Implicit social cognition, attitudes, self-esteem
and stereotypes

12

16

IMPLICIT BIAS

Cont..

• Over confidence bias.
• Anchoring bias.
• Conformation bias.
• Hint bias.
• Availability bias.
• Commitment bias.
• Hurdle in reasonableness, classification.
• Avowed beliefs and associations.

• Identify distractions and sources of stress in decision
making environment and remove or reduced them
• Identify sources of ambiguity in the decision making
context and establish more concrete standards
before engaging in the decision making process• Institute feedback mechanism• Increase exposure to stigmatized group members
and counter – stereotypes and reduced exposure tostereotypes

17

21

STARING AND BLINKING DECISIONS(Deliberative & Intuitive)

CONTENT AND LANGUAGE(1) A BAT AND A BALL COST $1.10 IN TOTAL. THE BAT COSTS$1.00 MORE THAN THE BALL. HOW MUCH DOES THE BALL
COST?
(2) IF IT TAKES 5 MACHINES 5 MINUTES TO MAKE 5 WIDGETS,
HOW LONG WOULD IT TAKE 100 MACHINES TO MAKE 100
WIDGETS?
(3) IN A LAKE, THERE IS A PATCH OF LILY PADS. EVERY DAY, THE
PATCH DOUBLES IN SIZE. IF IT TAKES 48 DAYS FOR THE PATCH
TO COVER THE ENTIRE LAKE, HOW LONG WOULD IT TAKE FOR
THE PATCH TO COVER HALF OF THE LAKE?

• Substance is primary• Language is secondary

18

22

SCHEMEHEURISTICS• Stereo status quo.
• Stereo charge sheet.
• Stereo framing of issues.
• By passing procedures (legal issues, discovery
and inspection, proformas, execution, service,
ADR, judgment).

• Grasp of facts and law• Structure23

19

P a g e | 57

TOOLS FOR REMOVING BIASES

GRASP OF FACTS AND LAW• “everything that irritates us about others canlead us to an understanding of ourselves” Carl Gustav Junq
• “Stereotypes are devices for saving a biased
person the trouble of learning”• Raise awareness• Colour blind approach• Check thought process• Grasp of facts is determined from issues• Application of law is determined fromdecisions on issues

20

24

TEST OF FRAMING ISSUESCASE STUDY

1. Attack – Plaintiff is owner of property to the
exclusion of other legal heirs
Defence – Incorrect
2. Attack – Plaintiff is entitled for the enjoymentof usufruct of property
Defence – The claim is denied as thedefendant purchased the property some ten
years ago.

FACTS

LAW

HEURISTIC CONCLUSIONS(OPTIONS)

1. A is owner of property Proofof
05 A is to succeed.
worth millions – proof witnessesis • Cogency = Proved fact x admissible fact
10 x 10 = 100
by 05 oral witnesses. – sufficient in law.
no deed.
2. B is owner of property Inadmissible
worth
millions evidence.
purchased from C –unregistered
deed
provedthroughmarginal witnesses.

25

in B is to fail.

• Cogency = Proved fact x admissible fact
10 x 0 = 028Cont..

GRASP OF LAW• When the defendant is absent, the court shallpass a decree against him.
• In case of a lis brought by plaintiff and not
decided in limine, the court may summon the
defendant.
• In case of proof of respondent to becontumacious, the court shall convict him.

• What is title of A?
• What is title of C?

Corner fact

• Cogency = proved corner fact x admissible fact
10 x 10 = 10029

26

P a g e | 58

STRUCTURE
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

Pre case facts
First page
Facts of case
Propositions
Appreciation of Evidence
Explanation of parties
Law
Conclusion
Decree/Order
Editing27

P a g e | 59

Admissibility of Evidence
Exceptions to Rule of Admissibility &Relevancy

Admissibility of Evidencei.

Hearsay:,
Which is highly relevant on account of context andcircumstance. e.g., an attesting witness’ death bed
confession of having altered a deed was rejectedin an action on the document.

ii.

Opinion:,Opinion of witness is not allowed except expert
opinion.

By
NIAZ MUHAMMAD KHAN

1

5

Why Admissibility is Important?

Cont….
iii.

Character:,
Character/reputation of accused is inadmissible evidence of his guilt.

iv.

Conduct on other occasions:,
Past behaviors of accused in similar
situations in admissible.

 Only that evidence can be looked into by the

courts which is admissible.

2

6

Admissibility & Weightage of Evidence

Relevance
Stephen’s definition of the term “any twofacts to which it is applied are so related toeach other that according to the common
course of events one either taken by itself orin connection with other facts proves orrenders probable the present, past, or future
existence or non existence of the other”

Parameters for both are different.
Admissibility itself does not always provide sufficient
proof of a fact
 Matter of law. (Admissibility)
 Weightage of evidence is to appreciate the evidence
which is admitted. (Degree of relevancy) Matter of fact. (Weight)



3

7

How to Determine Relevance andAdmissibility?

What is Admissibility?

By Syllogism = What is sufficiently

relevant to an issue is Major Premise = Accepted proposition.
 Minor Premise = Reported fact.

admissible.

 Middle Term = Conclusion.

 All that is irrelevant or insufficiently relevant

is not admissible.
84

P a g e | 60

Relevancy and Admissibility
A Sharp Distinction

Substantive issue and Factual issue

 Relevancy is a concept arrived at inductively from

 Issue of substantive law

experience, and its applicability can be tested
deductively by the construction of a syllogism. It is
not primarily dependent on rules of law.

– Case of duty towards passenger in accident.

Issue of Fact
– Whether accident was the result of negligence?

 Admissibilityof evidence depends first on theconcept of relevancy of a sufficiently high degreeand secondly, on the fact that the evidence tendereddoes not infringe any of the exclusionary rules.

13

9Instance of SyllogismMultiple Relevance and Admissibility

Men found in possession of goods which haverecently been missed are frequently guilty of stealing
them if they do not give an adequate explanation of
their possession (Major premise); the accused wasfound in possession of the goods in question shortly
after they were missed, and he gave no adequate
explanation of this fact (minor premise); therefore theaccused may have been guilty of stealing the goods(conclusion).

10

With the change in major premise of syllogism an
item of evidence changes its relevancy.
Case I.
 A is charged with stealing a shirt from B’s house,that shortly before the alleged theft a shirt was stolen
from C’s house and then C’s shirt was found in B’shouse in circumstances suggesting that it had been
inadvertently left there by the person who stole B’s
shirt.
14

How to Establish Possession?

Cont..

Relevant, Irrelevant and Insufficiently Relevant Evidence.
a)
b)
c)

d)
e)

Recovery of item from accused.
Item was seen with accused by witness.
Item was seen with accused by a person who told thewitness.
Item was seen with accused by complainant.
Item was recovered from a house visited by accused.

a)b)

Evidence tendering to show that A stole
C’s shirt might be regarded as relevant on either ofthe following grounds.
People who steal one thing frequently steal
another, A stole C’s shirt, therefore A probably
stole B’s shirt. (General).
The man who stole B’s shirt probably had C’s shirt
in his possession, A stole C’s shirt, therefore, A
probably stole B’s shirt (Specific).

11

15

Cont..

Degree of RelevancyConclusion
Evidence admissible for one purpose cannot berejected on the ground that it is inadmissible forsome other purpose.
Case II.
Evidence of previous conviction is admissible inevidence for the purpose ofi.
Impugning his credibility as a witness.
ii.
But not for proof of his guilt.

Degree of relevancy diminishes inproportion to the likelihood of its being.
Manufactured (Case (d) of previous slide)
Remote (Case (e) of previous slide)
Multiple in issues (case c of previous slide)16

12

P a g e | 61

Varying Degree of cogency of
Evidence

Cont..
IV.

 The

fact that evidence may be of varying
degrees of cogency gives rise toterminological difficulties which is yet to besolved.

Conclusive Evidence

When the court must find that fact to be
proved.

17

21

Cont..

Cont..

I.

V.

Insufficient Evidence

It is the Lowest degree of cogency on the basis ofwhich no reasonable man could decide the issue inhis favor.
Case:Harkins V Powells Tillery Steam Coal Co, in which
court of Appeal Reversed the county Court Judge’s
finding that a fatal attack of angina pectoris arose outof a workman’s employment. The workman had
been pulling trucks shortly before the attack
occurred.

Presumptions

Used in variety of senses.
 Presumption of fact (Stolen goods in possession)
 Rebuttablepresumption of law (Birth of child during
marriage) Irrebuttable presumption of law (Child under 7 years of
age)

22

18

Doctrine of Res gestaeCont..
II.

