Clarity and precision in legal writing are essential skills in the practice and study of law. This book offers a straightforward, practical guide to effective legal style from a world-leading expert. The book is thoughtfully structured to explain the elements of good legal writing and its most effective use. It catalogues all aspects of legal style, topic by topic, phrase by phrase, usage by usage. It scrutinises them all, suggesting improvements. Its 'dictionary' arrangement makes it easy to navigate. Entries cover matters such as abbreviations, acronyms, active and passive voice, brackets, bullet points, citation methods, cross-referencing, fonts, document design, footnotes, gender-neutral language, numbering systems, plain legal language, punctuation, the use of Latin in law, structures for legal advices and documents, and techniques for editing and proofreading. Also covered are many words and phrases that non-lawyers find opaque and obscure-the aim being to show that lawyers can usually substitute a plain-English equivalent that captures the legal nuances of the 'legalese'. Other topics include ambiguity, deeds, definitions, provisos, recitals, simplified outlines, terms of art, tone, and the various principles of legal interpretation. With an emphasis on technical effectiveness and understanding, the book is required reading for all those engaged in the practice and study of law.

In this critically acclaimed book, Tom Goldstein and Jethro K. Lieberman demystify legal writing, outline the causes and consequences of poor writing, and prescribe easy-to-apply remedies to improve it. Reflecting changes in law practice over the past decade, this revised edition includes new sections around communicating digitally, getting to the point, and writing persuasively. It also provides an editing checklist, editing exercises with a suggested revision key, usage notes that address common errors, and reference works to further aid your writing. This straightforward guide is an invaluable tool for practicing lawyers and law students.

This book will help any law firm create and maintain an effective and well-organized records management program, including administration and storage of client files and administrative records in all types of media. Firms will learn to implement an efficient information, document, and file retrieval system, thus reducing costs, avoiding ethics violations, and ensuring client satisfaction. In addition, the book covers legal and ethics compliance when it comes to management and retention of both paper and electronic files.

This volume offers insights into the ways in which plain language has influenced the language of the law in the United Kingdom, critically reflecting on its historical development and future directions. The book opens with an overview of the theoretical frameworks underpinning plain language and a brief history of plain language initiatives as a foundation from which to outline ongoing debates on the opportunities and challenges of using plain language in the legal domain. The volume details strands where plain language has had considerable impact thus far on legal English in the UK, notably in legislative drafting, but it also explores areas in which plain language has made fewer inroads, such as the language of court judgments and that of online terms and conditions. The book looks ahead to unpack highly topical areas within the plain language debate, including the question of design and visualisation and the ramifications of digitalisation, contributing to ongoing conversations on the importance of plain language both in the UK and beyond. This book will be of particular interest to students and scholars interested in the intersection of language and the law as well as related disciplinary areas such as applied linguistics and English for Specific Purposes.

A Practical Guide to Legal Writing and Legal Method provides complete coverage and analysis with the clarity and precision that has made it a classic in the field. Discussion, examples, and practice exercises teach students how to apply the concepts of legal writing and legal method to a written analysis or oral argument. The text not only provides a complete foundation for classroom instruction, but also supports independent study and review. Graduates will want to keep this text within reach as they enter legal practice. New to the Seventh Edition: Restructured format to emphasize common themes Consolidated and streamlined chapters that are even more accessible to both professor and students Expanded appendix on email communications Professors and student will benefit from: Accessible introductions that outline and explain legal method Examples of both effective and ineffective approaches to all of the topics covered Focused exercises to develop and practice the skills addressed in each chapter In-depth instruction on reading and understandingboth statutes and caselaw synthesizing cases and statutes applying the law to specific facts organizing and drafting a legal analysis the principles of objective writing for memoranda, client communications, and judicial opinion writing the principles of persuasive writing, including structuring an effective argument and writing for the court drafting traditional and shorter “summary of the law” memoranda drafting opinion letters drafting both trial and appellate court briefs Guidelines for using electronic communicationfor legal memoranda and correspondence—when it is appropriate, and strategies for effective communication in legal writing and practice Integrated treatment of ethics and professional conduct A sample case file in the appendices with memos in both traditional and email format, client letters, and trial and appellate court briefs

