Write On!, 1219 WYBJ, Vol. 42 No. 7. 44
| Author | Michael R. Smith, University of Wyoming College of Law Laramie, Wyoming |
| Position | Vol. 42 7 Pg. 44 |
Traits of Credibility, Part 2: Honesty
Michael R. Smith, University of Wyoming College of Law Laramie, Wyoming
In the August 2019 edition of this column, I introduced the classical rhetoric concept of ethos, defined as "the process of persuading by establishing credibility as a trustworthy source of information."[1] In that discussion, we saw that credibility (ethos) has three distinct sub-components-intelligence, character, and good will-and that a writer must evince all three of these sub-components of credibility in order to gain the confidence of his or her reader. In this edition, I explore one of those sub-components, credible character, in greater detail.
In my
Advanced Persuasive Writing textbook, I thoroughly examine
the concept of "character" as an essential element
of a persuasive legal writer's credibility.[2] That
discussion identifies and analyzes five specific traits of
character that effective legal writers must project through
their writing: truthfulness, candor, respect, zeal, and
professionalism.
The opposite of honesty is dishonesty, and a legal writer can undermine his or her credibility by being dishonest either through the substance of the writer's argument or through deceptive writing tactics. Let's explore these two forms of dishonesty in legal writing in more detail.
Substantive Dishonesty
In order for a legal writer to earn the confidence of a reader, the writer must demonstrate that he or she is truthful and candid about the substance of the matter at hand. Truthfulness refers to being honest through what one states expressly. A legal writer is untruthful when he or she expressly misstates the facts or the law of a matter with the intent to deceive the reader. Undoubtedly, being untruthful in a court brief about the facts or the law can severely undermine a writer's credibility in the eyes of the court.
Lack of candor is related to, but different from, untruthfulness. Whereas untruthfulness occurs through express misrepresentation, a lack of candor refers to misleading through the omission of damaging information. We can see an example of a lack of...
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