Prima
Sense

Facie

Evidence:

It is an exception to “Hearsay Rule”
Four Exceptions.
Statements accompanying andRelevant Facts.

First
a)

Secured degree of cogency, where a party evidence
is sufficiently weighty for a reasonable man.
Case:
Smithwick v The National Coal Board, in which theworkman’s death was caused by the defendant's
breach of statutory duty to guard dangerous
machinery on proof. (Connection closer).

–
i.
ii.
iii.

explaining

Three conditions of admissibility.
Statement must relate to the act it accompanies.
Contemporaniety.
By the actor.

23

19

Cont..

Con..

III.

b)

Prima Facie Evidence: second
Sense (Presumptive Evidence)

Cogency of evidence is so weighty that a
presumption is drawn in favor.
i.

Case:Foundering of ship immediately after its
departure (unseaworthiness).
20

ii.

24

Spontaneous Statements Relating to an
event in issue made by participants orobservers.
Two conditions of admissibly
Directness (Gibson-Stone Case).
Other Evidence (Exclaim and Scuffle).

P a g e | 62

Con..

Means of Proof

c)

•

•

Statements concerning the Maker’s
contemporaneous sate of Mind or
Emotions.
Contemporaneity (Case of insolvency)•••

TestimonyHearsay
Documents.
Things or Real Evidence
•
•
•
•
•

25

Material objects.
Appearance of persons.
Demeanor of witnesses.
View.
Automatic recording.

29

CASE A(Hart v Lanashire and Yorkshire Rail Co)

Con..
d)

Statementofphysical sensation.

•

Contemporaniety (Workman statement to
his wife)

The defendant a changer of lines was
accused of negligence in a railway accident.
The evidence was produced that thedefendant changed his method of changing
the points after the accident which is a proofof his guilt.

contemporaneous

TASK:

Is this proof admissible, if sohow, if
not,
why?

30

26

CASE B(Hollinghem V Head)

Proper Time to object to Admissibility•

Objection to Admissibility

The defence to an action for the price of guano wasthat an express condition in the contract of saleprovided that the goods should be equal to Peruvian
guano. The defendant wished to call a witness toswear that the plaintiff had entered into contracts
with other customers containing a term similar to thatfor which he contended.

By court suo moto or by any party at any stage. Mere
consent or omission to object cannot make it relevant.
Even interlocutory order of admission can be reversed.
•

Objection to Mode of Proof
Such objection should be taken at the time the act issought to be proved in unauthorized manner.

TASK:
27

Should the Court allow the request.
Give reasons.

31

CASE C(Halles V Kerr)

Improper admission or rejection of
Evidence

The plaintiff claimed that he had contracted
barber’s itch from the implement used by the
defendant, hairdresser.
TASK:
Would he be allowed to provethat two other customers ofdefendant had also contracted
the same disease in the previous
months after he had cut theirhair.

It shall not be ground of itself for new
trial or reversal of any decision. If
independent of such evidence there isother sufficient evidence to justify thedecision.

32

28

P a g e | 63

Interpretation of laws in judgment writing

Focus: Juristic understanding of text of law.

Skill: Translation into Judgment Writing.

(Lecture Missed) Reason: Time Constraints

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P a g e | 69

Contemporary trends in Judgment Writing

Focus: Critical analysis of a range of research articles on theart of Judgment Writing

Skill: Modern techniques of judgment writing.

P a g e | 70

Contemporary trends in Judgment Writing
CONTEMPORARY TRENDSIN JUDGMENT WRITING:
A LITERATURE REVIEWIntroduction
5Art, not a science Could not be easily taught
 Traditional differences in common/civil law countries
 Traditionally, in common law countries, judgment

writing was not a statutory requirement; Judgments
were judges’ oral speeches in court; No formal
training; excellent legal practitioners
 Common law: judgment seen a social process Civil law countries: formal regulation and officialdom

DR KHURSHID IQBAL,
DEAN FACULTYLearning now universally recognized Written judgment common across the world
 Training now every where, including England

Definition

Justification
62



Inherent importance

AwarenessBest practices

A publicly stated, reasoned elaboration that justifies a
conclusion or decision. Its purpose is to set forth an
explanation for a decision that adjudicates a live case orcontroversy presented before a court. A quality opinion will
predict how similar factual scenarios will be treated. The
explanatory function of opinion is paramount [Aldister, et al,2009); a public act of State and reason for it [Mahoney,
1994]
 A formal, law-based decision [Lebovits, 2008]
 Opinion of judge after due consideration of evidence andarguments in a case (Rafique, 2008) Verdict of a judge setting at rest according to law acontroversy…(Shafiur Rahman, n.d, fja-website) Net product of judicial proceedings
 To know about existing legal scholarship Despite differences in legal systems, similarities exist

in judgment writing—structure & organization



Universal significance Growing subject of learning and research

Justification
3

Why write a Judgment?
7Arousal for research-based reading To help participants read best available literatureKey reasons Parties to understand the result and reasonsArgument: Is Judgment writing now
developing as a science?

 Correction on appeal, if wrong
 record keeping Growing literature on teaching and research shows Development of jurisprudence & case lawthat though an art, Judgment Writing is growing
like a science.
 Reasons: Systematization of skills; predictability,transparency, accountability

 Identification of an error to be avoided in future Communication with public that justice is servedAssumptions
 Being a skill, must be taught
 Quality improvement

General guidelines

Introduction
8

4



Judges: professional writers Writing for publication
 Writing not less important than deciding Judge armed with only figurative pen Potential readers in mind, a must
 Must be serviceable/cogent product; create respect Written judgment—a statutory requirement



Honest, respectful, persuasive, clear Neutral, without fear or favour, serious

consideration to losing party contention

 Address merits professionally; never insulting;properly consider both parties’ arguments

 Dos—Informed and guided by law, including caselaw, relevant to facts, contain compelling logic;
Don'ts—dull, fanciful, irrelevant, tricky (like alawyer’s argument), incoherent
 Well organized, precise, simple, succinct

P a g e | 71

Style: 2 Kinds

Guidelines…
12

9



Reaching the decision: two processes Decision making process (DMP)—”Hot/Cold Courts”
 Decision justifying process (DJP)—Judgment writing

Hot Court

Cold Court

Prior preparation; reading of the recordin or well in advance; making a detailed
analysis of case leads to greater
understanding of case and moreformalized and ordered decision making.
DMP is critically important. (US Judge
Aldister’s & Canadian Judge Dickson
practice). Judge must know everythingby the time the case is concluded.
Issues must be identified early and withparties’ agreement; applicable law also
be found promptly.

No opportunity to read the material inadvance. Professionally, this was Judge
Franfurter’s practice, which did not
attract many disciples. Critics call it onearm-tied-behind-the back approach.
However, contemporary caseload hascompelled judges to follow this practice.
This is also due to “crushing calendars”
and “antiquated” practice of bar andbench.

Language

Ref. Lord Hope, UK

Know thy Readers
10

Judge

Rhetorical—use of metaphorical language,
superb command over language
Literary—plain language, give extensive
factual details, quote from precedents
Conversational—write in the language ofcommon reader, as if to speak directly tothe reader, avoid unnecessary details,
prefer to say something fresh and new; an
enjoyable writing.
‘Low ‘or Exploratory—to persuade thereader by debate.
‘High’ or declaratory—normally by appeal
court in criminal cases, regard to theneeds of the audience.
Examples: Lord Wilberforce, Lord Reid,
Lord Steyn and Lord Hoffmann

Philosophers (Justice V Krishna Ayer:
India)
Social Scientist (Justices P.N. Bhagwati,
D.A. Desai and Kuldeep Singh)
Advocates
Ref. Justice Ambwani, India
N.B. On a deeper study, the participants
may read judgments of Pakistani Superior
Courts’ Judges and explore examples ofstyle of both kinds.
Resources/material: UK Judicial Studies
Board’s book Equal Treatment Bench Book
issues some guidelines about language injudgment writing
A 2007 booklet has complied notes andmaterial on judgment writing for judges of

Reasoning…
14

Leflar’s research (1961): 25 US Supreme
Court and US Court of Appeal Judges
 Responses: Posterity, bar, future judges, legislature,Inferential: Reliance on evidence to reach conclusion
Intuitive: psychological process rather than reasoning;for example, believing in a witness in part or whole andthe drawing the conclusion by justifying it from thereasoning supplied by him either by belief or experience.

law students, media, self-satisfaction, losing lawyer,
brother judges—virtually every kind of reader Such over-expansive judgment is not required
 Broadly, two categories of readers: primary andsecondary readers Primary: parties to litigation (their lawyers), though
lay—they must be enabled to understand judgment
 Attributes: clear, logical, unambiguous, free of lingua
franca—Jabberwocky of legal profession

Neutrality: non-aligned to the parties during and at theconclusion of trial

Impartiality: uncontaminated thinking; without
being influenced by personal commitment(psychological perspective)

Reasoning…

Readers…
15

11





Secondary readers: Other judges & Lawyers, law

Key tools
 Systematic discussion of the issues in the caseteachers & students, political scientists, sociologists,
historians, media, etc
 Though secondary readers must not be ignored,
judgment is written for primary readers Thoughtful and disinterested weighing of conflictinherent in controversy/litigation

 Analysis of the nature of the dispute Know the applicable law in the given facts
 Seek guidance from relevant case law
 Examine: 1. whether the law and its application areplain? 2. whether the rule of law is certain, but its
application alone is uncertain? 3. whether neither therule of law nor the its application is clear? (N.B. These
questions are for superior courts, but may guide
subordinate courts.)

