Not long ago, an appellate court fined a lawyer for filing an "incomprehensible brief." That negligence hurt the lawyer's wallet and reputation, but his carelessness hurt his client's case even more. Today, most of our law depends on the written word. A single error can tarnish the writer's image in the eyes of the court and make his or her writing less persuasive. In the end, the client suffers. Even the simplest error reduces the effectiveness of any brief or pleading. Spellcheck won't cure every ill; neither will a loyal and efficient secretary. This little book is dedicated to real legal writing, terse, persuasive, and accurate. It not only teaches brevity, clarity and power in writing, but lists the common pitfalls that infest so much legal writing and destroy the lawyer's meaning and the client's life. It includes tables of commonly misspelled and misused words and commonly confused prepositions. It lays out guidelines for persuasive brief-writing, deals with the letters lawyers regularly write - and some they shouldn't - with office memoranda, and with the basic rules of punchy, persuasive oral argument. It addresses the rules of grammar; the violations of those rules that instantly mark the writer as illiterate at best, and can destroy any amount of clever reasoning and knowledge of the law. It gives examples of how to write effectively . . . and some horrors that good lawyers must avoid. Most important, The Literate Lawyer shows the road to simple, common-sense persuasion, powerful, solid writing that makes the lawyer's point with strength and clarity. And wins cases. About the author: Robert Barr Smith is a Professor at the University of Oklahoma Law Center. He earned a BA in History and a Doctor of Laws from Stanford, and is a member of both the Oklahoma and California Bars. He came to the Law Center in 1982, after retiring from the United States Army as a Colonel. He designed the Law Center's writing, oral advocacy and research class, taught and directed it for fifteen years, served six years as Associate Dean for Academics, and taught trial and appellate advocacy, advanced brief writing, and paralegal writing courses.

To understand how the legal system works, students must consider the law in terms of its structures, processes, language, and modes of thought and argument—in short, they must become literate in the field. Legal Literacy fulfills this aim by providing a foundational understanding of key concepts such as legal personhood, jurisdiction, and precedent, and by introducing students to legal research and writing skills. Examples of cases, statutes, and other legal materials support these concepts. While Legal Literacy is an introductory text, it also challenges students to consider critically the system they are studying. Touching on significant socio-legal issues such as access to justice, legal jargon, and plain language, Zariski critiques common legal traditions and practices, and analyzes what it means “to think like a lawyer.” As such, the text provides a sound basis for those who wish to pursue further studies in law or legal studies as well as those seeking a better understanding of how the legal field relates to the society that it serves.

Cheating Lessons is a guide to tackling academic dishonesty at its roots. James Lang analyzes the features of course design and classroom practice that create cheating opportunities, and empowers teachers to build more effective learning environments. Instructors who curb academic dishonesty become better educators in other ways as well.

Domestic violence accounts for approximately one-fifth of all violent crime in the United States and is among the most difficult issues confronting professionals in the legal and criminal justice systems. In this volume, Elizabeth Britt argues that learning embodied advocacy—a practice that results from an expanded understanding of expertise based on lived experience—and adopting it in legal settings can directly and tangibly help victims of abuse. Focusing on clinical legal education at the Domestic Violence Institute at the Northeastern University School of Law, Britt takes a case-study approach to illuminate how challenging the context, aims, and forms of advocacy traditionally embraced in the U.S. legal system produces better support for victims of domestic violence. She analyzes a wide range of materials and practices, including the pedagogy of law school training programs, interviews with advocates, and narratives written by students in the emergency department, and looks closely at the forms of rhetorical education through which students assimilate advocacy practices. By examining how students learn to listen actively to clients and to recognize that clients have the right and ability to make decisions for themselves, Britt shows that rhetorical education can succeed in producing legal professionals with the inclination and capacity to engage others whose values and experiences diverge from their own. By investigating the deep relationship between legal education and rhetorical education, Reimagining Advocacy calls for conversations and action that will improve advocacy for others, especially for victims of domestic violence seeking assistance from legal professionals.

Innocent of their own egotism and moral compromises. With an unerring ear for dialogue, a cunning artistry, and a prosecutor's radar for loaded testimony, Joseph has captured the argot and mannerisms of the legal trade and the strange truths that emerge when lawyers let their guard down for a while.

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.