Aspen Handbook for Legal Writers: A Practical Reference

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The Aspen Handbook for Legal Writers, a brief and accessible reference on mechanics and style, is a useful companion to any legal writing text. Targeted at the needs of legal writers, the text initially focuses on the rules of grammar, style, and usage--with plenty of examples. A section on Legal Documents offers strategies to improve legal writing, with sample letters, memorandum, case brief, trial brief, and appellate brief. Numerous, helpful examples showcase both good and bad writing.

This practical approach helps law students with common problems and dilemmas: substitutions for legalese, lists of commonly used legal idioms, spelling tips, advice on organization and the legal writing process, proofreading, and document design. Modeled after handbooks used at the undergraduate level, the Handbook features a small trim size, comb-binding, clear organization, two-color printing, and helpful design elements to highlight important information. Distinctive features designed with the student in mind include Websites for each topic addressed, Tips and Strategies to highlight key topics such as breaking writers' blocks, meeting deadlines, communicating by email and text messaging, ethics notes, and Challenge Exercises in each chapter to test mastery. A brief Table of Contents on the inside front cover and Style Sheet on the inside back cover offer quick reference.

Key Features:

• For all writers, pragmatic and useful information is given on beginning the writing process, tips to meet deadlines, common legal conventions or traditions, common blunders made by legal writers, and proofreading and document design. The fundamental features of legal writing (accuracy, readability, clarity, and brevity) are covered in depth. Quiz or 'Challenge' questions test readers' comprehension of the material and showcase methods to improve writing.
• Sample documents are provided for the most common types of legal writings, including:
• Sample demand letter
• Sample opinion letter
• Sample legal memorandum
• Sample trial court brief
• Sample appellate brief (which includes a table of authorities)
• Sample case brief
• Sample litigation document (a complaint for breach of contract)
• Sample transactional document (a joint venture agreement)
• Electronic communications are covered-twenty tips for using email in a professional setting are given, along with tips for web conferences, texting, and communicating through social media.
• The Handbook also includes an Appendix on English as a Second Language, which should be helpful to students and new attorneys whose language of origin is not English.

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