NFPA Paralegal Core Competency Exam (PCCE)Legal Writing and CommunicationMedium
A paralegal is drafting a set of interrogatories for a complex personal injury case. To ensure the interrogatories are effective and admissible, which of the following principles of legal writing and drafting should be prioritized?
- AEmbedding argumentative statements within the questions to subtly influence the deponent.
- BUse of highly formal, archaic language to demonstrate legal erudition.
- CClear, concise questions that are unambiguous and directly seek relevant, non-privileged information.
- DBroadly worded questions that seek all information related to the incident without specificity.
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: C. Clear, concise questions that are unambiguous and directly seek relevant, non-privileged information.
Interrogatories must be clear, concise, and unambiguous to elicit specific, relevant information. Ambiguity or overly broad questions can lead to objections, while argumentative statements are improper.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. Embedding argumentative statements is improper and can lead to objections or sanctions, as interrogatories are for factual information, not argument.
- B. Archaic language detracts from clarity and is generally avoided in modern legal drafting.
- D. Broadly worded questions are often subject to objections for being vague, overbroad, or unduly burdensome.
Drafting Effective Interrogatories
The process of formulating written questions in discovery that are clear, specific, relevant, and designed to elicit factual information from an opposing party without being objectionable.
- Must be clear, concise, and unambiguous.
- Seek relevant, non-privileged information.
- Avoid argument, legal conclusions, or overly broad scope.
Memory trick: C-S-R: Clear, Specific, Relevant.