9/7/11. Somewhat belatedly, I would like to recognize the passing of a jurist and writer to admire - Hon. Terence Evans, justice of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. His wry use of pop culture and extended metaphor to make a (sometimes stinging) point illuminated the law, and legal writing, as a vivid, living thing. Do not let all of the dusty brown and faded green books fool you. Legal writing can deliver a snap when the occasion arises.
As a few examples, you can read his brief historical exposition on the varieties of naming college mascots in Crue et al. v. Aiken, 370 F.3d 668 (7th Cir. 2004), the judge-as-lighthouse-warding-off-stubborn-attorneys metaphor in Chester v. MARITIMA del LITORAL, S.A., 586 F.Supp. 192 (E.D.Wisc.1983), and explanation via footnote regarding the proper spelling of "ho" in US v. Murphy, 406 F. 3d 857 , (7th Circuit 2005).
Writing such as his takes lawyers and jurists beyond technical wizardry into the realm of artists and authors, which is precisely where we should aspire to be. Colorful, meaningful prose is an aesthetic and rhetorical treasure - don't undervalue it.
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