2013 Second Ed. Supreme Court of Ohio Writing ManualConsisting of three parts, the writing manual addresses broad areas of interest to all judges and lawyers. It includes a manual of citation (Pt. I), a style guide (Pt. II) and a guide to writing judicial opinions (Pt. III). Click the link above for a copy online in PDF.
Although Ohio judges and lawyers are not required to follow this manual, the committee hopes that it will be useful in writing opinions and drafting briefs and pleadings.
Part I, the Manual of Citations, governs the citation format used in Supreme Court opinions and other print-published opinions. It sets forth rules for the forms of citation for cases, statutes, and other sources, provides examples for each category, and explains the use of WebCites.
Part II, the Style Guide, provides direction on certain aspects of style used in Supreme
Court opinions. Subjects covered include capitalization, punctuation, use of footnotes and headings, captions, and commonly misused words.
Part III, the Structure of a Judicial Opinion, is a guide intended to assist writers of judicial opinions. It offers an outline setting forth the basic components of an opinion in the traditional sequence, followed by several examples written in the Supreme Court style.