I recently posted about an extreme example of what can happen when one fails to adequately edit and proof a brief--including failing to adequately edit for tone and indeed for arguments that ought not be made in an appeal that probably ought not have been taken.
So, if one accepts the proposition that careful editing and proofing are important, that leads to the obvious next question of, "how do you do it?"
Sure, I have my own bag of tricks for how to edit a brief, not only to ferret out the niggles and mistakes, but also to pump up the prose so that the things you ought to say are said in the best way possible.
(Notably, those are not always employed on the blog and mistakes slip through).
But I've very seldom gotten ideas from other folks on their own methods of editing.
So here's the question I'd really like the readers and lurkers to answer in the comments:
What are the steps you go through, the techniques you use or your personal "tricks of the trade" for getting from the full draft to the almost final draft to the filed product?
I'd like to get as many answers as possible for a potential article or series of posts.
Plus, I'd just like to get better at this sort of thing. I'm a GREAT editor of stuff written by someone else. Stuff by me? I could be much better.
And just think: if we can save just one brief from the odd dangling participle or lack of subject/verb agreement, school marms in black robes everywhere will surely lavish us with thanks.
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