Reasoning…

Style: 2 Kinds
12

15

Language
Rhetorical—use of metaphorical language,
superb command over language
Literary—plain language, give extensive
factual details, quote from precedents
Conversational—write in the language ofcommon reader, as if to speak directly tothe reader, avoid unnecessary details,
prefer to say something fresh and new; an
enjoyable writing.
‘Low ‘or Exploratory—to persuade thereader by debate.
‘High’ or declaratory—normally by appeal
court in criminal cases, regard to theneeds of the audience.
Examples: Lord Wilberforce, Lord Reid,
Lord Steyn and Lord Hoffmann
Ref. Lord Hope, UK

Judge
Philosophers (Justice V Krishna Ayer:
India)
Social Scientist (Justices P.N. Bhagwati,
D.A. Desai and Kuldeep Singh)
Advocates
Ref. Justice Ambwani, India
N.B. On a deeper study, the participants
may read judgments of Pakistani Superior
Courts’ Judges and explore examples ofstyle of both kinds.
Resources/material: UK Judicial Studies
Board’s book Equal Treatment Bench Book
issues some guidelines about language injudgment writing
A 2007 booklet has complied notes andmaterial on judgment writing for judges ofKey tools
 Systematic discussion of the issues in the case
 Thoughtful and disinterested weighing of conflictinherent in controversy/litigation

 Analysis of the nature of the dispute Know the applicable law in the given facts
 Seek guidance from relevant case law
 Examine: 1. whether the law and its application areplain? 2. whether the rule of law is certain, but its
application alone is uncertain? 3. whether neither therule of law nor the its application is clear? (N.B. These
questions are for superior courts, but may guide
subordinate courts.)

P a g e | 72

17

21

The Hon’ble Gerald Lebovits,“Judgment Writing in Kenya and the Common-Law World”,
Vol. 1 Kenya Law Review, 2008.
Author: Judge, New York City Civil Court, Housing Part, in Manhattan andAdjunct Professor of Law at St. John’s University School of Law and
Columbia Law School. The lecture is based on an address the author
gave at the 2009 Kenyan Judicial Colloquium in the Kenyan Judicial
Training Institute, Nairobi. (Copy Provided to Participants)

Other suggest Readings

Justice Sunil Ambwani, Judge Allahabad High Court,“Writing Judgment: Comparative Models”
Delivered at the Advance Course on Court Management and Court
Administration, July 2006 at the National Judicial Academy ofIndia, Bhopal (Copy Provided to Participants)

Books/Journals
18

22

Lord Hope of Craighead, “Writing Judgment” UK’s
Judicial Studies Board’s Annual Lecture 2005
(Copy Provided to Participants)
The Hon’ble Justice Gary Downes,“Writing Reasonss for Judgment or Decisions”
Speech to the Administrative Courts of Thailand, at the ThailandAustralia Mature Administrative Law Program, Bangkok, May
2007. (Copy Provided to Participants)

















Judge Aldister, Opinion Writing (2nd ed. 2009), available throughwww.authorhouse.com/bookstore.
Henry Weihofen, Legal Writing Style, 1961.
Joyce J George, Judicial Opinion Writing Handbook, (2nd ed. 1986)
Robert A. Leflar, Some Observations Concerning Judicial Opinion, 61
Columbia Law Review, 1961, p 810.
Aldister, Opinion Writers and Law Review Writers: A Commentary andContinuity of Approach, 16 DUQ. Law Review, 1977-78, p139.
George Rose Smith, A Primer of Opinion Writing for New Judges, 21
Arkansas Law Review, 1967, p197.
Dwight W. Stevenson, Writing Effective Opinions, 59 Judicature, 1975,
p134.
Elizabeth A Francis, A Faster Better Way to Write Opinions, 27 Judges
Journal, 1988, p26.
James D Hopkins, Notes on Style in Judicial Opinions, 8 Judges Journal,
1969, p49.

23

19



Hon’ble Ruggero J. Aldister, Meehan Rasch, Mathew.
P Bartles,“Opinion Writing and Opinion Readers”, 31 (1)Cardozo Law Review, 2009, 1-43.

Judge Alister is Senior US Circuit Judge, Chief Judge Emeritus, US
Court of Appeal for the Third Circuit

Meehan, Law Clerk to Judge Aldister, J.D. UCLA School of Law, MA
Indiana UniversityMathew, Law Clerk to Judge Aldister, J.D. UC Hastings College ofLaw, M.Sc University of Edinburgh

Sir Harry Gibbs, “Judgment Writing, 67 Australian Law Journal(ALJ),1993, p494.
Justice Kirby, “On the Writing of Judgment”, 64 ALJ, 1990, 691.
The Rt Hon Sir Kitto, “Why Write Judgment”, 66 ALJ, 1992, 787.
Justice Mahoney, “The Writing of a Judgment” 6(1) Judicial Officers
Bulletin, 1994., p61.
Justice Sheller, “Good Judgment Writing”, 8(1) Judicial Officers
Bulletin, p3.
Chief Justice Beverly McLachlin, “Legal Writing: Some Tools”, 2001
Alberta Law Review, 695.
Justice Shafiur Rahman, Decision and Judgment: www.fja.gov.pk
Justice Mohammad Bashir Jehangiri, Judgment Writing:www.fja.gov.pk
Justice Mohammad Rafiq, Judgment Writing and Communicating
Effectively Through Judgments, available at www.hcraj.nic.in/rafiqjudgment-effective.pdf.

24

20



Papua New Guinea Supreme Court, National
Court & District Court Notes & Materials on
Judgment Writing, Judgment Writing Workshop,
2001, Compiled by Injia, DCJ, March 2007.

Thank YouP a g e | 73

Report of visit to Balahisar Fort
On 31 August 2012, the Academy organized an excursion visit of the participants to Peshawar’s
historic Balahisar Fort. The visit was part of linkage with other departments as a tool of training.
The visit was arranged for the following reasons: first, to provide a short respite to theparticipants. Second, to create an opportunity for judges to explore the mandate and working
environment of Frontier Corps, under the command of the Pakistan Army. Dr Khurshid Iqbal,
Dean Faculty, and Mr. Asghar Ali Salarzai, Administrative Officer, accompanied theparticipants.
Soon after arrival, Major Fayyaz of the Frontier Corps welcomed the participants. He theninformed the participants about the schedule of activities. He guided the participants to amuseum that contains a large variety of different items, ranging from previous uniforms to arms
and ammunitions, pictures, souvenirs of different units, dating back from the late 19 th century to
the present times. The tour of the museum was an interesting journey into the two centuries
history of Frontier Corps. The participants were really impressed with the richness of themuseum, its maintenance and management. It was indeed a learning exercise inasmuch as asimilar museum may be developed by the Academy to preserve its history.
The participants were then guided into a hall, where Colonel Malik Mamoon briefed them about
the mandate of the Frontier Corps. His main focus was on the role of the Frontier Corps in thecurrent war against terrorism in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). At the end,
Major General Ghayyur Khan, Commandant of the Frontier Corps addressed the participants indetail. The General expressed thanks and appreciated the fact that such like visits of judges, arehighly desirable. He stated that such interactions are rather necessary in regard to the legal
aspects of prosecution of the terrorists. The General also answered questions of the participants.
The Dean of the Faculty expressed gratitude of the General and his staff for arranging the visit
on a short notice despite strict security measures at the Fort and their busy daily schedule. He
agreed that interactions are very useful and may significantly contribute to help understand legal
problems involved in the war against terrorism. He, however, stated that such being policy
matters, may be taken up formally at the institutional level.
Over a cup of tea, the General and other officers of the Frontier Corp mingled with theparticipants and had a chat with them. The General presented a souvenir to the Dean, whoreceived the same with thanks and requested him, for a similar visit to the Academy.
Prepared by:
Dr Khurshid Iqbal,
Dean FacultyP a g e | 74

One Word Vocabulary

Focus: Consistency

Skill: To develop Consistency.

