"The Supreme Guide to Writing cuts through competing advice to detail definitive grammar rules based on the nations unequivocal authority: the U.S. Supreme Court. The book details a revolution in legal writing, with the justices progressing beyond the drab and technical for the deft and lyrical. With the first-ever analysis of 10,000 pages of Court opinions, the book pinpoints grammar and style rules that the justices follow-and describes the outdated rules they leave behind. Todays Court casts aside formality in favor of pop-culture references, contractions, and approachable language. In addition to establishing grammar and style rules, The Supreme Guide to Writing illustrates best practices with hundreds of examples of the justices most brilliant sentences from the past several years. With step-by-step instructions, the book describes how to emulate the justices writing styles by breaking down their strategies and techniques.

It shows how Justice Elena Kagan lands amusing quips and weaves together down-to-earth analogies, how Justice Neil Gorsuch executes witty retorts, and how Chief Justice John Roberts pens unforgettable lines with understated style and humor. The best writing appears effortless, but it also takes tremendous effort. Legal writing even more so. The Supreme Guide to Writing provides a nonpartisan look at how the justices present their words to the world. For easy reference, the book is organized into two parts and 32 chapters, one for each grammar or style topic. The first part covers all punctuation marks, with a how-to on contractions and a surprising switch on several points, including the rules for colons and commas. The second part answers questions about words, from choosing the right conjunction, modifier, pronoun, or verb, to deciding if a writeryou can use a qualifier, double negative, or split infinitive, or end a sentence with a preposition. The answer is yes, on all counts"--.