Dictation for lawyers: drafting memos and emails by voice
Lawyers dictated long before speech recognition: memos into tape machines, letters to a secretary who knew every client name. Software dictation brings back the speed but not the secretary, so the habits have to change. The text appears instantly, but nobody fixes the citation format or the spelling of an opposing party for you. This guide covers how to structure a memo by voice, how to handle citations and names so they do not become a cleanup job, and what to settle about confidentiality before you start. It contains no legal or regulatory advice: check your firm's policy and your jurisdiction's professional rules.
Settle confidentiality before the first word
Client information is the first question, not the last. Some dictation tools convert speech on your computer; others send the audio to a server. Your firm or bar rules may treat those very differently, and some firms list approved software. Before you dictate anything about a matter, ask:
- Does the firm have an approved dictation or speech tool? Is anything else permitted?
- If audio goes to a server, is the vendor's location and retention policy acceptable under our rules?
- Do we need a written agreement with the vendor before using it for client work?
- Is on-device processing treated differently from cloud processing in our policy?
- Are optional AI features (rewriting, summarising) allowed, given they may send text online?
For the technical background on local, cloud and hybrid processing, read how private voice dictation is.
Dictate a memo in blocks, not in one take
A research memo has a predictable shape, so let the headings carry it. Type the skeleton first: Question Presented, Brief Answer, Facts, Discussion, Conclusion. Then click into each heading and dictate that block alone.
Dictating the Question Presented as a single sentence is a good warm-up because it forces precision: “Whether a tenant who gave written notice by email satisfied the notice clause of the lease, which requires notice in writing delivered to the landlord's address.” Read it back once before moving on. The Facts section is where dictation shines: tell the story chronologically as you would to a colleague, one short paragraph per event, saying “new paragraph” when the date changes.
In the Discussion, dictate the argument first and leave authorities as placeholders. Arguing aloud keeps the reasoning connected; stopping to format a citation every sentence breaks it.
Citations: placeholders now, format later
Citations are the part of legal writing that speech recognition handles worst. Volume numbers, reporter abbreviations, section symbols and pin cites rarely come out in the right form. A two-step habit avoids fighting it:
- While dictating, say a short marker plus a description: “cite smith lease case” or “cite section on notice”. Pick one marker word and always use it, so you can search for it.
- After drafting, search for the marker and paste each citation from your research tool or notes, where it is already correctly formatted.
- For statutes you refer to repeatedly, keep the full citation in a snippet or notes file and paste it.
- Short references in running text, such as “the court held” or “under the second prong”, dictate fine and do not need placeholders.
This also protects accuracy: pasted citations come from the source, not from a speech model's guess at what “one twenty three F third” should look like.
Names: parties, judges, clients
Unusual names are the second biggest source of corrections. Handle them the way you would brief a new assistant:
| Situation | Habit |
|---|---|
| Party with an unusual surname | Keep a matter names list and paste the name; dictate “the defendant” in between |
| Company with initials | Paste it the first time, then use the defined term (“the Company”) when dictating |
| Judge or opposing counsel | Check the spelling once per document with search, not sentence by sentence |
| Names in another language | If your tool supports that language, say the name naturally; otherwise paste it |
| Defined terms | Capitalise them by keyboard in the edit; spoken text will not know they are defined |
Using defined terms in dictation is doubly useful: they are ordinary words, so they come out right, and they match the drafting style you need anyway.
Client emails and short correspondence
Email is where voice saves the most time, because messages are short and conversational. Use hold-to-talk for one or two sentences at a time, release, glance, continue. A typical update: “Dear Ms Alvarez comma new paragraph I have reviewed the draft agreement you sent on Monday period The main open point is the termination clause comma which I would like to discuss before Friday period new paragraph Kind regards comma”.
Two rules keep this safe. Check the recipient field before you dictate, not after, and confirm the cursor is in the body of the correct message. Dictation types wherever focus is; a sentence about one client landing in another client's draft is the error that matters most.
Where Voice Monkeys fits in a legal practice
Voice Monkeys does not make compliance or confidentiality claims; your firm and your rules decide whether it may be used for client work. The technical facts to bring to that decision: on Apple Silicon Macs speech is converted on the Mac and dictation works offline; the subscription version used on Windows, Linux and Intel Macs sends audio encrypted to a server in Germany, converts it in memory and discards both audio and text, and Windows and Linux can switch to an optional offline model. It works in Word, Outlook, a browser or a document management client because it simply types at the cursor. If your firm already provides a dedicated legal dictation system, use that. Otherwise you can download Voice Monkeys for a trial on non-client text first. The built-in alternatives are explained for Windows and Mac.
An editing routine for dictated legal drafts
- Search for your citation marker and paste every authority.
- Search each party name and defined term; fix capitalisation.
- Read every number aloud against the source: dates, amounts, section numbers, deadlines.
- Check every negative (“not”, “no”, “never”) in holdings and conclusions; a dropped “not” reverses the meaning.
- Read the Brief Answer and Conclusion together to confirm they say the same thing.
Questions and answers
Can I dictate legal citations accurately?
Simple references work; formatted citations rarely come out right. Dictate a placeholder and paste the citation from your research source afterwards.
Is it acceptable to use dictation software for client matters?
That depends on your firm's policy and your jurisdiction's professional rules. Ask before using any tool, especially one that sends audio to a server.
Does Voice Monkeys store what I dictate?
No. On Apple Silicon Macs speech is processed on the Mac. In the cloud version audio is converted in memory in Germany and discarded; neither audio nor text is stored.
How do I stop dictated text going into the wrong email?
Click into the body of the correct message and check the recipient before you start speaking. Dictation always types where the cursor is.
Is dictating a memo faster than typing it?
For facts and argument, often yes for people who think aloud well. Citations and formatting are still faster by keyboard, so most lawyers mix both.
Sources
- Apple: Use Dictation on Mac (checked November 6, 2026)
- Microsoft: Use voice typing to talk instead of type on your PC (checked November 6, 2026)