Legal-English Linguistic Services

Legal English is a language form of its own with a peculiar history caught up in the cultural development of the English legal system. Vocabulary, phraseology, grammar structures, and even punctuation do not follow the same form as General English. Native English speakers generally are unable to understand it and disputes on meaning often form the basis of litigation.

Transfer of Anglo-American Legal English into the EU jurisdiction magnifies the problems of understanding – by European lawyers and their clients alike. European lawyers without English as their Mother tongue are walking through a linguistic minefield.

As a Lawyer-Linguist with specialist qualifications Paul Cooper is able to help with:

Language Audits

Using special corpora software I can analyse and review correspondence and precedent documentation for consistency and precision. In this way language errors used by individual lawyers, or generally within the Firm, can be identified and remedied before they cause problems for clients or possible claims between parties or against the Firm.

Plain Legal English

Re-writing documents in plain Legal English to meet the standards and ideals promoted by the Plain Legal English Movement. Such documents are immediately more understandable to both clients and other lawyers. Transactions can be completed more effectively and efficiently when intended meaning is clearly conveyed.

Document Revision

Reviewing, rewriting and restructuring documentation. This ensures more effective and efficient document management as well as ensuring consistency throughout the office. It includes sentence and paragraph revision, word choice, punctuation, glossaries, definitions and other aspects of quality working documents.

Persuasive Text

Much legal documentation revolves around argument. To be effective, persuasive documents need to be structured in a certain way and to use language of persuasion. Paul Cooper can review your drafts to sharpen the effectiveness of your written argument.

Legislative and Regulatory Revision

For governments, regulatory bodies, and incorporated or unincorporated associations, reviewing existing or translated regulatory text for structure, clarity, consistency, and effectiveness of intention.

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