Effective Lawyering: A Checklist Approach to Legal Writing and Oral Argument |  | Authors: Austen L. Parrish, Dennis T. Yokoyama
Publisher: Carolina Academic Press
Category: Book
List Price: $20.00
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Rating:  10 reviews
Sales Rank: 59748
Media: Paperback
Pages: 180
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 8.4 x 5.4 x 0.5
ISBN: 1594603480
Dewey Decimal Number: 808.06634
EAN: 9781594603488
ASIN: 1594603480
Publication Date: July 15, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Effective Lawyering concisely describes useful, yet often neglected, writing techniques. The book has pithy discussions of: (1) ways to avoid recurring, yet frequently overlooked, writing problems; (2) sensible approaches to writing common legal documents; and (3) methods for preparing an oral argument. In addition, it provides the reader with a series of checklists to turn to when undertaking a writing project or preparing for oral argument. This book is for law students and practitioners who want to be refreshed on the fundamentals of effective lawyering: fundamentals that they likely learned the first year of law school, but perhaps have forgotten.
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Showing reviews 1-5 of 10
Highly Recommended! August 14, 2007
Jessica Monroe
10 out of 11 found this review helpful
Effective Lawyering is a very helpful book - it replaced several other legal writing/argument books I used before. The checklists were particularly convenient and useful. I also really liked the examples at the end with the comments explaining why they were good samples. I have never seen that before in a book, and it was great to be able to turn to a sample and immediately understand what to pull from it. Also, it was very easy to read.
The best legal writing book out there August 20, 2007
John N. Stephenson (Carson City, NV)
8 out of 9 found this review helpful
I spent fall 2005 researching and drafting this book for Professor Parrish. My assignment was simple: (1) collect all the legal writing books in Southwestern Law School's library, and (2) boil entire chapters on oral argument, lanugage composition, or trial court briefs into a single page. This book is the most concise synthesis on legal writing that I have ever seen. I frequently use it as a judicial clerk at the Nevada Supreme Court and have lent it to other clerks. I am hopeful that you will enjoy it and find it equally useful.
A must-have for legal writing! August 9, 2007
Christine Chung
7 out of 8 found this review helpful
I highly recommend this book not only for your legal writing class but for any law course, seminar, and the work field. The authors have presented their approach to legal writing that is concise, practical and easy to follow. Definitely a MUST-HAVE for law school and the legal profession.
A Jewel September 10, 2007
J. Wolf
5 out of 6 found this review helpful
Effective Lawyering is the perfect book to help both students and practicing attorneys write clearly and concisely, whether for objective memos or for trial and appellate briefs. The book also has an excellent chapter on oral argument. The authors offer outstanding advice on everything from formatting (how many other writing books discuss widowed and orphaned text?) to academic writing. The checklists are invaluable. This book is a jewel.
Excellent guide to legal writing and argumentation. April 17, 2009
Jerry Saperstein (Evanston, IL USA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I am not a lawyer - but my clients and prospects are. Thus I receive many pleadings and briefs and not infrequently prepare background papers on various aspects of technology that will be incorporated in one way or another into briefs and memoranda. I also write for an audience of lawyers.
So, from time to time, I will read books on legal writing in order to understand what my clients face and to be better able to communicate with them.
Many books on legal writing are boring and, frankly, don't do a good job at explaining the mechanism of communicating.
"Effective Lawyering", on the other hand, is a little gem. It bills itself as "A checklist approach to legal writing and oral argument". And that is precisely what it is.
In seven chapters (six of them devoted to writing and one to preparing for oral argument), the authors crisply distill the essence of legal writing and argumentation. The authors claim their book is intended for those who have "learned or are learning the basics of legal writing, and at most needs only reminding of what they [the basics] are".
The first part of each chapter is a discussion of various does-and-don'ts, such as (in the first chapte), grammar, warning not to use cliches and so on. Then there is the checklist. Commonsense things, but often forgotten in the midst of deadlines - and that is the beauty of this little book. It's like a coach going over the play with you one last time.
While definitely geared toward lawyers, the book will serve well in a number of other roles, such as determining the skills of your own lawyer. If a lawyer can't write so that you understand their output, you may have a problem. Many of the checklist items are appropriate to any form of persuasive writing.
Overall, this is an excellent little reference on legal writing or any form of writing that is intended to persuade and convince the logical reader of the rightness of your views.
Jerry
Showing reviews 1-5 of 10
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