Legal Writing

How to write like a lawyer?

Legal writing is one of the most fundamental skills lawyers need to acquire. There is a reason legal research, writing and analysis is a required coursework for internationally trained lawyers who would like to sit for the bar exam in the U.S. Today AI-powered tools have drafted contracts and started to interpret legal texts. However, legal writing remains crucial because it involves more than drafting contracts or writing emails. Lawyers need to communicate complex and nuanced concepts in simple language, and evaluate the output of these tools to ensure they meet necessary legal standards.  

When I first arrived in law school in the U.S. as a lawyer trained in China, what surprised me was how simple and concise lawyers in the U.S. write (or expect to). In many jurisdictions, whether or not English is used as the official language in the legal context, lawyers around the world take pride in writing complex sentences to impress.

International lawyers from non-English speaking countries must take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) to enroll in a U.S. law school. Remember the absurdly long sentences from TOEFL? You could be going down half a page without spotting a comma. You need to unlearn all of that and start writing in plain English.

I have asked all internationally trained lawyers I spoke with, from partners at BigLaw to the senior counsel of multinational corporations, what books help them become better legal writers in English. Here are their top recommendations:

Reading a few books alone does not make you a better legal writer. Writing effectively requires clear thinking and sound legal analysis, and it takes practice and commitment. The good news is that legal writing skill is something you can strive to attain. Express an idea using simple and straightforward language. Start today!