P a g e | 75

Judicial Academy of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Judgment writing One Word Dictionary
Prepared by DR. Muhammad Ismail Wali guided and in collaboration with Dr. Khurshid Iqbal,
Director, Academics
Background: English is an Indo-European language with a history of 15 centuries. During its
evolution its has under Greek, Roman and French influences. As the spiritual and intellectual
sources were available mostly in Greek and Latin, most formals words in English come from thesame sources. It has also assimilated thousands of words from other languages and cultures aswell. This is why there are so many synonyms, antonyms, homonyms and homographs in its,
which are fraught with difficulties both for the native and non-native speakers. Keeping in view
the same difficulties, the movement for plain English has affected every sphere of human activity
both in England and America.
Law is an essential sphere of human life; hence legal experts focus on making the language oflaw as plain as possible. Here the question arises, what plain English is. By plain English theexperts mean easily readable and understandable words and simple verbal structures. Before
doing the whole exercise, a few examples are given here to clarify the concept.

Murder : kill, assassinate, slaughter, and so many other words with the same meaning:
Establish/set up
Venal/corruptible/bribable
Venereal/sexual
Committed to writing/write
Persistently /tirelessly
Null and void /invalid
Each and every/every
Legally important/ legal
It is hereby said on oath/I say it on oath
Technical words may create a problem:
Pedagogue: teacher/educator
Pedophile: child-abuser
Pediatrician: child doctor
Ophthalmologist: eye doctor/specialist
Oncologist: cancer specialistP a g e | 76

Sometimes the shortened form is commonly known:
TB (Tuberculosis)
Malapropism (use of one word for another in an erroneous way)

Incentive / intensive
Dependant/ dependent
There/ theirThan / thenThe/they
Perspicuity/perspicacity (perspicuity of style/perspicacity of mind)
Acronyms and Initialism/Abbreviation
Acronyms are pronounced as one word (radar, radio detection and ranging)
In abbreviations , each letter is pronounced (ADR)
Solid /compound/ hyphenated/unhyphenated/ words:
Words written as one block are solid (judge, lawyer, court, judgment).
Compounds may contain two or more than two words:
Civil Judge ,Sessions Judge, Chief Justice (two)Advocate on record, alternate dispute resolution (three)Hyphenated Compounds are always written with the hyphen:
Commander-in-chief, brother-in-law, lady-in-waiting
Some rules:• Use a hyphen after the prefixes all-, ex-, quasi-, and self-. Don’t use a hyphen when self is theroot word.
Yes: All-inclusive, ex-husband, self-esteem
No: selfishness, selfless• Use a hyphen before the suffixes –elect, -odd, and -free.
the president-elect, thirty-odd students, sugar-free• Use a hyphen when the root word is a numeral.
pre-1900s, under-18s

P a g e | 77

• Use a hyphen when the root word is capitalized.
pre-Columbian, pre-Reformation, Buddha-like• Use a hyphen to avoid an awkward looking string of letters.
No: antiintelectual, shellike, multititled, intraarterial
Yes: anti-intellectual, shell-like, multi-titled, intra-arterial• Use a hyphen if the word would have a different meaning without the hyphen.
The star football player has resigned. (quit)
The star football player has re-signed. (will continue working)• Use a hyphen if the word would be difficult to read if it weren’t hyphenated.
Coinventor may be read as coin ventor, so write co-inventor
Doubale may be read as doub le, so write do-able• Use a hyphen when the parts of the compounds are not commonly used together.
Common compounds: worldwide, clockwise
Unusual compounds: community-wide, nutrition-wise
3. Linking words that represent numbers• Use a hyphen with any two-word number (21-99) or fraction.
thirty-two, two hundred fifty-six, one-quarter, 2 and two-thirds• If the fraction includes a two-word number, hyphenate only that two-word number, as more
hyphens may make the fraction unclear
No: forty-five-hundredths
Yes: forty-five hundredths

Do not hyphenate phrases originating form foreign languages, particularly Latin.
a priori, post hoc, vice versa
Sometimes words are hyphenated if used as modifiers before nouns, but not after:
Our Judicial Academy has state-of-the-art technology. (before)
Our system is state of the art technology.
Certain idiomatic expressions:Three miles is a long distance to walk.

P a g e | 78

Fifty thousand dollars is a big amount.
80 years is a long time to live.

Words used before and after but with different meanings:
Concerned parent (anxious): the concerned parents wandered here and there.
Parents concerned (parents referred to): the parents concerned are required to produce the birthcertificate.
Involved discussion (debated): ours was a highly involved discussion.
The person involved (doing the act): the person involved is missing.
Conditionals:
Zero Conditional (both parts in the same tense used for showing certainty/usual habits.
Water boils if the temperature is raised to 100.
A person is arrested if he/she commits a murder.
I stay with my friend if go to Chitral.
First Conditional (probability)
If I go to Chitral, I will stay with my friend.
I you do not obey, the judge will punish you.
We will not go if it rains.
Second Conditional: Unreal present/least probability)
I would buy you a car if I won the lottery.
I would win if the judge forgot to ask the question.
Fourth Conditional: unreal past
You would have passed if had worked hard.
I would not have been in prison if I had not killed the man.
I would have been in prison if I had murdered the man.
(Use of Comma)P a g e | 79

Parallelism
Parallelism is a stylistic device for maintaining clarity in writing. It refers to parallel verbal
structures in a sentence:
1. If one part is in the active, the other part should also be in the active:
Incorrect: A judgment writes a judgment, and a case is argued by a lawyer. .
Correct: A judgment writes a judgment, and a argues a case.
2.

If a phrase/clause has a modifier in it, other phrases in the same sentence should follow
the same pattern:

Incorrect: O judges! Listen carefully and write your judgments in a judicious and honest way.
Correct: O judges! Listen carefully and write your judgments judiciously and honestly.
Or
Incorrect: The lawyer spoke vehemently; the judge listened actively; and the plaintiff observedwith great patience.
Correct: The law spoke vehemently; the judge listened actively; and the plaintiff observed
highly patiently.
Incorrect: The judge called for the lawyer, litigants, and for the Registrar of the court.
Correct: The judge called for the lawyer, litigant, and the Registrar of the court.
Incorrect: I am here to teach you and for sharpening you your verbal skills.
Correct: I am here to teach you and to sharpen your verbal skills.
Incorrect: The lawyer was neither on time not prepared.
Correct: The lawyer was neither on time nor prepared.

Some difficult plural formations:
Proof/proofs
Belief/beliefs

P a g e | 80

Crisis/crises
Analysis/analyses
Boy-friend/Boy-friends
Man driver/men drivers
Woman doctor/women doctors/but lady doctors
Travel agent/ travel agents
Memorandum/memoranda
Agenda now used as singular as well
Phenomenon/phenomena
Index/indices (used in mathematics/science)
Index/indexes/ an index of subjects/ articles
Hanger-on/hangers-on
Runner-up/runners-up
MNA/MNAs
A/ “A’s”
Break-in/break-ins

Plain English

What are the guiding principles? Prefer to use
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

familiar word (nonpareil/peerless)Concrete word (someone/a person
Short word (parsimonious/thrifty)Single word (each and every/every)
Saxon word (Old English)a. Unfavorable climatic conditions/bad weatherP a g e | 81

Warning! Here the important point to remember is collocations are very difficult to learn anduse for a non-native speaker. The only solution is to keep a standard Collocations Dictionary
before using a word in the way native speakers use it.
assign rights; authorised representative; binding contract; binding obligation; cancel an order castaspersions; contractual breach; copyright protection; derisory offer detrimental effect enter into acontract estimated costs; exercise discretion; flagrant breach fulfil criteria; fulfil obligations, holda discussion; irrevocably appoint; legally valid; managerial position; public domain; reasonable
control; reasonable costs; relevant issue; rescind a contract; terminate a contract; wholly
fraudulent; written notice; written request.

