The trick to avoiding the problem of extra statements is to only skip the braces if it all fits on one line:

    if (somethingBad) return NULL;

That's a clear visual indicator that the braces have been skipped, but it's basically impossible to look at the next line and not know that it's NOT part of the conditional. Also, if you're having trouble fitting it all on one line, it's a good cue that you're not in a situation where skipping the braces is safe.