Brief Builder's Workshop

My Brief Builder's Workshop course covers the specific Microsoft Word features attorneys and law office staff use to format legal briefs and other complex pleadings.

In Brief Builder's Workshop, I cover topics like:

  • Common TOA mistakes and how to fix them
  • What all that gobblydegook in the TOA hidden text really means, and how understanding it can save you from re-editing your TOA again and again
  • Fixing wrong TOA entries without re-marking all your citations
  • How to fix Table of Authorities and Table of Contents formatting so it actually sticks
  • Two methods for marking text for your Table of Contents (and when one is better than the other)
  • How to format your brief with distinct page numbering (i vs. 1 vs. C-1) in each section

This course provides you some targeted help with legal-specific features like Table of Authorities plus how to use other features like Table of Contents, page numbering and document sections within the specific context of producing a legal brief.

Here's a list of the lessons:

Table of Authorities

Seven separate, sequential lessons taking you through the entire Table of Authorities process, from marking the first citation of any authority and then any subsequent citations (yes, the process is different) to inserting a properly-formatted TOA into your document, plus targeted solutions to common problems TOA users experience.

Table of Contents

You've got two different ways you can create a Table of Contents: one's easier but less flexible; the other gives you more options but is a bit more complex to set up. I not only show you both methods, I also show you how to tweak the formatting (indentation, page numbers, spacing between entries) in a way that doesn't get destroyed when you update.

Using Sections to control page #s, etc.

One of the most common elements of court brief requirements is different page numbers for the introductory material (cover page, Table of Authorities, Table of Contents, and any required statements) versus the brief itself. Once you know how Sections work and how to embed the right fields into your footer, you'll wonder how you ever produced a brief without it!

Automatic Numbering

Go far beyond simply numbering paragraphs (a.k.a linline numbering) and learn how to build automatic numbering with text (e.g., Section I), numbered headings (e.g., I. Uncontroverted Facts), saving your custom numbering schemes as List Styles, and lead-in numbered text with Style Separators. Using automatic numbering not only saves time when editing, it opens up all sorts of cross-referencing possibilities!

Footnotes & endnotes

Inserting a footnote or endnote is pretty easy - just go to the References tab and click Insert Footnote (or Endnote). But how do you control the formatting options like separator lines or the font size or spacing between footnotes? And what about footnotes brought over from WordPerfect? This module dives deep into the details so you can finely control how your footnotes/endnotes look and behave.

Field Codes & Switches

This module is still under construction, but when complete, it'll cover such features as automatically inserting a word count into document (and the pitfalls of doing so), plus more sophisticated TOA and TOC formatting using the built-in switches for those markup fields. For example, have you ever wanted to create a Table of Contents for just one section of a document? It's possible!


Because the lessons deal with a very specific context, chances are you've come here because you're right in the middle of an actual brief and need some targeted help with the formatting that comes with producing legal briefs.

This course covers the features that get little to no attention in the Microsoft Word manuals you buy in a bookstore or on other websites about Word. It's also focused specifically on how these features are used in a legal context.

All course content is based on the Windows-based version of Microsoft Word (sorry Mac users!) and covers versions 2010 through 2019 (a.k.a. the desktop version of Office 365). So whether you're up on the latest and greatest Word version or you've been putting off upgrading ... you're covered.

30-Day Guarantee

100% Money Back Guarantee

And every course I offer comes with a 30-day money back guarantee. If it doesn't meet your needs, all you have to do is email me for a refund within 30 days of purchase. It's risk-free!

Don't put this off for another day, because you'll want to have this resource handy for future briefs, too!

Don't let your next brief be as frustrating as your last one! Click the Add to Cart button below to get on the road to faster, easier brief formatting!