The Journey to Excellence in Legal Writing

The Journey to Excellence in Legal Writing PDF

Author: Pamela Newell

Publisher: Cognella Academic Pub

Published: 2010-08

Total Pages: 212

ISBN-13: 9781609279677

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Professors Newell and Peterkin deal thoroughly with fundamental grammar skills often overlooked in legal writing textbooks. The chapters in this text cover everything that students should learn in legal writing from spotting issues, to finding and interpreting the law, to writing either an objective or persuasive document for their client or the court. Each chapter provides exhaustive treatment of the topic. The text also provides useful examples and exercises for the reader to test his or her understanding of the topic. The Journey to Excellence in Legal Writing not only contains a thorough explication of legal writing for first-year law students. Upper-level students, practitioners, and judges will also benefit from the instruction contained in these pages. Therefore, this book is the perfect tool for all who wish to learn and improve their legal writing skills.

Writing to Win

Writing to Win PDF

Author: Steven D. Stark

Publisher: Crown

Published: 2012-04-24

Total Pages: 322

ISBN-13: 0307888746

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From a master teacher and writer, a fully revised and updated edition of the results-oriented approach to legal writing that is clear, that persuades—and that WINS. More than almost any profession, the law has a deserved reputation for opaque, jargon-clogged writing. Yet forceful writing is one of the most potent weapons of legal advocacy. In this new edition of Writing to Win, Steven D. Stark, a former lecturer on law at Harvard Law School, who has inspired thousands of aspiring and practicing lawyers, applies the universal principles of powerful, vigorous prose to the job of making a legal case—and winning it. Writing to Win focuses on the writing of lawyers, not judges, and includes dozens of examples of effective (and ineffective) real-life legal writing—as well as compelling models drawn from advertising, journalism, and fiction. It deals with the challenges lawyers face in writing, from organization to strengthening and editing prose; offers incisive ways of improving arguments; addresses litigation and technical writing in all its forms; and covers the writing attorneys must perform in their daily practice, from email memos to briefs and contracts. Each chapter opens with a succinct set of rules for easy reference. With new sections on client communication and drafting affidavits, as well as updated material throughout, Writing to Win is the most practical and efficacious legal-writing manual available.

Examples & Explanations for Legal Writing

Examples & Explanations for Legal Writing PDF

Author: Terrill Pollman

Publisher: Aspen Publishing

Published: 2023-12-11

Total Pages: 480

ISBN-13: 1543858767

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The Fourth Edition of Examples & Explanations: Legal Writing explains what many professors consider to be effective writing, following the organization of typical first-year legal writing courses, and provides concrete examples for students to test their understanding of key legal writing concepts. Each chapter includes a checklist that can be easily transformed into a grading grid as well as chapter-by-chapter vocabulary that integrates your classroom instruction with these examples. This book--whether the entire book, selected chapters, or subsets of chapters--can accompany any legal writing textbook or materials you provide for your students. A favorite classroom prep tool of successful students that is often recommended by professors, the Examples& Explanations series has been ranked the most popular study aid among law students because it is equally as helpful from the first day of class through the final exam. New to the Fourth Edition: New chapters on common law and on writing conclusion sections in persuasive documents Revised and updated with legal writing professors in mind, including revisions that work whether assigning single chapters or the entire book New common law assignments with many added examples and explanations throughout the book Professors and students will benefit from: Understanding how the writing students do in law school (and law practice) differs from what they did in college Professors knowing the right way to use examples, although they may hesitate to give examples Learning how to practice revising and rewriting--skills that are necessary to all good writing Demonstrations of how to self-evaluate, self-explain, and self-test Having the tools to continue to learn about legal writing after formal instruction ends

Clear and Effective Legal Writing

Clear and Effective Legal Writing PDF

Author: Veda Charrow

Publisher: Aspen Publishing

Published: 2014-10-30

Total Pages: 509

ISBN-13: 1454837853

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In its Fourth Edition, Clear and Effective Legal Writing continues to give students a classic introduction to legal analysis and legal writing. Concise and accessible, the text focuses on memo and brief writing while reinforcing key writing skills. This proven teaching tool provides the student with excellent examples and numerous skill-honing exercises. Offering comprehensive coverage from case synthesis and case briefing to preparing Supreme Court briefs, this text: starts with an overview of legal analysis, and then walks students through the writing process: understanding context, organizing effectively, writing clearly and effectively, and reviewing and editing describes differences between legal language and ordinary discourse, and the linguistic theory underlying the origins of legal language seamlessly combines legal reasoning with legal writing and helps the student understand the relationship between the two provides straightforward rules for writing effective legal documents, with scores of examples of the good, the bad, and the humorous includes numerous exercises throughout the book to help students reinforce their skills dissects and annotates actual trial court memoranda and Supreme Court briefs highlighting the strengths and weaknesses of each example provides an insightful interview with the Clerk of the Supreme Court of the United States on what the Court expects to see in brief and the assistance that his office provides to all litigants appearing before the Court shows how to transform a memorandum into an advocacy document provides guidance for writing well in an appendix with overview of English sentence structure New to the Fourth Edition: updated examples throughout an updated legal process portion taking into account changes in law and updating examples a new set of Supreme Court briefs with annotations additional material addressing how the Internet is affecting court filings and formatting

Legal Writing for Real Lawyers

Legal Writing for Real Lawyers PDF

Author: Russell T. Bowlan, J.D., M.A.

