Editorial Review

Now in its Eighth Edition, <b>CRIMINAL LAW AND ITS PROCESSES: Cases and Materials</b> maintains great success as the longtime leading book in Criminal Law. In addition to a highly respected and renowned authorship, this scholarly gem is distinguished by the intellectual integrity of its thematic framework, its teachability and the wealth and depth of its content. In addition to focusing on basic principles, analytical problems enhance student learning by testing their thought process, applications and interactions in context.<p class=copymedium><b>This edition preserves the outstanding qualities that have earned it distinguished success:</b><li class=copymedium>a highly respected authorship¿Kadish, Schulhofer, and new co-author Steiker¿comprised of nationally recognized and renowned scholars<li class=copymedium>cohesive intellectual framework¿ by viewing the law both as a system for apportioning blame in accordance with moral norms and as an instrument of social control, it provides an analytical tool with which students can interpret and understand doctrine<li class=copymedium>a cases-and-notes pedagogy with excerpted materials, questions, and problems<li class=copymedium>a focus on developing an understanding of principles and rules applicable to all crimes, rather than the detailed and disjointed elements of many particular crimes<li class=copymedium>problems that enhance student understanding of the basic principles by testing their applications and interactions in the context of particular offenses<li class=copymedium>in-depth coverage of rape, homicide, and theft</ul><p class=copymedium><b>The Eighth Edition has been carefully updated to maintain the integrity of its framework, preserve its challenging content and enhance its teachability:</b> <li class=copymedium>it achieves continuity with its predecessors and makes little change in organization or coverage<li class=copymedium>most principal teaching cases have been retained, with recent cases and illustrations added<li class=copymedium>editing throughout enhances the transparency of the organization and accessibility of the notes and questions, providing greater clarity and ease of teaching<li class=copymedium>organization is designed to permit ready adaptation for longer or shorter courses<li class=copymedium>a new section gives detailed attention to issues of statutory interpretation<li class=copymedium>a new chapter on Discretion allows for study of the legal framework that governs charging, bargaining and sentencing, and the role they play in shaping determinations of culpability and punishment<li class=copymedium>greater attention is focused on the ways that sentencing considerations and the growth of federal criminal law have affected traditional criminal law principles and practices<li class=copymedium>new attention is focused on international human rights and their implications for American criminal law<li class=copymedium>more thorough examination of common law vocabulary and doctrine and a clarified organization enable students to differentiate more systematically between the common law and Model Penal Code approaches<li class=copymedium>a completely revised section on the death penalty deals more fully with contemporary debates and recent Supreme Court decisions</ul> ... Read more

Reviews

Great Criminal Law Casebook, October 7, 2004
If you could call a casebook awesome I would use those words here. This book is great for outlining and it leads you through Criminal Law step by step. You'll be amazed at your deep understanding of Criminal Law when you finish with this casebook.

Great fun for the law hobbyist, March 1, 2002
I bought this book on a whim. For a long time I had been interested in law and wanted to see what studying it was all about. I don't think I could have picked a better place to start. From the word go this book delivered interesting cases with in-depth analysis at the end of each one. The analysis was especially helpful in picking apart the important points of law that the case represented. Now when I watch Law and Order and The Practice, I can tell my girlfriend about what is going on (in the legal parts) and sound like a total know-it-all, which is totally awesome.

Concise, August 23, 1999
For first year law students it is a must. Reflection on this book even for the most seasoned attorney is recommended as well.

Great 1st year book!, December 14, 1999
OK, 1Ls of the world...this book is organized very well for outlining. The text covers all of the areas of criminal law, peppered with interesting cases drawn from around the country, and really does a good job of giving the reader a variety of perspectives on the contentious issues that comprise criminal law.

As described, February 12, 2010
Great book, just as described in the title and picture. Saved about $[...] bucks off the school bookstore shelf.

No answer, August 18, 2010
I have submitted an urgent message asking when i can realistically expect my delivery, in case i need to cancel my order and no response.

Law Textbooks, June 4, 2010
I would definitely purchase from this seller again. I purchased a used law book that is in great condition and the price was easy on the pocket book considering the high cost of law textbooks. Also, the seller was more than prompt. The item shipped the same day I made the purchase, and I received the book much sooner than I ever expected. Highly recommend anyone, especially law students, using this source for quality, affordable books. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Professors Fischl and Paul explain law school exams in ways no one has before, all with an eye toward improving the reader's performance. The book begins by describing the difference between educational cultures that praise students for 'right answers,' and the law school culture that rewards nuanced analysis of ambiguous situations in which more than one approach may be correct. Enormous care is devoted to explaining precisely how and why legal analysis frequently produces such perplexing situations.

