The Anchor Paragraph #6
Definition
Writing technique · Tier Informal
The first substantive paragraph of the memorandum contains the single strongest fact and the single strongest authority. The judge who reads only one paragraph gets the best version of your case.
Example
The memorandum opens: "Respondent produced no documents in response to Movant's First Request, served eight months ago. The discovery deadline is in three weeks. [Controlling authority] holds that a party who ignores a properly served demand may be precluded from offering the withheld evidence at trial."
Anti-pattern
The memorandum opens: "This is a breach-of-contract action commenced two years ago. The parties entered into their agreement on..."
Why it's informal
Law school teaches IRAC (Issue, Rule, Application, Conclusion). IRAC buries the strongest material behind background and rule statements. Practice teaches impact-first. Judges read the first paragraph of everything. Many read only the first paragraph before deciding whether to care.
LLM note
LLMs default to chronological or IRAC structure. Anchor paragraphs require deliberate override of default ordering.