Writing Throughout the Curriculum: Why Law Schools Need It and How to Achieve It

I. Introduction II. Writing as a Tool for Analyzing and Applying Legal Authorities ... A. Using Writing to Diagnose Thinking Problems ... B. Using Writing to Promote Clear Thinking ... C. Using Writing-to-Learn Activities to Complement Traditional Teaching Methods III. Writing Skills as “Tools of the Trade” ... A. Acquainting Students with Functions and Forms of Professional Documents ... 1. Introducing Purposes and Audiences for Legal Writing ... 2. Providing Models of Effective Legal Writing ... B. Teaching Students to Produce Professional-Quality Documents IV. Writing as a Tool for Constructing Meaning ... A. Using Writing to Examine the Process of Interpreting Law and Fact ... B. Teaching Writing as an Interpretive Process ... 1. Telling the Client’s Story ... a. In a First-Year Legal Writing Class ... b. Throughout the Curriculum ... 2. Finding One’s Own Voice ... C. Using Writing to Encourage Self-Awareness and to Develop Professional Integrity V. Conclusion: What Is the “Ideal” Law School Writing Program?