The leading guide to clear writing!--StartFragment --—and clear thinking!--StartFragment --—in the legal profession for more than two decades, now newly updated. Admirably clear, concise, down-to-earth, and powerful—all too often, legal writing embodies none of these qualities. Its reputation for obscurity and needless legalese is widespread. Since 2001, Bryan A. Garner’s Legal Writing in Plain English has helped address this problem by providing lawyers, judges, paralegals, law students, and legal scholars with sound advice and practical tools for improving their written work. Now the leading guide to clear writing in the field, this indispensable volume encourages legal writers to challenge conventions and offers valuable insights into the writing process: how to organize ideas, create and refine prose, and improve editing skills. Accessible and witty, Legal Writing in Plain English draws on real-life writing samples that Garner has gathered through decades of teaching experience. Trenchant advice covers all types of legal materials, from analytical and persuasive writing to legal drafting, and the book’s principles are reinforced by sets of basic, intermediate, and advanced exercises in each section. For this third edition, Garner has retained the structure of the previous versions, with updates and new material throughout. There are new sections on making your writing vivid and concrete and on using graphics to enhance your argument. The coverage and examples of key topics such as achieving parallelism, avoiding legalese, writing effective openers and summaries, and weaving quotations into your text have also been expanded. And the sample legal documents and exercises have been updated, while newly added checklists provide quick summaries of each section. Altogether, this new edition will be the most useful yet for legal professionals and students seeking to improve their prose.

This ground-breaking guide introduces lawyers and other professionals to a powerful class of software that supports core aspects of legal work. The author discusses how technologies like practice systems, work product retrieval, document assembly, and interactive checklists help people work smarter. If you are looking to work more effectively, this book provides a clear roadmap, with many concrete examples and thought-provoking ideas.

While there is significant interest in knowledge management as it applies to legal environments, there are very few books specifically focused on this topic. In Effective Knowledge Management For Law Firms, Matthew Parsons expertly fills this gap by drawing on his work with a leading commercial law firm, Mallesons Stephen Jaques. He examines how law firms can implement a knowledge strategy to support their business strategy, rather than getting beguiled by fads and technology. Parsons first outlines the terrain, including what knowledge management means, the business and economics of law firms, and how lawyers work as knowledge workers. He then introduces a methodology for creating and implementing law firm knowledge strategy, which combines for the first time the interrelated aspects of recruiting, training, research, document production, information management, and digital knowledge strategy. Parsons goes beyond theories to provide detailed, practical help for the analysis, implementation, and measurement of performance-increasing initiatives. This book will be an invaluable resource for all those involved with the management and leadership of law firms and knowledge management initiatives.

The Handbook for the New Legal Writer, Third Edition, is the practical guide to the foundational skills that law students need. With concise and easy-to-follow instructions, a variety of annotated examples, and the clarifying concept of “anchors,” the Handbook is a student-centered text that engages and accompanies students throughout the first-year legal writing course, and beyond. The purchase of this ebook edition does not entitle you to receive access to the Connected eBook with Study Center on CasebookConnect. You will need to purchase a new print book to get access to the full experience, including: lifetime access to the online ebook with highlight, annotation, and search capabilities; practice questions from your favorite study aids; an outline tool and other helpful resources. The Handbook for the New Legal Writer focuses on showing (not telling) students how to write effective legal documents using step-by-step instructions and annotated examples. The Handbook uses the term “anchors” throughout to help students deepen their understanding and analysis of legal questions. In an easy-to-read style, the Handbook guides students through the entire first-year legal research, writing, and analysis curriculum. The Handbook covers predictive and persuasive writing in the form of memos, motions, and appellate briefs; as well as professional correspondence in the form of emails, letters, and instant messages; exam writing; judicial writing; oral argument; legal research and citation; and grammar, punctuation, and style. For each topic, the Handbook provides examples (written by the authors or by judges and practicing attorneys), along with detailed explanations that demonstrate how to write with care and clarity. The Handbook is a resource that will guide students throughout law school and into their legal careers. New to the Third Edition: New sidebars throughout the text that address issues of mindfulness, wellness, equity, and inclusion that are important to students More samples of legal documents, prepared by the authors More examples of excellent legal writing by judges and attorneys Professors and students will benefit from: Comprehensive coverage of all first-year legal writing topics: predictive and persuasive writing, grammar and writing style, professional correspondence, exam writing, judicial writing, oral argument, research, and citation Concise and readable text The authors’ original “anchors” concept that helps students recognize salient facts or points of law in case reading and analysis Short and longer annotated examples (written by judges, practitioners, and the authors) illustrate effective legal writing in various formats, including objective memos, correspondence, persuasive memos, motions, appellate briefs, and mor Checklists at the end of each chapter for study and review