§ 6.90    No Such Thing as a Perfect Draft

pdf version

Legislative drafters, it has been said, "are chronic complainers." They are "always asking for more time; they are never satisfied with what they have wrought." Wilbur D. Mills, "How the Problem Looks to the Legislative Branch: Congressional Practices That Affect Executive Responsibility," in Reed Dickerson (ed.), Professionalizing Legislative Drafting: The Federal Experience 19 (1973).

Always bear in mind that there is no such thing as a perfect draft. Every drafter approaches drafting from a unique perspective, and there is more than one way to draft a policy effectively. There is no single "right" or "best" draft (though, to be sure, some drafts are markedly better than others).

Though there are many rules that can be broken for good reason, one rule you should always follow is this: In each case, ponder the various techniques you can use and the various approaches you can take, and use judgment and common sense to decide what to do.

Do not draft one particular way because that way is the one way you were taught, or is the only way you can think of. There are always choices. The more alternatives you consider, the more likely it is that your draft will be effective. Techniques and approaches can come from a book, but most come from experience. Keep adding to your toolbox.

Another rule you should always follow is this: Never assume that your draft is perfect. Your perspective is just one perspective. If you think the draft is clear and the client thinks it is not, do not disagree; you need to revise your thinking-- and your draft.

You must be able to look at the problem, and the draft, at arm's length and with a skeptical eye. From time to time, you will become too familiar with a subject or with a draft--you are too close to the material--and you will fail to see it fresh and new unless you make a conscious effort to do so. Even then, it helps to have a colleague review what you have written to see what fresh eyes make of it.

Whenever you are asked to review a colleague's draft, do so gladly. It will be a source of learning, and in some cases it may be a source of humor. As one drafter observed:

"There is the more rarified kind of wry entertainment that a drafter himself can derive from spotting the blunders or inelegancies in the products of his colleagues. At a social occasion one of my children once asked one of my colleagues if I laughed much at work. The answer was, 'Only when he reads other people's Bills.' "

Geoffrey Bowman, "Legislation and Explanation," The Loophole (June 2000).