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Legal Writing, A Contemporary Approach

3rd Edition
Ann M. Sinsheimer | Teresa K. Brostoff | Nancy M. Burkoff | Jacqueline D. Lipton | Andrele Brutus St. Val
ISBN: 9781685613495
Subject: Legal Writing
Format: Print & Electronic - Softbound
Page Count: 270
Copyright: 2024 | Status: Coming Soon

This title utilizes the CasebookPlus™ platform. Learn more at Faculty-CasebookPlus.com.

This Legal Writing textbook guides first year law students and those new to legal writing through the thinking and writing process used in the legal profession. This book covers both predictive and persuasive writing in a way that is accessible to students. The text begins with an introduction on students’ identities within law school and the profession and its impact on their educational journey. It builds skills gradually and introduces students to reading and briefing cases, gathering facts using various methods, drafting memoranda, client communications, transactional documents, and writing for the court. The text provides a concise introduction to citations, showing students how citation fits within the context of legal writing. The text delves into the art of giving and receiving feedback effectively so students will not only learn to edit their work and the work of others for style and substance, they will also learn how to communicate this information.

The text gives examples for students to use as models and has many interactive exercises through which students can test their newly acquired skills, including an annotated example that compares a memorandum and an appellate brief. The online text has links to the cases that students will need, definitions, videos, and exercises to help them hone their writing skills. In addition to learning about written documents and how to communicate in the U.S. common law system, the authors provide an international perspective. Students will learn about civil law traditions through the comparative exercises included in this text. The text also addresses ways to stay focused and reduce stress during law school and in legal careers through the concept of mindful lawyering. Examples in writing and on video showing how judges and lawyers stay focused and mindful are linked in the text.

The third edition offers:

  • New chapters on Feedback (how to give and receive it) and transactional drafting.
  • Updated student samples, including direct comparisons of the similarities and differences between a memo and an appellate brief.
  • A brief introduction to citations and how they fit within the context of legal writing.
  • An introduction to professional identity formation.

This title utilizes the CasebookPlus™ platform. Anchored by faculty-authored self-assessments, CasebookPlus allows students to test their understanding of core concepts as they are learning them in class with quizzes keyed to each chapter, subject area review quizzes, and helpful explanations. Learn more at Faculty-CasebookPlus.com.


Imprint: West Academic Publishing
Series: Interactive Casebook Series
Publication Date: 07/22/2024
Related Subject(s): Professional Identity Formation

Ann M. Sinsheimer, University of Pittsburgh School of Law

Teresa K. Brostoff, University of Pittsburgh School of Law

Nancy M. Burkoff, University of Pittsburgh School of Law

Jacqueline D. Lipton, University of Pittsburgh School of Law

Andrele Brutus St. Val, University of Pittsburgh School of Law

CasebookPlus™

This title is available in our CasebookPlus format. CasebookPlus provides support beyond your classroom lectures and materials by offering additional digital resources to you and your students. Anchored by faculty-authored formative self-assessments keyed to our most popular casebooks, CasebookPlus allows students to test their understanding of core concepts as they are learning them in class – on their own, outside of the classroom, with no extra work on your part. CasebookPlus combines three important elements:

  • A new print or digital casebook
  • Access to a downloadable eBook with the ability to highlight and add notes
  • 12-month access to a digital Learning Library complete with:
Multiple-choice self-assessment questions, including:
  • Chapter questions keyed to the casebook
  • Black Letter Law questions (available in select subjects)
  • Subject area review questions for end of semester use
Essay and short answer questions with sample answers and expert commentary, in 1L and select upper-level subjects

Leading digital study aids, an outline starter, and audio lectures in select subjects

Students can still utilize CasebookPlus digital resources if they’ve purchased a used book or are renting their text by purchasing the Learning Library at westacademic.com.

With CasebookPlus, you can customize your students’ learning experience and monitor their performance. The quiz editor allows you to create your own custom quiz set, suppress specific quiz questions or quiz sets, and time-release quiz questions. Additionally, the flexible, customized reporting capability helps you evaluate your students’ understanding of the material and can also help your school demonstrate compliance with the new ABA Assessment and Learning Outcomes standards.

The third edition offers:

  • New chapters on Feedback (how to give and receive it) and transactional drafting.
  • Updated student samples, including direct comparisons of the similarities and differences between a memo and an appellate brief.
  • A brief introduction to citations and how they fit within the context of legal writing.
  • An introduction to professional identity formation.

Learn more about this series.