This month’s NYSBA Journal includes a tongue-in-cheek article by Judge Gerald Lebovits on writing bad briefs. An excerpt:

Miscite your authorities. Get the volume of the reporter right, but forget page numbers. Close enough is good enough, unless your goal is to lose by winning. If a decision is longer than one page, never give the pinpoint citation. Your goal is to make it so difficult for the judge to find any morsel of accuracy that the judge will turn to your adversary’s brief.

Judge Lebovits includes a list of several articles on good legal writing.