Authors

Ryan B. Witte

Article Title

The Judge as Author / The Author as Judge

Abstract

The first section of this Article discusses the judge as an author. This section begins with an examination of the audience for judicial opinions and an outline of the different styles of judicial opinion writing. The second section of this Article examines the advantages and disadvantages of using literary tools to advance the law. The third section of this Article explores the role of the author as a judge. This section will study a small number of judges who, in addition to the law, maintain outside lives as authors or creative writers. Judges who fit into this category include authors of books, operas, and magazine articles, and their opinions are often written in a manner that reflects their experience. This section discusses the advantages and drawbacks of having these unique judges deciding cases dealing with a wide range of authors' issues, such as copyright and free speech.

Recommended Citation

Ryan B. Witte, The Judge as Author / The Author as Judge, 40 Golden Gate U. L. Rev. (2009).
https://digitalcommons.law.ggu.edu/ggulrev/vol40/iss1/3