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Skeleton Arguments

Document Cited authorities 1 Cited in Related
AuthorPeter Lyons
Pages83-87
7 Skeleton Arguments

The purpose of a skeleton argument is to assist the court.1

It is amazing how many practitioners ignore this basic truth and produce documents which are verbose, impenetrable and infuriating.

The rules were created when Lord Donaldson was Master of the Rolls. In his autobiography, Lord Justice Kerr said that Donaldson was the leader of a ‘long overdue efficiency drive’ in the Court of Appeal:

‘It was decided to do more pre-reading, to do away with lengthy opening of cases and reading from authorities, and to require the delivery of “skeleton arguments” in advance. For this I claim some credit, in particular for the name, but I am sure that John Donaldson as MR would claim the original copyright for a word which has now passed into the legal language throughout the English-speaking forensic world.’2

As is the problem with a number of skeleton arguments, Lord Justice Kerr leaves it at that and we are tantalised as to why he claims ‘some credit’.

The skeleton ‘should provide the court with a reasoned justification for finding in your favour’:

‘... It allows the advocate two shots at persuading the court of his case. It is the golden opportunity for ... the advocate to persuade the judge of the merits of [the case] before [he opens] his mouth.’3

Practice Direction 52A of the English Civil Procedure Rules says that skeleton arguments must:

‘ be concise;

 both define and confine the areas of controversy;

 be set out in numbered paragraphs;

 be cross-referenced to any relevant document in the bundle;

 be self-contained and not incorporate by reference material from previous skeleton arguments;

 not include extensive quotations from documents or authorities.’

1English Civil Procedure Rules, Practice Direction 52A, para 5.1(1).

2Michael Kerr, As Far As I Remember (Hart Publishing, Oxford, 2002) 317.

3Michel Kallipetis QC and Geraldine Andrews QC, ‘Skeleton Arguments, A Practitioner’s Guide’ (The Honourable Society of Gray’s Inn, London, 2004).

84 Advocacy: A Practical Guide

Documents to be relied upon must be identified. Where it is necessary to refer to an authority, a skeleton argument must:

1 state the proposition of law the authority demonstrates; and

2 identify the parts of the authority that support the proposition.

If more than one authority is cited in support of a given proposition, the skeleton argument must briefly state why.

The parties should...

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