SC Lawyer, Jan. 2004, #8. The Scrivener January 2004 Quotation marks.

• Author: By Scott Mo\xEFse

South Carolina Lawyer

2004.

SC Lawyer, Jan. 2004, #8.

The Scrivener January 2004 Quotation marks

South Carolina LawyerJanuary 2004 The Scrivener January 2004 Quotation marksBy Scott MoïseThis final installment in a series of columns concerning punctuation marks in legal writing is devoted to quotation marks. Quotations (and quotation marks) are overused and, in general, should be limited to:

* direct quotations

* distinction of a particular word or letter

* titles of articles, book chapters, songs, short poems, and stories

* narration

* nicknames

* words or phrases used ironically.

Another tricky issue is correct punctuation within quotation marks.

1. USING QUOTATION MARKS

   1. Direct Quotations

      For direct quotations of less than 50 words, use quotation marks.

      * "In conclusion," Elizabeth informed the judge, "my client meets none of the elements necessary to invoke jurisdiction and should be dismissed."

      Under Rule 5 of the Bluebook, direct quotations of more than fifty words should appear as a block quotation (indented left and right). Do not use quotation marks to set off block quotes. When a quote appears within a block quotation, set it off with double, not single, quotation marks.

   2. To Distinguish a Particular Word or Letter

      * The high burden for granting summary judgment is necessary because it is truly a final "judgment."

   3. Titles of articles, book chapters, song titles, short poems, and stories

      Titles of shorter works, or works that are part of a longer work, are set off in quotation marks.

      * In his closing statement, Craig quoted several times from the song "Without Me" by Eminem.

      Titles of longer works are underlined or italicized.

      * For his trip to San Francisco for depositions, Matt packed the deponents' article, "Tricks for Biomechanics," to read on the way out and Anna Karenina to read on the way home.

   4. Narration

      Quotation marks are also used to indicate narration or conversation.

      * "Why should I exclude Dr. Smith as an expert?" Judge Goodstein asked.

      * "Because his opinions to do not remotely meet the State v. Council factors," Chip replied.

      * "Tell me more," the judge replied.

   5. Nicknames

      * Mark "Moose" Phillips spends most of his work weeks traveling around the country trying toxic tort cases.

   6. Words or Phrases Used Ironically

      * Although the Defendant claims that he wins because of the Nussbaum decision, he fails to mention that this "astonishing" case was criticized by every court that has addressed it.

      As an aside, lawyers frequently use this type of sarcasm in legal writing, and this practice should be discontinued or kept to a minimum. Using sarcasm is easy, but it is rarely effective and erodes the civility needed in our profession.

2. QUOTATION WITHIN A QUOTATION

   Quotations within a quotation are set off by single quotation marks.

   * Carmen told the jury, "Ms. Shuffler understood what Dr. King meant when he said, 'I have a dream.' "

   For quotations within a single-quoted quotation, use double quotation marks.

   * While on the witness stand, the Defendant testified, "Mike told me, 'Take this package and put a "rush" on it.' "

   If the double and single quotation marks occur together, put a space between them for distinction.

3. PUNCTUATION WITH QUOTATION MARKS

   1. Periods and commas are always placed inside the final quotation mark.

      * "Lynn," said Steve, "please help me remember to take my hearing notebook with me to Miami."

   2. A question mark or exclamation mark at the end of a sentence goes inside the quotation mark if it is part of the quotation; otherwise, it goes outside.

      * Wade asked, "Did you serve the discovery responses yesterday?"

      * Didn't the judge say, "You have an extra thirty days to respond"?

      * Judge Bridges exclaimed, "Order in the court!"

   3. Semicolons and colons go outside the quotation mark.

      * Our paralegal said, "I will send out the subpoenas today"; I still haven't seen them.

      * "Proof of negligence in the air, so to speak, will not do": This rule is just as appropriate for our case as it was for Benjamin Cardozo in Palsgraf.

   4. When quoting statements that begin a sentence, substitute a comma for the period.

      * "Becky wrote the chapter on dog-bite cases," her assistant told us.

      When quoting questions or exclamations that begin a sentence, do not substitute a comma for those punctuation marks.

      * "Why did you file the answer in the state court and not the federal court?" Bill asked.

      When quoting a word or phrase that occurs before the end of a sentence, do not add punctuation unless required by some other rule.

      * Our Paris counsel told us the story about the "Miss Manners" column concerning stolen silverware.

      but

      * When I was charged with murder, I called on "Vinny," my cousin, to defend me.

      When quoting a quotation at the end of a sentence, question, or exclamation that is preceded by "he said" or something similar, a comma usually precedes the opening quotation mark.

      * The bailiff told the law student, "You need to dress more conservatively in the courtroom."

      Use a colon, however, if the introductory expression preceding a quotation is: (1) an independent clause, (2) the quotation consists of more than one sentence, or (3) it comes before a quote that is set off on separate lines (such as a block quote).

      * Daddy has an expression for when times get hard: "Winners never quit, and quitters never win."

      * The Fourth Circuit addressed this issue by stating:

      Personal jurisdiction may be waived in a variety of ways.

      There is a four-part test to determine if waiver has occurred. . . .

4. OMITTING WORDS IN A QUOTATION

   The Bluebook has several rules concerning how to indicate missing words in a quotation.

   1. If the missing words in a quotation come from the middle of a sentence, indicate where the words are missing by three spaced ellipses.

      * "The correct rule . . . is found in the Wharton case." [The full text of the quotation is: "The correct rule in this district is found in the Wharton case."]

   2. If the missing words in a quotation follow the end of a complete sentence, put the appropriate punctuation at the end of the sentence, followed by three spaced ellipses.

      * The court held, "We find that the Plaintiff has acted in bad faith. . . . This decision, however, is limited to these facts. "[The full text of the quotation is: "We find that the Plaintiff has acted in bad faith. His behavior has been reprehensible. This decision, however, is limited to its facts."]

   3. If the missing words are at the end of a sentence, put three spaced ellipses at the end of the sentence, followed by the appropriate punctuation to end the sentence.

      * "We cannot condone such behavior . . . . These constitute abusive litigation tactics that we will not tolerate." [The full text of the quotation is: "We cannot condone such behavior such as those that occurred in this case. These constitute abusive litigation tactics that we will not tolerate."]

   4. Do not use ellipses to note missing material at the beginning of a quote. If words at the beginning of a sentence are deleted, capitalize the first letter and put it in brackets if it is not already capitalized.

      * We may rail against Supreme Court decisions that go against our positions, but as William Howard Taft noted, "[T]he Supreme Court goes on forever." [The full text of President Taft's quotation is: "Presidents come and go, but the Supreme Court goes on forever."]

   5. Do not use ellipses with a quoted phrase or clause; use them only with complete sentences.

      * We knew justice was on the way when Perry Mason smiled and said that he had "another question" for the witness.

      In conclusion, quotations are an important part of legal writing and must be used with care. Use direct quotations sparingly, quote only what is necessary, and use them only when the quotation is directly on point or materially advances your position. Most importantly, check each quote to ensure that every word is correct. Your opposing counsel will be quick to point out material errors to the court, and you may lose precious credibility - a quandry easily avoided by careful comparison of your text to the actual quote.

      Copyright (c) 2004 by the South Carolina Bar. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written permission.