Publisher: Author House

Published: 2013-06

Total Pages: 277

ISBN-13: 1481759507

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This is not another tedious rulebook littered with unfounded gimmicks contrived at a faculty mixer. Here you will find relevant advice from an attorney who has been writing trial and appellate briefs on the frontlines for two decades. Amid the new material in this expanded edition, Mr. Bowlan subdues the oft dreaded summary judgment response. And the gloves come off when he addresses legal ethics in the Epilogue - "Welcome to the Dark Side" - a must-read for every law student who intends to become a practicing lawyer. What do Trolls, Curmudgeons and Yapping Chihuahuas have to do with legal writing? Open the cover and find out.

Legal Writing in Plain English

Legal Writing in Plain English PDF

Author: Bryan A. Garner

Publisher: University of Chicago Press

Published: 2013-08-26

Total Pages: 285

ISBN-13: 022603139X

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“This easy-to-follow guide is useful both as a general course of instruction and as a targeted aid in solving particular legal writing problems.” —Harvard Law Review 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. For more than twenty years, 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. 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 that will appeal to other professionals: 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. 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. In this new edition, Garner preserves the successful structure of the original while adjusting the content to make it even more classroom-friendly. He includes case examples from the past decade and addresses the widespread use of legal documents in electronic formats. His book remains the standard guide for producing the jargon-free language that clients demand and courts reward. “Those who are willing to approach the book systematically and to complete the exercises will see dramatic improvements in their writing.” —Law Library Journal

The Mindful Legal Writer

The Mindful Legal Writer PDF

Author: Heidi K. Brown

Publisher: Aspen Publishing

Published: 2016-09-16

Total Pages: 672

ISBN-13: 1454836172

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Combining two groundbreaking texts for predictive and persuasive writing in one volume, The Mindful Legal Writer: Mastering Predictive and Persuasive Writing, raises awareness of important elements in the legal writing process—such as pacing, purpose, context, analysis, logic, and clarity. Progressing from a mastery of the basics to a professional level of legal communication in client representation and advocacy, Heidi K. Brown’s classroom-tested pedagogy illustrates the pivotal role of written communication for lawyers.

Legal Writing for Legal Readers

Legal Writing for Legal Readers PDF

Author: Mary Beth Beazley

Publisher: Aspen Publishing

Published: 2022-10-27

Total Pages: 296

ISBN-13: 1543804837

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Applying the perspective of the reader to the craft of writing, Legal Writing for Legal Readers: Predictive Writing for First-Year Students teaches the differences between strong and weak legal writing by letting students read examples of both. Students discover how productive it can be to read a well-articulated argument, as compared to one that is illogical. We aren’t always able to identify our own faults as writers—but as readers, we can see clearly the merits of both the argument and its presentation. The authors’ sidebars and annotations highlight why one writer fails while another succeeds. Students realize the significance of their own behavior as readers and how that behavior should dictate their writing decisions. As readers, students learn to recognize the specific elements of analysis and structure that make legal writing effective. As writers, they will make better and more informed choices, when they think about it from a reader’s perspective. New to the Second Edition: Revised to focus exclusively on predictive analytical writing that most law schools teach during the first semester of the first year Expanded inclusion of annotations and marginal notes that answer anticipated student questions Professors and students will benefit from: Extensive variety of samples and examples, both good and bad, selected to illustrate legal writing concepts for students Broad coverage that includes memos and briefs, as well as complaints, correspondence, and criminal motions Sidebar comments and marginal notes that answer anticipated student questions and define important legal and writing-related terms that may distract students as they learn new concepts Annotations that incorporate cognitive and behavioral theories to explain why some approaches work better than others Exercises that test students’ understanding of important concepts while they learn Teaching materials include: Additional exercises for use with most chapters Additional samples of longer documents Document to further illustrate important concepts for both teachers and students

The Lawyer's Guide to Writing Well

The Lawyer's Guide to Writing Well PDF

Author: Tom Goldstein

Publisher: Univ of California Press

Published: 2003-01-13

Total Pages: 289

ISBN-13: 0520929071

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This eminently practical volume demystifies legal writing, outlines the causes and consequences of bad writing, and prescribes straightforward, easy-to-apply remedies that will make your writing readable. Complete with usage notes that address lawyers' most common errors, this well-organized book is both an invaluable tool for practicing lawyers and a sensible grounding for law students. This much-revised second edition contains a set of editing exercises (and a suggested revision key with explanations) to test your skill. This book is a definitive guide to becoming a better writer—and a better lawyer.