But the authors don't stop with mere description. Instead, Getting to Maybe teaches how to excel on law school exams by showing the reader how legal analysis can be brought to bear on examination problems. The book contains hints on studying and preparation that go well beyond conventional advice. The authors also illustrate how to argue both sides of a legal issue without appearing wishy-washy or indecisive. Above all, the book explains why exam questions may generate feelings of uncertainty or doubt about correct legal outcomes and how the student can turn these feelings to his or her advantage.

In sum, although the authors believe that no exam guide can substitute for a firm grasp of substantive material, readers who devote the necessary time to learning the law will find this book an invaluable guide to translating learning into better exam performance. ... Read more

Reviews

The Secrets of Success are Secret No More, July 26, 2000
Getting to Maybe is a Godsend. Even for those of you who've already finished first-year, it's well worth getting.

I am the author of Planet Law School: What You Need to Know Before You Go--but Didn't Know to Ask. Unfortunately, Getting to Maybe was first published in 1999, a year after PLS, so I could not recommend it in PLS. Hence this posting, now. Even though the authors and I are competitors, and our books are published by different firms, I urge all law students to get Getting to Maybe. (For one thing, the authors' critique of the IRAC model is succinct and devastating.)

If you take doing well in law school (and becoming a good attorney) seriously, this book is a necessity.

It's so well-written that I had to force myself to put it down, and ended up reading it in just two sittings, of several hours each.

The earlier review, about the teaching of Tantric Yoga, in exactly right. With Getting to Maybe, the secrets are secret no more.

Impressive rigor, July 18, 2002
The aim of this book is to help current law students perform well on law school exams. Law school exams are famously ambiguous; hence the title of the book.

The title of the book is a play on the title of a classic book about the art of negotiation, called _Getting to Yes_. Implicit in _Getting to Maybe_ is that, unlike a negotiation, performance on law school exams does not require an exact answer or resolution.

The method by which these law professors explain this concept is especially interesting. In connection with their academic research, they propose to break down law school exams into small components, and thoroughly analyze those components. The result is a very substantial and comprehensive analysis of the structure of law school exams and the skills required to do well on these exams.

You may be asking how the professors purport to explain _all_ law school exams, for surely there are professors for whose exams these methods will not work. These professors make the interesting point that in the United States, law education is fairly uniform, and, therefore, the skills required to perform well on law school exams are fairly uniform, as well.

I read this book prior to starting law school. I found it useful primarily because I have read a number of other books about legal reasoning and the study of law and the law school experience that are more basic than the material in this book. If this is your first book regarding the study of law or peformance in law school, I would advise putting it aside in favor of a book offering a broader overview of law, its study, and law school.

Worth your time, December 21, 2003
I am a student at a top 5 law school. This book does not outline a specific system for taking exams, so if that is what you are looking for, look else where. What this book does provide is a good overview of the different types of gray areas that appear time and time again on exams. This will help you "spot the issues" and give you a feel for the kind of stuff your profs want to see written about come exam time. There are also plenty of general exam taking tips that area helpful. I have read many exam taking books, and this is the best of them. Read it early in the semester. It will help you focus on the important stuff in class and in the reading.

Everyone Needs Help at some point..., December 26, 2000
Whether you want to believe it or not...taking a law school exam is unlike any exam you took in undergrad. I found that out after I bombed my first exam, and a friend recommended this book. If you do nothing else, skip to the part where it talks about how to write an exam, how to address all the issues that your prof is looking for and "czar of the universe." "Czar" was a section that I found VERY helpful when I had to write a dissent for an exam! My school didn't really tell any of us 1Ls how to take an exam and I wish I had read this book before I even started. Don't worry about making law review or any of those other "extras" that people seem so concerned about--because if you can't perform well on an exam and spot issues in an allotted time, law review will be the least of your concerns. My contracts prof even suggested this book when prepping for his exam.

Bought this (almost) too late - don't make the same mistake!, May 16, 2006
I bought this book after my third year of law school, after being put on academic probation. Basically, I had to get my grades up in a term and a half (summer term plus a full load in the fall), or I wouldn't graduate. I wish I hadn't let things get that bad before I read this book! After reading the book and applying its theory, I was able to raise my GPA from 1.7 to 2.6. This book made a huge difference in the way I thought about classes, the way I took notes in class, the way I outlined... and I felt way more confident going into my exams. And my grades improved. That's all there is to it.

