Legally Exceeding a Limit
Let’s suppose you want to file a petition for a writ of certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court. Then you’ve got a strict limit — you have to set your case in less than 882 square inches using nothing finer than Times Roman, set 11 on 13.
And let’s suppose that you can’t meet this limit without omitting something you really want the court to consider.
Then consider this — a competent typesetter can buy you an additonal page or two!
How? By doing the things that typesetters normally do:
- by setting the copy in a professional typesetting program (rather than Microsoft Word).
- by using hyphens to break the ends of fully justified lines.
- by using modern, rather than French, spacing.
And consider this — a good editor can save you an additional page or two or three or four!
How? By doing what editors do commonly do, like:
changing this:
“The Regulations provide sample notices, which, after appropriate individualized revisions, plan administrators can use to meet certain of their legal obligations.”
to this:
“The regulations provide sample notices that group health plan administrators can customize.”
or changing this:
“The County sent an inspector who made observations as to the condition of the sidewalk and concluded that it was uneven.”
to this:
“A county inspector examined the sidewalk and concluded it was uneven.”
or changing this:
“Provide notice to an employee and his or her spouse concerning their rights under COBRA within 90 days after “coverage under the plan commences.”
to this:
“Notify employees and their spouses of their rights under COBRA within 90 days after “coverage under the plan commences.”
A good editor who knows how to set type can get you (typically) two to six additional pages worth of copy for a 30-page brief.
