MVV111K Summer School of Legal Writing

Faculty of Law
Autumn 2015
Extent and Intensity
0/1. 5 credit(s). Type of Completion: k (colloquium).
Teacher(s)
Lurene Contento (seminar tutor), doc. JUDr. David Sehnálek, Ph.D. (deputy)
Mary Nagel (seminar tutor), doc. JUDr. David Sehnálek, Ph.D. (deputy)
Anthony Niedwiecki (seminar tutor), doc. JUDr. David Sehnálek, Ph.D. (deputy)
Guaranteed by
doc. JUDr. David Sehnálek, Ph.D.
Department of International and European Law – Faculty of Law
Contact Person: Jana Dopitová
Supplier department: Department of International and European Law – Faculty of Law
Prerequisites
SOUHLAS
Very good knowledge of both written and oral English. Strong communication skills.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.

The capacity limit for the course is 25 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/25, only registered: 0/25
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
  • Law (programme PrF, M-PPV)
Course objectives
The goal of this course is to provide students with information concerning:
• Basic research skills (how to find necessary information in books, journals, case law;
• Citation skills (correct and legal citations, rules against plagiarism);
• The ability to brief a case, find important information, use it as an argument;
• The rules and structure of legal documents and seminar and final papers.
Syllabus
  • Ten lectures focused on following topics: Brief Overview of the US Legal System; Writing for a US Audience and Using Plain Language; Organizing Legal Analysis and Synthesizing Legal Sources; What Every Law Student Should Know about Plagiarism; Negotiation Skills and Strategies; Contract Drafting; How to Write an Article or a PhD in Law.
Literature
  • Bryan A. Garner: Legal Writing in Plain English, Exercises, University Of Chicago Press; 1 edition (June 5, 2001) ISBN-10: 0226284182 | ISBN-13: 978-0226284187
Teaching methods
Seminars and lectures focused on legal analysis of written documents, cases and on structure of oral pleadings. Class discussions, preparation and presentation of the legal argumentation and legal documents
Assessment methods
The students are graded for their overall performance and activity during seminars. Attendance on seminars and lectures is compulsory.
Language of instruction
English
Further Comments
The course is taught annually.
The course is taught: in blocks.
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2012, Autumn 2013, Autumn 2014, Autumn 2016, Autumn 2017, Autumn 2018, Autumn 2019, Autumn 2020, Autumn 2021, Autumn 2022, Autumn 2023, Autumn 2024.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Autumn 2015, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/law/autumn2015/MVV111K