Like the very popular first edition, this second edition puts the reader in the place of a first-year attorney faced with real life assignments. In doing so, it teaches law students not only how to succeed in law school, but also how to succeed in the practice of law. Using graphics and visual samples, the book shows best practices in both traditional and electronic environments. Speaking to its readers in a straightforward manner, A Lawyer Writes communicates essential skills and theories so that they will be retained for a lifetime of legal practice. This edition is updated as a whole, and new chapters on client letters and the transition to persuasive writing have been added.

"Like the popular earlier editions, the fourth edition of A Lawyer Writes puts the reader in the place of a first-year attorney faced with real-life assignments. In doing so, it teaches law students not only how to succeed in law school, but also how to succeed in the practice of law. Using graphics and visual samples that demonstrate both effective and ineffective analytical techniques, this updated edition illustrates best practices for objective legal analysis and provides an overview of the transition from objective to persuasive writing. The content and examples in the fourth edition have been supplemented, updated, and reorganized to provide an easy-to-use, step-by-step approach for learning legal analysis and objective writing. A Lawyer Writes aims to provide clear and concrete instruction about each facet of legal analysis, using the same order students will follow when performing the tasks in legal practice. The textbook also provides the relevant theory and background behind the choices attorneys make in their legal writing, enabling students to transfer those techniques to future settings. Speaking to its readers in a straightforward manner, A Lawyer Writes communicates essential skills and theories students can use throughout a lifetime of legal practice"--

Whether you are starting law school or preparing to start the practice of law, you need to learn the essential skills and theory of your trade. A Lawyer Writes puts the reader in the place of a first-year attorney tasked with real life assignments. In doing so, it teaches law students not only how to succeed in law school, but also how to succeed in the practice of law. The book uses graphics and visual samples to demonstrate the variety of ways in which attorneys write effectively, showing best practices in both traditional and electronic environments. Speaking to its reader in a straightforward manner, A Lawyer Writes communicates essential skills and theories so that they will be retained for a lifetime of legal practice.

This best-selling book outlines the causes and consequences of bad legal writing and prescribes straightforward, easy-to-apply remedies that will make your writing readable. Usage notes address lawyers' most common errors, and editing exercises allow readers to test their skills, making this an invaluable tool for practicing lawyers as well as a sensible grounding for law students. New sections in this edition: - Getting to the point - Communicating digitally - Writing persuasively - Twenty-five common mistakes"--Provided by publisher.

Do judges use the power of the state for the good of the nation? Or do they create new laws in line with their personal views? When newspapers reported a court ruling on Brexit, senior judges were shocked to see themselves condemned as enemies of the people. But that did not stop them ruling that an order made by the Queen on the advice of her prime minister was just ‘a blank piece of paper’. Joshua Rozenberg, Britain’s best-known commentator on the law, asks how judges can maintain public confidence while making hard choices.

Click here to view a side by side comparison of the first and second editions. The second edition of An Advocate Persuades is reorganized into four parts: (1) Introduction to Advocacy; (2) Developing Arguments from a Persuasive Perspective; (3) Constructing Persuasive Court Documents (both at the trial and appellate level); and (4) Oral Argument (both at the trial and appellate level). The book also has an expanded appendix, which provides an overview of trial and appellate litigation in both civil and criminal cases, annotated trial and appellate briefs, and advice about moot court competitions. The book's first part, an Introduction to Advocacy, provides an overview of the nature of persuasion generally and the core ethical standards that an advocate is required to follow. The second part focuses on the heart of persuasive advocacy--developing persuasive arguments. This part provides easy-to-follow, step-by-step advice that students can rely on whether they are drafting a trial motion or appellate brief. The advice is provided in five chapters: Chapter 3, Organizing Claims and Arguments; Chapter 4, Themes for Persuasive Arguments; Chapter 5, Drafting Persuasive Arguments; Chapter 6, Refining Persuasive Arguments; and Chapter 7, Editing Persuasive Arguments. The content in these chapters has been significantly revised to provide detailed coverage in a practical and accessible format. The chapters incorporate lists, checklists, graphics, charts, and updated, annotated examples to aid students' understanding of the concepts and theories described. The third part, Constructing Persuasive Court Documents, describes the court documents through which attorneys present their persuasive arguments. It starts with Chapter 8, Trial Motions & Motion Practice, which focuses on trial practice, trial court motions, and supporting memoranda. Chapter 9, Appellate Briefs & Appellate Practice, introduces readers to the world of appellate courts by explaining the appellate process, the relevant players, standards of review, and how to draft various components of the appellate brief. Finally, Chapter 10, Statements of Fact and of the Case, describes how to construct a persuasive recitation of facts, focusing on which facts to include and how to present them in the light most favorable to the drafter's client. Each chapter provides numerous annotated examples, allowing the reader to see both effective and ineffective techniques. The fourth part, Oral Argument, now consists of five subsections designed to demystify the process of oral argument. These sections provide students the step-by-step guidance they need whether arguing before a trial or appellate court. The five sections are (1) The Purpose of Oral Argument; (2) Preparing for Oral Argument; (3) Presenting Oral Argument; (4) Trial Courts vs. Appellate Courts; and (5) Remote Oral Arguments. The newly created fifth section provides students with instruction and practical advice for presenting oral argument remotely. The second edition of An Advocate Persuades aims to provide clear and concrete instruction about each facet of the persuasive writing and oral argument process in a logical order consistent with how an advocate will typically perform the tasks. The text's practical approach to theory, coupled with insightful examples, will enable readers to transfer their understanding to real-life legal settings. With straightforward advice, informative graphics, and an accessible layout, this text will be useful both to students in the classroom and to lawyers already in legal practice.