Collocations are often associated with prepositions:

A lawyer may sit before the desk (or in front of the desk). The professor can sit on the desk
(when he's being informal) or behind the desk, and then his feet are under the desk or beneath thedesk. He can stand beside the desk (meaning next to the desk), before the desk, between the deskand you, or even on the desk (if he's really strange). If he's clumsy, he can bump into the desk or
try to walk through the desk (and stuff would fall off the desk). Passing his hands over the deskor resting his elbows upon the desk, he often looks across the desk and speaks of the deskor concerning the desk as if there were nothing else like the desk. Because he thinks ofnothing except the desk, sometimes you wonder about the desk, what's in the desk, what hepaid for the desk, and if he could live without the desk. You can walk toward the desk, to thedesk, around the desk, by the desk, and even past the desk while he sits at the desk orleans against thedesk.
An event may occur during the session, before the session, until the session, throughout thesession, after the session.

For: fondness for, need for, reason for(but cause of), respect for, concern for, desire
for, sorry for, apologize for, prepare for,
Of: awareness of, approval of, grasp of, mastery of. Hatred of, understanding of,afraid of, fond, proud of, capable of, jealous of, sure of, tired of, made of,
About: Confusion about, careless about, happy about, worried about,
In: participation in, success in, belief in, interested in, in my size (not of), in contrast
to/contrast with (different from)
To: married to, similar to, compare to (liken), compare with (contrast) , peculiar to,P a g e | 82

words
confirm

meaning
To remove doubts

usage
I just want to get the date confirmed.

To support with evidence (legalistic)

The witness could not corroborate theplaintiff's testimony.

corroborate

To provide a tangible evidenceThis is one of the most fully substantiatedhistorical facts.

Implies testimony of anexpert/authority

Never purchase an antique before it has
been authenticatedsubstantiate

authenticate Refers to the validity of a theory,
claim, judgment
The document validates his claim to theproperty.

validate
Implies comparison with the original
My degree has been sent to the university
for verification.

verifycontrary to (on the contrary)

At: angry at (thing), with (person, good or bad at writing, at work, at home (in thehouse), at lunch, at play, at table,
In the beginning, the accused seemed to be innocent, but now we have evidence tothe contrary.

P a g e | 83

Some other examples:
WE have to raise our standard.
Our little chat has raised my spirits.
Her answer raised doubts/fears/suspicions in my mind.
This discussion has raised many important issues.
The announcement raised a laugh.
I want to raise two problems/questions with you.
I want to start my own business if I can raise the money/ cash/ capital/
funds.
We raised a tower as a memorial to our leader.
This lamb has been raised by hand.
She was raised by her grandparents.
A farmer raises chickens/sheep.
I have been trying to raise Jack/Islamabad.
The siege was raised after three weeks.
Common Mistakes:
Some words have no plural forms in English, but we use them in plural forms: software, advice,information, accommodation, furniture, baggage, luggage, health, shoping/parkingtransport
music, research. We may use phrase like a piece of/ a lot of/ some/ with some of them: a piece of
information; a lot of information, method of transport. These are examples of uncountable nouns.
Warning! Here we should note that by concept of the count and uncount noun is peculiar to
English: we cannot use our intelligence to know and use them. For example, our logic says fire
may be uncount. However, they use it as a count noun: he made a fire. But the police opened fireon the crowd.
A good map would be a help.
It was relief to sit down.
He had a dislike/dread/hatred/horror/love of violence.
It would be a pity to cut down the trees.
It is a shame you could not come to the party.
Her hair is black/ there is a hair in your soup.
I prefer tea to coffee/bring me a coffee/tea.
Work (occupation/uncountable): I go to city for work.
Works (factory/literary works).
We think bread is a countable noun, but not. Loaves of bread. Slice/slices of bread.
We apply our logic to language:
We say take decision (nonstandard)/make decision… make research/do research… belong from/belong to… made the same experience/had the same experience
Find friends/make frends

P a g e | 84

Abduct kidnap

aberration
straying/oddity/oversight

abject/hopelessworthlessDo mistake/make mistake
A big amount of money/information/food; a large amount…
Make a survey/do or carry out a survey
It is worth doing an effort/it is worth making an effort.
Make shopping/go/do shopping/do washing/do cooking/go hunting
A little choice/a limited or narrow choice
Big range/wide range
Big variety/wide variety
Big importance/great importance
Make business/do/conduct business
Under high pressure/under a great or a lot of pressure
High building/tall building
A little decrease/a slight decrease
I suggest changes/ I suggest that
With a view to do/with a view to doing (always followed by gerund)
Look forward to see/ look forward to seeing.
Used to do/ used to doing (same as above)

Remember!
Consistency is an essential element of effective communication. Without verbal consistency,
meaning becomes blurred in such a way as to confuse the reader. Simple le example may suffice
here:
The witness said, “I saw the child crying .” But you use the word “kid” while paraphrasing his
statement. In another para you use “offspring” to replace the same word. Semantically, there isno much difference in the meaning of the three words. However, the same discrepancy provides
a chance to a lawyer to prove them three different figures, which will adversely affect thevalidity of your judgment. Be consistent in use of such lexical structures. The following
dictionary has been designed to maintain consistency.
The following gives you a list of words containing three variants each. The word in bold is thecommon word. Use the common word if your context is not affected. The list provides you
basic information on the subject. No doubt, some of these words may not serve your legal
purposes. In that case, use the word which is common in our culture.

P a g e | 85

abrogate /stop, do away withabscond /run off
abundant /more than enoughaccommodating/ helpful
accost/ waylay
affable friendly
affluent richaggregate (n) group, mass, sum alacrity quickly and willingly
aggregate (v) group
alleviate to ease, lessenaltercation argumentambivalent having mixed feelings
amorphous shapelessarbitrator judgeameliorate to ease, to improveanomaly freak, oddity, rarity
assuage easeaugment add
belligerent War-likebereft without
boisterous loudburgeon bloom, growaustere stern, grim, plain
benevolent kindblandish coax, enticebrumal wintry
cacophony noise cajole urge,
coax
calumny slander, back-bitingcavort froliccallous unfeeling
capricious changeable

accentuate /stressacumen cleverness
aggrandize increase
algid cold
amalgamation
union,
blob
amiable friendly
apparitional ghostly
audacious forward, rashbaleful harmful
berate tell off
bloated swollen
brusque blunt, gruff
caliginous misty, dark

camaraderie fellowshipcircumspect wary
credulity gullibility
cursory hasty carelessdaunting scary, off putting
dearth a lackdefunct dead, gone away
deleterious harmful
desolatebarren,heartbroken
despondent downcast
destitute in poverty
differentiate contrast, tellapartdilapidated run down
diligent
hard-working, diminish reduce
painstaking
diminutive miniature
discreet carefuldisparage criticize
discrete/distinct individual
dissonance clash
divergent different, moving diverse variedapartdivisive
causing
opposition, enervate weaken, tire
ethereal airy, fairy,
troublemaking
heavenly
euphoric overjoyedexacerbate worsen
excursion trip
exemplary excellent, goodexigent necessary, urgent
exorbitant excessive
fabricate invent
facile easy
fallacious mistaken
fatuous silly
fecund fertile
formidable
mighty,fearful
fortuitous lucky
hiatus breakhiemal wintry
hierarchy ruling body, pecking impecunious destituteorder
incisive direct
inextricable entangled
ingenious original
inimical hostile
iniquity wickedness
innocuous harmlessinvective tongue-lashinginveterate die-hardirascible bad-tempered,P a g e | 86

touchylachrymose tearfulmandatory necessary,
required
open mutability changeable

inspissated thickloquacious talkative

juxtapose place together
malleable easily shaped

mendacious dishonest
nefarious evil
obfuscate obscureparagon model
peregrinate wandermunificent generous,
handednoisome foulobsequious creep, grovelling
pedagogue schoolteacher
pertinacious dogged/stubborn

portentous sinister, amazingprestidigitation sleight of handpropensity tendency
pulchritude beauty
quotidian daily
recapitulate repeat
restitution repayment
serendipity luck
surfeit glut

propriety decency
punctilious precise, fussy
ratiocinate think
redoubtable mighty, fearfulscurrilous foul, vulgar
strenuous demanding, energetic
surreptitious secret, slysycophant flatterer
toothsome tasty
tortuous winding
usurp oustvicarious /vivid

taciturn reserved, aloof
torpid lazytruculent violent
variegate diversify
vicissitudes
twiststurns/changes

obdurate unyielding
ostracize banish
pellucid clear
Petulant
sulky, bad-tempered
presumptuous oversure,
cheekyprotean changing
putrid rotten
recalcitrant defiant
repudiate rejectseminal original
supplant oust, unseat
surrogate
standin,stopgap, deputy
tenuous weak
torrid hotumbrage offence
veracious honest

andIf there words seem to confuse the reader, choose the familiar:
Confusion created by homophony:
Homonymy refers to those words which have the same sound (or prone to be such) but different
meaning:

Complement/Compliment
In a dialectical method, opposites complement (say supplement) each other.
Or, instead of saying “I compliment you,” say “I commend you.”

