Guide to Legal Writing Style

by Leclercq, Terri; Mika, Karin

• ISBN13: 9780735599987
• ISBN10: 073559998X
• Edition: 5th
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2011-02-11
• Publisher: Wolters Kluwer

Summary

With its precise focus on the nuances of legal writing style, this popular paperback text gives readers sensible advice on how to refine and enhance their writing. Guide to Legal Writing Style can be used effectively alongside any basic legal writing coursebook. The book delivers specific advice, targeted to the needs of the novice legal writer: Expands on basic skills of first-year courses by explaining how skills affect readers and offering additional techniques for improvement; Zeroes in on style issues that make the written document more readable and elegant; Provides crisp, pointed, how-to guidance, written in a personal and humorous style; Models clear organization by dividing advice into five chapters covering organization, sentence structure, word choice, punctuation and formatting, making it easy for students to find the information they need; Includes helpful examples of both good and bad writing that show students how to put their knowledge into practice; Concludes with an expanded chapter on formatting that compares and contrasts strong examples of formatting different types of documents.

Table of Contents

Message to Students	p. xv
Reviewing the Basics	p. 1
Basic Review	p. 2
Answers to Basic Review	p. 2
Higher Competency Quiz	p. 4
Creating Sentences with Style	p. 7
Unraveling Tough Sentences; Creating and Connecting Sentences with Style	p. 9
Unraveling Tough Sentences; Creating and Connecting Sentences with Style	p. 21
Avoiding Sentence Errors	p. 22
Avoiding Error	p. 30
Incorporating Authority	p. 31
Incorporating Authority	p. 36
What to Remember	p. 37
Advice to English as a Second Language Writers	p. 37
Choosing Words with Style	p. 39
Jargon and Terms of Art	p. 40
Professional Tone	p. 42
Strong Nouns and Verbs	p. 44
Nominalizations	p. 46
Wordiness	p. 47
Treacherous/Misused Words	p. 50
What to Remember	p. 57
Advice to English as a Second Language Writers	p. 57
Concluding Exercises	p. 58
Punctuating with Style	p. 61
General Punctuation Rules	p. 62
Specific Legal Writing Rules	p. 69
What to Remember	p. 72
Advice to English as a Second Language Writers	p. 72
Concluding Exercises	p. 73
Organizing with Style	p. 75
Undergraduate versus Law School Organization	p. 76
How to Begin to Organize	p. 84
Introductory Material	p. 85
Other Components of Organizing with Style	p. 86
Using Headings as Signposts	p. 86
Using Topic Sentences and Transitions Effectively	p. 87
Other Helpful Advice for Organizing with Style	p. 90
What to Remember	p. 93
Advice to English as a Second Language Writers	p. 94
Concluding Exercises	p. 95
Presenting Material with Style	p. 99
Visual Presentation	p. 100
Memorandum of Law (Segment)	p. 106
Law Student Cover Letter	p. 107
Proofreading and Other Nuances of Presentation	p. 109
What to Remember	p. 113
Appendix Answers to Exercises	p. 115
Higher Competency Quiz	p. 115
Creating Sentences with Style	p. 116
	p. 116
	p. 117
	p. 118
Concluding Exercises	p. 119
Concluding Exercises	p. 120
Concluding Exercises	p. 121
Index	p. 125
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