Description

U.S. Legal Reasoning, Writing, and Practice for International Lawyers John B. Thornton ISBN 9780769856568

This comprehensive legal writing text is designed specifically for international LL.M. students and reflects the author’s extensive experience as a practicing lawyer, a professor of legal writing for international LL.M. programs, and an applied linguist who has taught academic English as a Second Language to international university students.

The book offers a distinctive set of features that address both legal and language-based challenges faced by international students. It introduces the U.S. common law system and contrasts it with civil law traditions, while simultaneously teaching essential legal reasoning and writing skills. Students learn how to draft legal memoranda, contracts, emails, and correspondence with clients, opposing counsel, and colleagues, as well as how to conduct effective legal research.

In addition, the text develops core law school skills, including reading and analyzing cases, preparing case briefs and outlines, and succeeding on final examinations. It directly addresses second-language challenges through targeted guidance on common grammar issues, legal English vocabulary, plain-English drafting, and the rhetorical conventions of U.S. legal writing.

The book also provides insight into contemporary legal practice by examining the culture, hierarchy, and economics of law firms, clarifying what partners expect from associates, and offering practical advice on professional communication. Finally, it includes an extensive collection of authentic writing samples, carefully redacted from actual attorney work product, giving students realistic models for effective legal writing.

U.S. Legal Reasoning, Writing, and Practice for International Lawyers John B. Thornton ISBN 9780769856568, 978-0769856568 & 9780327179801

Author
John B. Thornton