A list of such examples:P a g e | 87

Confusing
Allusion
Complement
Continuous
Continual
Credible
Creditable
Discreet
Discrete
DiffuseDefuse (obvious)
Exceptionable
Exceptional
Exhaustive
Militate
Mitigate

Familiar
Explanation
hint/clue
may be confused with illusion
supplement
may be confused with compliment
nonstopa siren wails continuously
frequenta ticking sound occurs continually
likelya credible story/event
good/ worthya person’s behavior is creditabletactfula discreet person
separate/individuala discrete event
spread throughout/scatterbad in some way/hostile
extraordinary
complete
affectto lessen severity

prescribe advise/recommend
Proscribe ban/forbid/exclude
Shear cut wool from sheep
Sheer pure/absolute
Stationary not moving/at rest
Stationery /writing materials
Titivate/smarten up/dress up/do up
Titillate /to excite
Tortuous/ twisting/turning
Torturous / painful
Turbid/opaque/cloudy turbid writing is vague and unclear
Turgid/unsociable
Unsocial/ lacking civic sense
Venal/corruptible /bribable
Venereal/ sexual

Replace doublets and triplets with single words:
As a consequence of/ because/forCommensurate with/consistent with
Despite the fact that/although/despite
For the purpose of /toIf this is not the case/if not
If this is the case/if so

P a g e | 88

In accordance with/following
In conjunction with/withIn order to/to
In the eventuality of/ if
In view of the fact that/because
On the assumption that/if
On the subject of/about
Prior to/before
In the light of/according torelating to /about
under any other circumstances than/ unless, except
with reference to/ about, concerning
Delete all those words which do not add any meaning to your sentence:
There are such items as water, food and clothing, etc.
The amount of disagreement between the two parties is excessive.
In the case of Jack, we are undecided.
They are studying the characteristics of the crime.
The definition of mind is that which is nonphysical.
Dealing with the issue of corruption ..,The level of pollution in this area is very high.
The nature of the misuse of …
The occurrence of high level of radiation
Hiding the subject

The accident was caused by the negligence of the staff.
The staff’s negligence caused the accident.
Say it directly!
They performed a test of it.

They tested it.

I had a sleep.

I slept.

She had an extraordinary experience

She experienced something extraordinary.

She took the opportunity to escapeShe escaped.

We shall take the risk of travelling by sea

We risked travelling by sea.

They did a thing that surprised us

They surprised us.

He did an essay which was brilliant.

He wrote a brilliant essay.

He made an attempt to correct the
problem.

He attempted to correct the problem.

P a g e | 89

He gave a speech to the group.

He spoke to the group.

It gave a hoot.

It hooted.

It gave us a shock.

It shocked us.

It gave a lurch.

It lurched.

This is dependent on status.
This depends on status.
An abstract idea is produced by the exclusion of details.
By excluding details, you produce an abstract idea.
Success is the result of hard work.
Success results from hard work.
There is significant opposition among the voters.
The voters oppose it strongly.
There was a high incidence of recurrence.
It recurred frequently.
This is not correct.
"No win, no fee.
The following examples contain the word not, which can sometimes be eliminated. For instance,
we can eliminate not from not possible, by writing the opposite of possible, impossible.
Expression using Not

BetterExpression using Not

Betternot possible

impossible

not finishedongoing

not happysad

not the samedifferent

not stop

continue

not include

omit

not notice

overlook

not agree

refuseAbsolute Adjectives: modifiers which do not have comparative and superlative degrees inEnglish:ideal, absolute, dead, freezing, unique alive, awful, black, boiling, certain, correct, dead,domestic, enormous, environmental, excellent, furious, gigantic, huge, mortal, overjoyed,
perfect, pregnant, principal, ridiculous, superb, terrible, terrified, unique, unknown, whole,'married', 'retired', wooden, musical, medical, earthen', absolute, supreme.
Managing Adjectives:
Adjectives appear either in attributive or predicative position:

P a g e | 90

A clever judge is here. An intelligent lawyer is there.
Our judge is clever. Your lawyer is intelligent.
Difficulties arise while using more than one adjective:
Rule of DOSAS CompA clever judge is here (a determiner, clever, opinion, determiner precedes opinion).
The good big chair (determiner followed by opinion, then size)
His good big new round chair (determiner, opinion, size, age, shape).
In principle, not more than four adjectives are used.
Our good big new round black iron Pakistani chair. (determiner, opinion, size, age, shape,
colour, material, origin)
My friend’s beautiful thick new blue woolen Japanese sleeping bag.
Forms of words as Nouns and adjectives
Affect (verb): The tone of a witness should not affect a judge.
Effect (noun): The effect of terrorism on society is insurmountable.
Advise (verb): The lawyer advised me to produce a certificate.
Advice (noun): The son did not follow his father’s advice.
Dependent (adjective): He was dependent upon his mother for his monthly expenses.
Dependant (noun): Thanks, I am not dependant.
Past (adjective): He recalled a past event. The car whizzed past by me.
Passed (verb): I passed (not in)my law examination. I failed my law examination.
Friendly, ugly, lovely are not used as adverbs.
He is a friendly person. This is a lovely flower. An ugly insect.
Healthful (use with things)
Healthy (use with persons)Some anamolies!
We'll begin with a box, and the plural is boxes; but the plural of ox became oxen not oxes.
One fowl is a goose, but two are called geese, yet the plural of moose should never be meese.
You may find a lone mouse or a nest full of mice; yet the plural of house is houses, not hice.
If the plural of man is always called men, why shouldn't the plural of pan be called pen?

P a g e | 91

If I spoke of my foot and show you my feet, and I give you a boot, would a pair be called beet?
If one is a tooth and a whole set are teeth, why shouldn't the plural of booth be called beeth?
We speak of a brother and also of brethren, but though we say mother, we never say methren.
Then the masculine pronouns are he, his and him, but imagine the feminine, she, shis and shim.
ab ovoad astra per aspera
addendum
ad infinitum
ad nauseam
animuscarpe diem
casus belli
caveat emptor
cave canem
cogito, ergo sum
cognomencompos mentis
corrigendum
curriculum vitaede facto
de gustibus non est
disputandumde juredeus ex machina
dramatis personae
emeritus
ergo
erratum
et alia or et al.

from the beginningto the stars through difficulties
something to be added, usually in writing, which qualifies a foregoingthesis or statement
to infinity, endlessly
to the point of disgust
will or intention'seize the day'; live for the present
justification for war, grounds for a dispute'let the buyer beware'; dictum that professes the buyer is responsible forchecking that the goods or services they purchase are satisfactory
beware of the dog'I think, therefore I am'; quotation from French philosopher René
Descartes
surname or family name; nicknameof sound mind
something to be corrected(CV) 'the course of life'; account of a person's education and previous
employment, attached to a job applicationin fact
there is no accounting for taste
according to law; legally'a god from the machinery'; far-fetched or unlikely event that resolves anintractable difficulty
the characters in a playsomeone who has retired from an official position but retains their title on
an honorary basis, for example, a professor emeritus
therefore; hence
an errorand other things

