Legal Research Guides by Course - Advanced Legal Writing: Legal Drafting
Course Description
This course is intended to build on the foundation resulting from the two first-year Legal Research and Writing courses and introduce new drafting skills and new research techniques. The course theme is how lawyers work with legislation and regulations. Students will prepare various types of correspondence, including a job letter, client letter and demand letter; and will prepare a trial court memorandum in support or opposition to a motion in limine, and will do short exercises that will require the rewriting and editing of statutes. The final paper assignment will require the drafting of a state or federal statute, local ordinance, university or law school policy statement, or set of state or federal regulations, or similar rule-based document (such as sports rules) on a topic of the student's choice. (3 credits) Paper
Faculty Who Teach This Course
- Jan M. Levine (Associate Professor of Law and Director of Legal Research and Writing)
Subject Covered Presently in Collection by
Print Collection
KF245-KF251 Legal Composition and Draftsmanship
PN147-PN171 Literary Composition and Technique
Legal Research Databases
- Bloomberg Law
- Hein Online
- Legal Scholarship Network
- LegalTrac
- LexisAdvance
- WestlawNext
- CALI - Legal Writing
Resumes and Cover Letters
- Legal Career Toolkit: Resume Dos and Don'ts - http://law.unh.edu/careers/legal-career-toolkit/resume-writing-dos-and-donts
- How to Write a Legal Resume (BCG Attorney Search) - http://www.bcgsearch.com/article/60792/How-to-Write-a-Legal-Resume/
- How to Write a Legal Resume (Columbia Law School) - https://www.law.columbia.edu/careers/career_services/alumni/alumresumes
- The Legal Cover Letter: an Overview - http://www.law.fsu.edu/placement/images/coverltr_overview.pdf
- Legal Cover Letter Dos & Don'ts (Amazing Cover Letters) - http://www.amazing-cover-letters.com/cover_letter_resources/legal_cover_letter.htm
- Creating a Cover Letter (Duke Law Career Center) - http://www.law.duke.edu/career/1l/professionaldevelopment/coverletter
- Resume, Cover Letter, Writing Sample and Thank You Letter Tips (Touro Law School) - http://www.tourolaw.edu/cso/docs/resumes.pdf
Drafting Legal Documents (in General)
- Drafting Legal Documents (U of Michigan) - http://www.law.umich.edu/library/students/research/Documents/drafting.pdf
- Legal Writing 201 - http://www.plainlanguagenetwork.org/legal/legalwriting.pdf
- Drafting Legal Documents: a Resource Guide (Seattle University) - http://lib.law.washington.edu/btg/2001/drafting.htm
Demand and Client Letters
- Drafting a Client Letter (CUNY School of Law) - http://www.law.cuny.edu/academics/WritingCenter/students/strategies-techniques/client-letter.html
- Writing for Your Audience: The Client - http://www.michbar.org/journal/article.cfm?articleID=449&volumeID=33
- Demand Letters: the Basics (NOLO) - http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/demand-letter-settle-dispute-30105.html
Writing a Memorandum
- Legal Writing: Structuring a Better Legal Memorandum or Opinion - http://cherylstephens.com/professional/communication/Organization.pdf
- How to Structure Your Legal Memorandum (Westlaw) - http://store.westlaw.com/pdf/perspec/how1299.pdf
Legislative Drafting
- Drafting Legal Documents (National Archives) - http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/write/legal-docs/
- NCSL Bill Drafting Manuals - http://www.ncsl.org/legislative-staff/lsss/bill-drafting-manuals.aspx
- Legislative Drafting - http://www.oocities.org/iforstat/lrhp14.html
- Pennsylvania State Association of Boroughs - Sample Ordinances - http://www.boroughs.org/ordinances/ordinances.php
Blogs
- Legal Writing.net Blog - http://blogs.utexas.edu/legalwriting/
- Legal Writing Pro Blog - http://www.legalwritingblog.com/
- Sharpening Your Legal Writing Skills (Los Angeles County Bar Assn) - http://www.lacba.org/Files/LAL/Vol29No7/2006SG04.pdf
DCLI Webpage Links
- Primary Legal Research: Case Law, Statutory Law, Administrative Law, Constitutions (contains quick links to our statutes, our administrative codes, federal and state case law and our constitutions)
- Legal Research Guides: Legal Research and Writing
Course Listed Under the following Law School Concentrations:
- Civil Litigation
- Criminal Law
- Government & Public Interest Law
- Health Law & Science
- Intellectual Property
- Labor & Employment Law
- Real Property & Estate Planning
Course Satisfies: Professional Skills Course Requirement and Upper-Level Writing Requirement Course
Created by Patricia Horvath
rev. 1/30/2013