Why You Cannot Spot Typos in Your Own Work

Writing is mianly about maening. In an interview with Wired, University of Sheffield psychologist Tom Stafford explained: “When you’re writing, you’re trying to convey meaning. It’s a very high level task.” A writer who leaves a lot of typos on the page is not being...

Waiver of Legal Arguments on Appeal

Faithful readers of this blog are aware of my criticism of the overuse of “waiver” by appellate courts. The first problem is that the term “waiver” is technically incorrect; “forfeiture” is actually the correct one. “Waiver” means something slightly different, namely,...

Ten Top Appellate Mistakes

The practice of law has become specialized, and a jack of all trades typically is a master of none.  Judge Silberman of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia warns, “Effective presentation to a federal court of appeals, or to any court of...

Waiver in the Pennsylvania Superior Court

Perhaps the most frustrating aspect of practicing before the Pennsylvania Superior Court is its application of the doctrine of waiver. Or should I say “over-application.” The federal courts have frequently held that they will not consider issues not passed on by the...

Hobby Lobby and its discontents

Anyone who has actually read the Supreme Court’s opinion in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby knows that the decision is quite narrow. The Court granted certiorari to determine whether HHS regulations requiring that corporations offer certain forms of birth control violate the...

Word Crimes

While I am in my kynetic typography silly season, I couldn’t help but direct your attention to Weird Al’s “Word Crimes” video:...

The Impotence of Proofreading

While I’m on a kinetic typography kick, I thought I might share an amusing video that demonstrates the difficulty of proofreading one’s own work, even with spell check.  The narrator’s voice is annoying, but his message is clear.   One...