Legal Research and Writing: Effective legal research and legal document writing.

Legal Research and Writing: Effective legal research and legal document writing.

Week 1: Introduction to legal research, primary and secondary sources

1. Day 1: Introduction to legal research
2. Day 2: Understanding primary legal sources: statutes, case law, regulations
3. Day 3: Understanding secondary legal sources: textbooks, legal journals, encyclopedias
4. Day 4: Legal citation: importance, formats, citation tools
5. Day 5: Case study analysis using primary and secondary sources

Week 2: Online legal research tools, evaluating sources

1. Day 1: Introduction to online legal research tools: legal databases, search engines
2. Day 2: Using legal databases: Westlaw, LexisNexis, Bloomberg Law
3. Day 3: Using free online resources: Google Scholar, government websites, law school libraries
4. Day 4: Evaluating the reliability and relevance of legal sources
5. Day 5: Case study analysis using online research tools

Week 3: Introduction to legal writing, case briefs, and memos

1. Day 1: Introduction to legal writing: clarity, precision, analysis
2. Day 2: Writing case briefs: facts, issues, ruling, reasoning, analysis
3. Day 3: Writing legal memos: issue, brief answer, facts, discussion, conclusion
4. Day 4: Writing style in legal writing: plain English, legal terminology
5. Day 5: Peer review and feedback on case briefs and memos

Week 4: Advanced legal writing, drafting contracts, and other legal documents

1. Day 1: Drafting contracts: parties, recitals, terms, signature
2. Day 2: Drafting pleadings: complaints, answers, motions
3. Day 3: Drafting correspondence: demand letters, opinion letters, emails
4. Day 4: Revising and editing legal documents: proofreading, citation check, format
5. Day 5: Peer review and feedback on legal documents