Learn art of drafting concise synopsis to attract Court's attention; restrict it to one page: Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court on Thursday advised lawyers to draft the synopsis of pleas in a concise manner so at to attract the attention of the Court. .Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas remarked that drafting a good synopsis is also an art in learning how to effectively capture the attention of the court and argue a matter."It is an art to learn how to draft a synopsis. In fact it is also an art in learning how to argue a matter. If you can prepare a good synopsis, you can prepare a good, articulate and brief or concise arguments. It requires some thinking. What is your case? How can you attract the attention of the Court?", the judge orally remarked..He pointed out that a judge first notices a synopsis and it is important for lawyers to create a good impression at that stage by hitting the nail on its head."Why is the synopsis given? Because judges may not have the time to go through every page. How do you make out a case to the judge? The first impression is the best impression so hit the nail on its head in the synopsis. That's what you need to do in the first place," the judge said. .Justice Thomas, who practiced as a lawyer for 28 years before being elevated as a judge, opined that a synopsis, which is a summary of facts and points of arguments, should at most be a page long."In future, always try to have the synopsis confined to a maximum of one page. Worst case, it can extend to one page and maybe a quarter page more, not more than that," he said. .The Court was considering an application for anticipatory bail when it noticed that the synopsis of the petition was almost the same length as the actual bail application itself."Counsel, kindly take your synopsis. How many pages? Four and a half pages. Now please take your bail application. How many pages? Almost five pages but half is cause title. So then what is the purpose of the synopsis?", the Court remarked. The judge cautioned the counsel stating that on first glance the instinct for a judge could be to dismiss a case with a synopsis like that.However, he clarified that he was just trying to bring home the point that lawyers need to be brief with the synopsis.."You should learn the art of writing the synopsis," Justice Thomas reiterated as he allowed the anticipatory bail application.

Learn art of drafting concise synopsis to attract Court's attention; restrict it to one page: Kerala High Court

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