A comprehensive guide to legal style and usage, with practical advice on how to write clear, jargon-free legal prose. Includes style tips as well as definitions.

Critical Reading for Success in Law School and Beyond presents critical reading strategies in a systematic sequence so that students can become effective readers who are successful in both law school and in law practice. This reading system was developed by identifying the characteristics of expert readers at different stages of the reading process and then creating a curriculum to teach these skills. It contains essential ingredients for developing skills in reading comprehension as well as legal analysis, case evaluation, and case synthesis. Critical Reading starts with chapters on reading as an advocate and with focus and then introduces students to case structure as well as civil and criminal procedure. Students are then introduced to specific comprehension techniques such as case context, reading for an overview, reading facts, and strategies for understanding unclear text. Critical Reading then addresses strategies for making inferences, evaluating cases, and synthesizing cases. Critical Reading for Success in Law School and Beyond focuses on comprehension of full reported cases as students must be able to read full decisions in practice. It is designed to be used in law school pre-orientation and orientation programs, academic success courses, legal writing and doctrinal classes, as well as individual student support.

Please note that the supplemental materials website has moved to caplaw.com/rll Studies show that the reading skills your students have developed in college may not be enough to ensure their success in law school. Reading law requires professionals to understand the purpose of their reading, to form and express opinions about what they're reading, to apply legal logic, to read with energy, and to adopt sophisticated reading habits that are unique to the study of law. Written for law students, pre-law students, paralegals, and others interested in developing these reading skills, Reading Like a Lawyer teaches each of the following critical legal reading skills: how to read legal casebooks and engage in class, as well as how to use your reading to prepare for exams; how to read published court cases outside of a casebook; how to read legislative material; and how to read online effectively. Based on sound educational research, each chapter includes exercises that challenge students to apply what that chapter has taught. A website accompanies the book and includes additional readings (e.g., on logic) plus opportunities for students to gain confidence by testing their own thoughts against those of the author. For faculty, Reading Like a Lawyer includes a separate teacher's manual and a faculty website with a powerpoint that mirrors the book's principle lessons.

The premise of the book is simple: to teach law students how to be law students. So much time is lost in law school with students trying to learn how to be a law student. So many students spend too much time learning how to take notes, prepare for class, case brief, outline, prepare for finals and so much more. No one will teach them these things yet mastery of these things is pivotal to the student's success in law school. This causes the student stress, leads to being unproductive, and it can create an unbalanced lifestyle. Law School in Plain English is the solution to these problems. With its uncompromising plainness and easy to read style, the book covers all aspects of what it means to be a law student, how to succeed, and how to improve quality of life while in law school.

The ability to read legal cases is one of the most essential skills for law students to be successful in their discipline. It is particularly fundamental since case law is one of the main sources of law. However, the most common assumption is that students would have possessed this skill when they enrol in a law school. This attitudinal fallacy is referred to as 'skills deployment assumption' (Stratman, 1990). Thus, this research attempted to explore the quintessential traits in the reading of legal cases among law students at the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM). In doing so, this research was divided into two stages- Phase One and Phase Two. The main aims of the initial phase were to discern the common practices and the problems faced by learners and lecturers in teaching and learning the reading of cases. Phase Two, with a more in-depth perspective, aspired to unearth the reading strategies employed by law students and legal professionals in reading cases as well as identify similar and different reading strategies used. Data collection for Phase One included semi-structured interview and documentary evidence; while Phase Two employed think-aloud protocol, retrospective interview and researcher's observation. The findings from Phase One uncovered fundamental issues related to the legal skills training, case reading skills, problems faced and suggestions to overcome them. Meanwhile, Phase Two revealed the differences in utilizing the case reading strategies between the different respondents and highlighted distinctive characteristics of strategic readers of legal cases such as the ability to employ varied reading strategies, establish context of the case, connect to previous experiences etc. These findings culminated in a Model on Effective Reading of Legal Cases which can become a useful guideline in developing legal skill courses and improving existing ones. This study has crucial implications on the teaching of case reading in legal education particularly to the curriculum designers, material developers, ESP instructors, legal educators and law students.