How to write an appellate brief

Nine years ago, I wrote an article for the DRI appellate newsletter, Certworthy, on preparing to write an appellate brief. The idea behind the article is that 90% of the work occurs before the actual writing begins. I attempted to describe the process I normally went through in preparing to write a brief.

Last year, I updated the article for including in a DRI-published book, A Young Lawyer’s Guide to Defense Practice. I added some material to describe the processes of drafting and editing the brief — and making damned sure it gets filed timely. (For more information about the book, visit DRI’s bookstore.)

You can download either version by clicking on the appropriate link below. I don’t offer them as instructions for how you should write a brief, but as descriptions of how I write a brief — techniques that work for me. Different techniques may work better for you.

Download Preparing to Write an Appellate Brief (PDF, 434K). Certworthy, Spring 1998. Copyright © 1998 by DRI and Raymond P. Ward.

Download How to Write an Appellate Brief (PDF, 128K). Copyright © 2006 DRI and Raymond P. Ward.