P a g e | 92

ex cathedra
ex librisfactotumfiat
in loco parentis
ipse dixit
in situinter alia
in vino veritas
ipso facto
literatimagnum opus
mea culpa
modus operandi
modus vivendi
mores
mutatis mutandis
ne plus ultra
nil desperandum
nolo contendere
non sequitur
obiter dictum
passimper sepostmortem
post scriptum
prima facie
pro rata
pro tem (pore)quantum
quidnuncquid pro quo'from the throne'; term describing a statement by the pope, taken to beindisputably true, and which must be accepted by Catholics'from among the books of'; used on bookplates to identify the owner'do everything'; someone employed to do all types of work
'let it be done'; authoritative decree or order, especially one given by aperson or group holding absolute power'in place of a parent'; in a parental capacity'(he) himself said (it)'; the master has spoken
in place, on the spot, without moving from position
among other things
in wine (there is) the truthby that very facteducated or cultured people; literary persons
a great work of art or literature'my fault'; an admission of guilt
a method of operating'way of living'; a compromise between opposing points of viewthe customs and manners of a society
with changes being made; with alterations to fit a new set of circumstances
no further; the furthest point possible; limit
never despair
plea of no defense; no contest; equivalent to plea of guilty'it does not follow'; statement that has little or no relevance to the one thatpreceded it
incidental remark; remark made by a judge on a matter not within theirjurisdiction'in many places'; indicates that a reference occurs repeatedly throughout
the workin itself'after death'; autopsy(PS) something written below the signature on a letterat first sightin proportion
for the time being'as much, how much'; an indivisible physical quantity'what now?'; gossip; busybody'something for something'; an exchange of one thing in return for anotherP a g e | 93

quod erat'which was to be proved'; added at the end of a geometry proof
demonstrandum(QED)
quo vadis?
where are you going?
q.v.
('which see'), indicating a cross-reference
abbreviation for quodvide
sic'thus,' 'so'; sometimes found in brackets within a printed quotation to showthat the original has been quoted accurately even though it contains anapparent errorsine die'without a day being appointed'; indefinitely
sine qua non'without which not'; absolutely essential
status quo'the state in which'; the current situation, without change
sub judice'under a judge'; of judicial proceedings, not yet decided by a court of law
or judge: as long as a matter is sub judice all discussion is prohibited
elsewhere
tabula rasa
'scraped tablet' (from the Romans' use of wax-covered tablets which could
be written on with a pointed stick and cleared by smoothing over thesurface); a mind without any preconceived ideas
tempus fugit
time flies
terra firma
dry land; solid groundvade mecum'go with me'; a useful handbook carried about for reference
versusagainst(abbreviation v. orvs.)vice versa
the other way aroundviva voce'with living voice'; by word of mouth; an oral examination

P a g e | 94

Annexure (A)Address of the Chairman / Hon’ble Chief Justice The Director General; All the Directors;
 Staff Members;
 The distinguish guests and My dear young Judicial Officers
Assalam-O-Alaikum

1.
You are lucky enough enrolling yourself as first batch of trainees in thisAcademy.
2.
The primary object in establishing Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Judicial Academy
was to impart high quality judicial training, impart legal education not only to judicial
officers but all the stakeholders in the Administration of Justice.
3.
The idea of a judicial Academy was concretized during my period. It isalways a pleasure to see the seeds sprout and turn into a sapling, which one had planted. I
am delighted to see the first batch of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Judicial Academy having
completed its training.
4.
As the “Baghban” (gardener) of this garden, I wish to congratulate you on
your achievements. But I also wish to warn you. With your dedication and motivation, youhave already crossed many hurdles. As you cross threshold, you will enter a brave newworld: a world which will tempt your heart, tease your mind, and test your soul. You must
know your mission, and be well equipped to achieve your goal.
5.
I am extremely happy to be amongst you to address you on the occasion of
the valedictory function of Judicial Officers training program which is going to enlighten
you on various aspects of judicial work. I congratulate you all, for joining the judicial
fraternity.
6.
The Pakistan Judicial System is constantly exposed to new challenges, newdimensions and new signals and has to survive a world in which perhaps the only realcertainty is that the circumstances of tomorrow will not be the same as those of today.
7.
Judiciary today is more deserving of public confidence than ever before.
8.
Our judiciary after restoration has earned a reputation for great integrity
and independence. We are proud of it. We, the members of the Judicial hierarchy haveinherited the legacy of dedicated collective endeavour by the Bench and the Bar andestablishing an unbroken tradition of high efficiency, perfect integrity and fearless
independence. The true touch stone for measuring the success of a Judicial institution is theP a g e | 95

degree of confidence reposed in it by the public and it is a matter of great pride that ourcountry has earned for itself the fullest respect and confidence of the public of the Nation.
The Judgments of the Courts are treated with respect and its stature in knowledgeable
legal circle is equal to be best amongst other Courts in this land.
9.
Socrates said that four things improve a great Judge:
 To hear, courteously; To answer wisely; To consider soberly; and To decide impartially.
10.
You the Judges of the subordinate judiciary which can be termed as the rootof our judicial system the society look forward to have the judicial officers who may betrusted and who can inspire confidence in the society will get justice. It is rightly said that
judicial officers discharge divine functions though they are not divine themselves. I amaware of the fact that majority of the judicial officers of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa aredischarging their judicial functions in a befitting manner but I, being the head of judiciaryin the High Court desire from every judicial officer of the Subordinate Judiciary to lead a
disciplined life as a Judicial Officer. I expect that Judges of all cadres to strictly observepunctuality in court. Sitting in court late, without reasonable cause, leads to frustration to
the litigants attending your court. Laxity in this behalf is inexcusable. Not adhering tocourt timings is a serious aberration. It must be avoided at all cost by all of us. Integrity isan essential quality of a Judicial Officer. A Judicial Officer must follow the standards ofintegrity, morality and behaviour which he sets for others. If a Judge, decides a casewrongly out of motives, it shakes the faith of litigant public and the whole society. Such an
officer who does not maintain highest standard of integrity, has no right to continue tooccupy the chair as a Judicial Officer. If a Judicial Officer is corrupt, then he cannot beallowed to hold such a divine chair of a Judge.
11.
You, the members of the judiciary should pronounce the judgments within
the stipulated time. Delay in delivering the judgments will cause untold hardship to theappeals/revisions in tome.
12.
You, the Judicial Officers should not leave headquarters without informing
the District Judge or the Controlling Officers, as the case may be. When you are posted to aparticular station, you have to meet your superiors either prior to or after taking charge.
In the disciplined hierarchy of judiciary it is imperative that all the officers should
maintain cordial relationship with each other so as to maintain the dignity and decorum of
the institution.
13.
The Judges must decide cases without fear or favour, affection or ill-will,
friend or foe. I can assure you that if you are discharging your judicial function as a true
judicial officer following the norms then you should not be afraid of frivolous complaints
made by persons having vested interest.
14.
You must work very hard, very honest, courteous to the litigants, witnesses
and the members of the Bar and discharge you functions with all humility at yourcommand.
15.
There are four personalities who have to play vital parts in the conduct ofbusiness in Court. They are; (i) the Judge, (ii) the Members of the Bar, (iii) the officials of
the Court, or (iv) the Court staff and the litigant public.

P a g e | 9616.
All said, the Court must function bound with the norms of etiquette. I am infavour of strict adherence to Court Etiquette. Now-a-days this is being slowly forgotten.
That will be a sad state of affairs.
17.
I conclude with strong belief and immense faith that the presiding officers
will conform to established time-tested Court etiquette and uphold the dignity and enhancethe decorum of Temples of Justice. I am sure this training program will keep you in goodstead. I wish each and every one of you a successful and fruitful career as Judicial officer
by the grace of this great Architect of the Universe.
18.
A successful judicial system is a hallmark of any developed civilization. The
failure of Criminal Justice System to being criminal conduct under tight control is viewed
as leading to the breakdown of the public order and to the disappearance of an importantcondition of human freedom. The Criminal Justice System has failed to achieve its twin
primary goals via; the Control of the crime and the protection of individual rights. The
crime control implies orderly efficient method for arresting, prosecuting, convicting andpunishing the guilty and for deterring crime by others. The protection of individual rights
is necessary to guard the accused against arbitrary exercise of powers by the State. The
rising crime rate dearly indicates that the system is not an effective deterrent. The graph ofcases of murder, rape, theft, assault, robbery, disorderly conduct and bride burning is inascending order. The open violation of laws, bribery in public service, presence ofprofessional criminals and intimidation of victims and witnesses are experienced in day-today life.
19.
The role of a Judge in controlling the court proceedings is very important. A
Judge is expected to actively participate in the trial, elicit necessary material from thewitnesses at the appropriate context, it was once observed by Apex Court:“The adversary system of trial being what it is, there is an unfortunate tendency fora Judge presiding over a trial to assume the role of a referee or an umpire and toallow the trial to develop into a contest between the prosecution and the defencewith inevitable distortions flowing from combative and competitive elements
entering the trial procedure. If a Criminal Court is to be an effective instrument indispensing justice, the presiding Judge must cease to be a spectators and a mere
recording machine. He must become a participant in the trial by evincing intelligent
active interest by putting questions to witnesses in order to ascertain the truth”.
20.
Judges have been called the Men of Robes. As men of Robes, at time weforget that we belong to the same fraternity as the other men in robes, namely the lawyers.
The bar and the Bench are the two wheels of the chariot of Justice. If one wheel isneglected, the other cannot gain speed and efficiency. Therefore, be courteous to and politewith the Bar members. But politeness does not mean that one should be like to carpet,
letting everyone trample over oneself. One should be polite but firm like an ant: willing towalk on earth, but strong enough to annoy an elephant. Therefore, be polite to the lawyers
but the firm with them when need arises. While understanding their difficulties, while
adjusting their problems, balance the interest of the litigant as well. For, all of us are there
for the sake of the litigant and not the vice versa. Accommodate a lawyer in adjournment
when the need is genuine. But if the need is frivolous, be firm and refuse the adjournment.
As a Judge it is for you to set the discipline of the court, the decorum of the court. It is afine balancing act to be firm and yet generous. But it is a skill all Judges must develop.

