The on-line writing support program is offered by the TMSL Center for Legal Pedagogy to enhance the writing skills necessary for legal work. The on-line writing support program contains messages designed to foster written communication and to facilitate a deeper understanding of how legal structure, style, argument, and voice actually take shape in writing. All the general comments about organizing any legal document apply to organizing legal memoranda. For additional information, you may want to consult Professor Palasota's Guide to Good legal Writing . In every instance, it is imperative that the attorney for whom the memorandum is written be aware of the strengths and weaknesses of both the client's and the adversary's positions.
Tough realism is the operative mode for memorandum researching and writing.
The natural tendency is to brush aside cases that are damaging to the client's position. Everyone wants to report good news to the boss. In a misguided pursuit of that goal, however, many people, especially novice writers, ignore or minimize the bad news and highlight the good news. But, you do the boss and the client a disservice if you give them good news that puts the client in a dangerous position. One of the purposes of doing legal research is to discover problems with the client's case, so that the attorney and the client may make an informed decision about how to proceed.