OFF THE PRESS

In today's legal world, lawyers aren't just tasked with writing contracts and briefs. They also must correspond with clients via e-mail, promote their practice with a blog and network on Twitter. "The Lawyer's Essential Guide to Writing," newly published from the American Bar Association Law Practice Management Section, will help lawyers master all of these mediums. Based on author Marie Buckley's years of experience as a legal writing coach, this book provides a systematic approach to all forms of written communication, from traditional legal writing such as memoranda, contracts and briefs, to modern mediums including e-mail and blogs. The book explains three guiding principles for powerful writing and shows how to apply those principles to develop a clean, modern and confident style. It also explains how to: * Develop strong writing habits. * Overcome writer's block. * Use writing time efficiently and effectively . * Organize the research before writing. * Think deeply about cases. * Self-edit for excellence. * Use design as a writing tool. * Proofread. * Edit work from other lawyers. Additionally, a helpful usage, grammar and punctuation guide answers the burning questions that most commonly trouble legal writers. "The Lawyer's Essential Guide to Writing" will be a valuable resource for lawyers at all stages of practice and in all types of practices, from solo practitioners to globe-trotting international lawyers. This book will help lawyers find their own voice and write with clarity and authority. Marie Buckley is the founder of Legal Advocacy Workshops and has been training lawyers at major firms for over a decade. She has worked individually with more than 1,000 lawyers and lectures regularly on legal writing at law firms. Following law school, Buckley was a litigator at a major Boston law firm and handled a wide variety of cases, including multi-million dollar contract disputes, failed acquisitions, pension disputes, anti-trust defenses, toxic torts, white-collar crime, SEC investigations and insurance fraud. "The Lawyer's Essential Guide to Writing: Proven Tools and Techniques" published by the ABA Law Practice Management Section costs $79.95 and can be ordered by calling 1-800-285-2221 or visiting www.ababooks.org. Published: Thu, Aug 18, 2011