P a g e | 97

21.
Of course, you have to gain the respect of the people and of the Bar withyour behaviour and knowledge. The Caesar’s wife must be above board. Your image both
inside and outside the court must be pristine and crystal clear. For this, your dress is thefirst indication of your virtues, of your personality. If a person is shabby, if he is un-kept,
he reflects a poor self-image, he reflects disorganized thoughts, and habit. Beauty soothes
the troubled souls; remember your first impression is the last impression. Therefore, pay
attention to your appearance.
22.
Of course, your knowledge of Law must be up to date. Your knowledge
would be tested every day in every case. Legal issues are first framed and posed in the trial
court. Thus, it is you who would have to tackle the legal issues first. The trial court lawyer
is street smart and knowledgeable. Even in the far-flung areas of this state, you will
discover lawyers who know their laws, and case laws. While you should always be willing tolearn from their experience and knowledge, you should sharpen your own knowledge andintellectual capacity for this, follow the latest amendment, the creation of new laws, andread the latest case law. Be aware of the latest trends emerging in judicial thinking. The
Apex Court and the High Court go through different phases. Follow their fluctuations. But
it is not sufficient to know the judgment, thing about the logic of the judgment, about its
facts, its reasoning. See if the judgment covers the case before you or is it distinguishable on
the basis of the reasoning, its logic. In order to achieve the legal expertise, burn the midnight lamp. You will be winner.
23.
Besides reading, cultivate the art of writing judgment writing in a creative
process. The language should be plain, precise and pointed. Long sentences lose theirpunch. Words should be chosen with certain precision. The facts should be stated precisely.
The issues written clearly. The evidence should be discussed thread bare. The reasoning
should be logical and should follow from one point to another. A rambling judgment is abundle of confusion. Initially, learn from the judgments of your superior officers, from thejudgments of the High Court and the Apex Court. Dissect the judgments; examine its
strength and weaknesses. Learn the craft writing judgments.
24.
Next thing that I would like to impress upon you is this: I keep or getting
representations and memorials containing grievances of the people of all sorts of things.
May be there is no justification, maybe there is no foundation for that, may be that they are
under wrong impression and may be they are misled but in all such cases I have followed
one practice for many years which is this: Whether I agree with anyone or not, whether I
think that he has any imaginary grievances whether I think that he does not understandbut I always show patience. If you will also do the same in your dealings with an individual
or any association or any organization you will ultimately stand to gain. Let not people
leave you with this bearing that you hate, that you are offensive, that you have insulted orthat you are rude to them. Not one percent who comes in contact with you should be left inthat state of mind. You may not be able to agree with him but do not let him got with thisfeeling that you are offensive or that you are discourteous. If you will follow that rulebelieve me you will win the respect of the people.
25.
With these observations I conclude what I had to say. I thank you very muchindeed that you have given me this opportu8nity to say these few words to you and if you
find anything good in it follow, if you do not find anything good in it do not follow.

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Annexure (B)Address of the Director General
Hon’ble the Chief Justice, learned Registrar, Peshawar High Court, Resource Persons,Distinguished guests from the UNDP, the IMSciences, participants of the course, ladies andgentlemen!
It’s a great honor for us that we have concluded the first ever training at this Academy. I would
like to give you a brief background of this course. In February this year, I was posted as the DG
and two other Judicial Officers—Saleem Khan and Dr Khurshid Iqbal were deputed with the
Academy, who were later, posted as Senior Director Administration and Dean of Faculty,
respectively. In our first meeting with hon’ble the Chairman, it was decided with consensus that
Judgment Writing was the main area, requiring improvement. Judgment Writing is the prime
responsibility of the judges. HCJ is of the view that the excellently Judges write their judgments,
the higher would be the quality of justice. It was observed that Judgment Writing may be asignificant cause for delay in dispensation of Justices. Incompetency and negligence of theJudges could be glaring reasons for deteriorating quality of Judgments. Thus, we sit to design acourse on Judgment Writing. Dr Khurshid Iqbal, the Dean of the Faculty was assigned the task.
He conducted an indigenous training need assessment. For this purpose, in consultation with me
and other Judges, he developed a questionnaire, which was circulated amongst the Judges of theDistrict Judiciary. He also carried out a review of the current literature on the art of judgment
writing. In light of the findings of the TNA and literature review, the course was designed.
The training course focused on effective communication and proper application of rules forappreciation of evidence. Due consideration was also given to other aspects of judicial decision
making. They include social importance and impact, the psychology of judge-craft and a critical
study of contemporary trends in the area of judgment writing. The course is meant for all Judgesof District Judiciary. As many as 17 such trainings will be organized in due course of time,
replicating this one, though with certain modifications, as may be required.

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Annexure (C)Address of the Class Representative (Feedback)Speech delivered by Naeemullah Jadoon Civil Judge, Lahor, Swabi at the eve ofconcluding ceremony of the first ever training in KPK Judicial Academy.
Mr. Justice Dost Mohammad Khan, honorable Chief Justice Peshawar High Court,
honorable Judges of the High Court, respectable officers of Provincial Govt; Mr. Hayat Ali Shah,
DG, KP Judicial Academy, rest of the faculty, fellow participants. Assalam-u-Alaikum.
Today, is a great day not just in our lives but also in the history of Judiciary of thisprovince as we have the honor of being the pioneer batch having received training from theAcademySir, setting up of the Academy and making it functional in such a short span of time isperhaps an unprecedented achievement for which no amount of words could be enough as a justpraise.
Sir, Judicial education hither to was a most neglected albeit vital part of administration ofjustice especially in our part of the country.
I on behalf of my fellow participants am extremely grateful for having had theopportunity to attend such a wonderfully well-designed course regarding the single mostimportant duty of a Judge that is judgment writing. During this course, our horizon had beenbroadened regarding the methodology of arriving at a factually and legally correct judgment andthen effectively communicating the same in a clear and concise manner with mission.
Apart from learning how to appreciate the evidence, drawing conclusions from the sameby applying logic and learning modern linguistic techniques. We have been most fortunate tohave had the opportunity of attending lecture on “humeneering” which has sensitized us too.
Apart from other things most importantly to the biases lying hidden deep in our sub conscious ofwhich we may not have been even aware of. Similarly we have also learnt how to clear the mindof all negative perceptions, biases of different kinds and extraneous factors such as stress which
may cloud the mind and thus result in the miscarriage of justice. We have also received lectures
regarding, modern strategic and one word vocabulary from Dr. Ismail which has sufficiently
helped us to overcome the logistic short comings. Dr. Khurshid Iqbal, Dean of the faculty has
also shared his valued experience and expertise regarding contemporary trends in judgment
writing. Mr. Niaz Khan, Registrar Islamabad High Court added more colors to the scheme of
study by giving lectures on appreciation of evidence, elements of a court judgment andinterpretation of laws in judgment writing.
Sir, this great endeavor of yours speaks volumes about the concern of your honor’s
regarding the administration of justice, for if there is a crusade against injustice in the society
then the judges at the district level are the foot soldiers and without enhancing the existing
capabilities and capacities of the Judges, this great object cannot be achieved. The best can beP a g e | 100

got out of a soldier only if he is well contended and a Judge cannot be expected to deliverbalanced judgment if his mind is not at peace, for peace of mind leads to the clarity of thought
most necessarily for a balanced judgment. In this respect too we are lucky that your honor is wellaware of our hardships which I need not repeat, for the rectification of which your honor has
already taken certain steps.
In the end I would like to express our gratitude to the worthy director general of theacademy and other administration of the academy for having left no stone unturned in providing
us not just a great learning environment inside the Academy but for also providing us withexcellent lodging.
In the last, I pray to Allah Almighty to grant your honor and your team the strength, thewisdom and resources to turn in to reality your dreams regarding the achievement of cause ofjustice. (Ameen)P a g e | 101

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