Passive Voice
Your writing will be much clearer and more direct if you avoid unnecessary use of passive voice. Consider the following sentences:
The court decided that the defendant was guilty. (active)
It was decided by the court that the defendant was guilty. (passive)
It was decided that the defendant was guilty. (passive)
The sentence in the active voice is shorter and easier to understand because the subject (court) is doing the action indicated by the verb (decided).
Changing Sentences into Active Voice
Passive voice is easy to spot because it contains part of the verb "to be" (am, is, are, was, were). To change passive sentences into active voice, make sure that the subject of the sentence is acting, not acted upon.
The employee's work hours were controlled by his employer. (passive)
The employer controlled the employee's work hours. (active)
The evidence was presented to the court by the prosecutor. (passive)
The prosecutor presented the evidence to the court. (active)
The brief had been revised by the senior partner. (passive)
The senior partner had revised the brief. (active)
Although active voice is a stylistic choice that most effective legal writers frequently make, there may be times when passive voice is desirable or even necessary. Passive voice might be more effective, for example, if the actor is unknown or unimportant.