John GilliesMy great-grandmother’s shortbread recipeThis recipe came to me through my maternal grandmother; it was her mother’s shortbread recipe. My great-grandmother, Mary Ellen Rae…1 min read·Dec 10, 2017----
John GilliesNew edition of “A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting”The fourth edition of A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting (MSCD) has just recently been published. It is a must-have reference work for…5 min read·Nov 13, 2017----
John GilliesLearning to play jazz pianoI started to learn to play jazz piano at age 47. I wasn’t starting from scratch, in that I’d had two years of piano lessons in Grades 7 and…4 min read·Mar 9, 2017----
John GilliesinContractStandardsWhite Space Is Your FriendWhen editing a legal agreement, one of the easiest yet most useful tasks you can carry out is to create white space. You do this by taking…2 min read·Jan 4, 2017----
John GilliesinContractStandardsCreate “Horizontal Consistency” Amongst Your DocumentsOne common problem with precedent initiatives is the failure to plan for maintaining the collection, once created. The most obvious aspect…3 min read·Dec 1, 2016----
John GilliesinContractStandardsPlain language drafting: Write for your readerThe push for plain language drafting is, of course, nothing new. Joseph Kimble, Emeritus professor at WMU–Cooley Law School, has been…3 min read·Nov 17, 2016----
John GilliesinContractStandardsYour Style Guide: A Critical Factor for SuccessAlthough it may not be self-evident, adopting a house style guide is one of the most important things you can have to help improve the…4 min read·Nov 10, 2016----
John GilliesinContractStandardsOne Substantive Issue Per ClauseAmong the most important things to do in your drafting is to ensure that every clause addresses one and only one substantive issue.1 min read·Nov 3, 2016----
John GilliesinContractStandardsClear, “Meaty” Clause CaptionsAmong the most important things to do in your drafting is to insure that every clause has a clear, “meaty” caption (or heading).2 min read·Oct 27, 2016----
John GilliesinContractStandardsCreate a Clear, Logical StructureThere are several important but necessary principles you should apply to make your legal agreements better, including using2 min read·Oct 20, 2016----
