Webinar: Effective Legal Writing

In this program, Judge Bob Bacharach of the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals will discuss ways to enhance the clarity of your legal writing. He will be drawing on his book, “Legal Writing: A Judge’s Perspective on the Science and Rhetoric of the Written Word,” which uses techniques of communication based on famous examples of oratory and data gathered by psycholinguists.

Presented by the Civil Rights Law Section, Labor & Employment Law Section, the Federal Judicial Law Clerk Committee, and the Kansas and Western District of Missouri Chapter.

About the Presenters

Moderator: Blake A. Shuart, Attorney, Hutton & Hutton Law Firm
Mr. Shuart is a trial lawyer with a wide range of litigation experience handling all types of difficult and complex tort cases in various state and federal courts across the United States. He has significant experience in every stage of the process: from initial case workup and strategy to identifying and consulting with elite experts; from pre-suit negotiations and settlement demands to mediations and complex negotiations; depositions of fact witnesses, corporate representatives, and experts; briefing and arguing dispositive motions; contested hearings; and trials and appeals in the state and federal courts. He has successfully handled hundreds of serious cases as lead counsel, has tried many cases to verdict as lead, solo, or second-chair counsel, and has briefed and argued cases in the appellate courts several times. His experience spans virtually every type of tort claim arising out of catastrophic injury or death. Mr. Shuart is involved in numerous professional organizations; publishes and lectures extensively on topics relevant to his practice; has received several honors from his peers; and has been appointed by the local courts many times to help oversee litigation, serve as an expert witness or sit as a Pro Tem Judge. Shuart and his colleagues at Hutton & Hutton have appeared as lead counsel in some of the most publicized and well-known catastrophic injury or death cases in the community over the past several years, and he frequently receives referrals from other attorneys in the community across all specialties of practice.

Hon. Bob Bacharach, Judge of the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals
Judge Bacharach was appointed in February 2013 as a United States Circuit Judge for the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals. He graduated with High Honors from the University of Oklahoma with  B.A. in History and the Tom Lottinville Award for the Best Essay submitted in the History Department. He obtained his Juris Doctorate from Washington University School of Law in St. Louis in 1985, where he graduated order of the coif and was awarded the Breckenridge Scholarship for the second highest grade average in his senior year of law school. In law school at Washington University, he also served as the Developments Editor of the Washington University Law Quarterly (now named the Washington University Law Review) and was awarded the Mary Collier Hitchcock Prize for writing for the best Note (student article) in the law review. Upon graduation from law school, Judge Bacharach clerked from 1985 to 1987 for Judge William J. Holloway, Jr., who was then the Chief Judge of the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals. After completing this clerkship, Judge Bacharach practiced civil litigation at Crowe & Dunlevy in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma from 1987 to 1999. He then served as a U.S. Magistrate Judge in the Western District of Oklahoma until 2013, when he was appointed to the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals. Judge Bacharach authored the recently published book on legal writing, Legal Writing: A Judge’s Perspective on the Science and Rhetoric of the Written Word, published by ABA Press. He has also authored “Section 1983 and the Availability of a Federal Forum: A Reappraisal of the Police Brutality Cases,” 16 Memphis State University Law Review 353 (1986); “Section 1983 and an Administrative Exhaustion Requirement,” 40 Oklahoma Law Review 407 (1987); “Motions in Limine in Oklahoma State and Federal Courts,” 24 Oklahoma City University Law Review 113 (1999); “Dirks v. SEC=s Footnote Fourteen: Horizontal and Vertical Reach,” 62 Washington University Law Quarterly 477 (1984); and “Post-Trial Juror Interviews by the Press: The Fifth Circuit= Approach,” 62 Washington University Law Quarterly 783 (1985). In addition, he and Professor Lyn Entzeroth (now Dean of Tulsa University School of Law) coauthored “Judicial Advocacy in Pro Se Litigation: A Return to Neutrality,” 42 Indiana Law Review 19 (2009). Judge Bacharach is the recipient of the national Federal Bar Association’s Earl W. Kintner Award, the Oklahoma Bar Association’s Award of Judicial Excellence, and the Washington University School of Law Distinguished Alumni.

SAVE ON A COPY TODAY!

Own a copy of Judge Bacharach’s Legal Writing: A Judge’s Perspective on the Science and Rhetoric of the Written Word with 40% off for all book purchases between October 1, 2023 and October 15, 2023. Use the code LWHH40 and call 1-800-285-2211 or visit the publisher’s website: https://www.americanbar.org/products/inv/book/398866415/.

Registration

Registration for this event is now closed.

Attendees will receive the zoom streaming link in their confirmation email. Streaming information will also be circulated via email after registration closes the day prior to the webinar date.

• FBA Member: $0
• Nonmember: $75

Accessibility: Closed captioning and dial-in is available for all virtual webcasts.

Cancellation Policy: No refunds will be made for notices of cancellation received within seven (7) days of the webinar date. No-shows will be billed. Substitutions may be made up to one business day prior to the event except as the Association otherwise agrees in writing. Please contact meetings@fedbar.org with cancellation and/or substitution requests.

Internet Requirements: Virtual programs require suitable internet strength to stream online panels. A minimum internet connection of 800 Kbps is recommended for an optimal attendee experience. Test your connection here. 

CLE

(!) Please note: CLE for this webinar has not been pre-approved. Applications and subsequent reporting will be filed post-event.

The FBA will seek 1.0 General CLE credit hours in 60-minute states, and 1.2 General CLE credit hours in 50-minute states.

Posted credit hours are estimated and subject to respective state approval and rounding rules. CLE qualifications vary by state/jurisdiction and the FBA takes every measure to collaborate with presenters to ensure approval.

Credit will be processed/reported approximately 4-6 weeks after the event date and available for credit in states that allow credit for live webinar presentations. You must attend the live broadcast, answer engagement polls, and accurately enter your bar number in registrant forms to receive credit. Certificates and required documentation for self-reporting states will be issued via email, upon state bar approval. Thank you in advance for your patience, as state bars are experiencing significant delays with virtual program processing.

Access more information about CLE Attendance & Reporting.

Email Communication Policy: By registering for this event, you agree to receive email communications from the Federal Bar Association and affiliated sponsors of the program concerning event details, Continuing Legal Education certification, programming changes, upcoming events, surveys, and post-event communications.

Recording Disclaimer: By registering for an FBA webinar, you agree to the recording of audio and visual content presented during the live event and consent to subsequent use of the recording by the FBA. You agree that the recording is the sole property of the FBA and that the recording may be used by the FBA in any manner in its sole and absolute discretion. This recording may include questions and poll responses provided by you during the live event. If you do not consent to the recording and the FBA’s use of the same, do not register for the event.

If you have any questions regarding this program, please contact meetings@fedbar.org.