Legal Writing and Drafting of Judgments
The judgment's anatomy
A well-drafted judgment contains: the heading and identification of the court and parties, the procedural history, the claims, the factual background, the parties' arguments, the court's reasoning, and the operative part. The reasoning must respond to the parties' submissions and state the grounds of the decision.
Style and clarity
Write in the third person, in the language of the proceedings. Use short sentences, defined terms, and consistent terminology. Avoid ambiguity and emotive language. Each paragraph should make one point. Cite legal provisions precisely and, where relevant, case law.
The duty to state reasons
A judgment must be motivated on the facts and the law. A purely conclusory statement is insufficient. The reasoning must address the essential arguments raised by the parties, though the court need not answer every subsidiary point.
Drafting the operative part
The dispositif must be clear, complete and enforceable: who pays what, to whom, and by when. Costs and interest should be specified. Avoid conditions that make enforcement impossible.
Traps
Candidates lose marks for failing to respond to a party's main argument, for ambiguous dispositifs, and for mixing reasoning into the operative part. Another trap is using the wrong language or register.
Rule of thumb
Write the reasoning so that a reader who disagrees can still follow exactly why the court decided as it did. If a sentence does not advance that goal, cut it.