Great for improving exam writing, legal analysis, and writing skills, April 15, 2006
In my first year of law school, my legal writing tutor recommended this book. After reading it, my grades went up, which I believe was partially because of how this book helped me improve writing law school exams. It helps new law students understand what it means to "think like a lawyer." That is, it gives students a framework for analyzing complex issues.

Reading this book also significantly increased my performance in our legal writing class. At the end of my first year, my professor said my writing went from nearly the worst in the class to the best. This progress was a direct result from reading this book, improving my writing organization, and practice.

I highly recommend this book for new law students who want a head-start improving their legal analysis skills, and especially for students struggling with their legal writing. Law students have so much to read, it's hard to find more time for a book like this. But even reading a few chapters will provide students with a new paradigm for their legal analysis and writing.

This book would make a great gift for a student prior to starting law school because it is easy to read and introduces readers to subjects they will cover in their first-year courses.

Expensive and Not Helpful, November 12, 2005
I read this book early in the fall of my 1L year. At the time, I thought that the book was useful and that reading it would give me an edge over my classmates. In retrospect, the book did not give me any edge and reading the book was a waste of time.

The book does give you confidence. It leads you to think that you will be able to take apart a legal exam, reduce it to its essentials, and reason in a manner that your professors will appreciate. I guess it might be worth your reading if you need a shot of self-confidence.

But I do not think that the book will make much of a difference in how anyone does on law school exams. The authors' main point is to look for ambiguities (or "forks"). When you see something on your exam that looks ambiguous, try to explore all the ambiguities. In other words, argue in the alternative--i.e., point out that if X is said to occur, then Y results, whereas if A is said to occur, then B results. Let your professors know that you can see the little things that might produce completely different legal results.

This method is great as a theory. However, it is difficult to apply the method in an actual test setting. I remember that my first exam during my 1L year was in criminal law. I was given a long fact pattern, and I tried to apply the "Getting to Maybe" method. One problem I found was that I was pushed for time. It was not possible to discuss all the ambiguities in the amount of time allowed. The method the book suggested was just not possible in the context of my three-hour bluebook exam. There was no way I could explore all the ambiguities on the exam the way the authors suggest.

Another problem I have with the book is that it is not really giving you any special advice. Reduced to a sentence, the authors are just telling you not to be conclusory with your answers--in other words, show that certain items in the fact pattern could be argued multiple ways. This is hardly novel law school exam advice worth $22.00!

I have read reviews by people who claim that this book helped them make law review or whatever. I also know many people who have read this book and have gotten below average law school grades. I do not think that this book will make a difference in how anyone does in law school. If you are one of those people who has to read everything, because you don't want your classmates to have read something you haven't read, then by all means read this. If, on the other hand, you are concerned about using your time effectively, then you are probably better off working on your outlines or reviewing your lecture notes rather than wasting your time reading this book.

Avoid Commercial Outlines and Study Groups, October 27, 2002
Having graduated with high honors from one of the top five law schools, I relied on several of these books to identify the appropriate approach to taking law school exams. I applied the approach as follows: (1) read only those assignments provided by the professor (ignore commercial outlines, etc.); (2) take extensive notes of everything the professor says in class (and do not write down any student comments or student answers to Socratic questions); (3) organize your notes of the professor's lectures into your own outline; (4) read the professor's prior exam files, including any student answers selected by the professor as "model answers"; and (5) practice taking the professor's old exams in the few days leading up to exam day. The rationale is that your professor will be looking for you to spot those issues that he or she views as important. The more of these issues you spot, the higher your exam grade will be. Ditch those commercial outlines and study group meetings. In addition to Getting to Maybe, you should also prepare for law school by conditioning yourself to what its competition will feel like. Two excellent books that accomplish this goal are Scott Turow's One L (Harvard in the 1970s) and Scott Gaille's The Law Review (2002 book about competition at The University of Chicago Law School).

A Book Worth Your Time, January 3, 2007
I started my first year at law school with the impression--the conviction!--that someone was going to take time out of his/her lecture schedule to teach us how to write law school exams. This, of course, never happened and, after bungling through a practice midterm with a slipshod IRAC, I decided to seek some advice. My law school's academic preparation (resuscitation?) program recommended this book, and I picked it up from Amazon several weeks prior to finals.

I've generally considered test-taking "manuals" to be overly simplistic and far too general to be effective. But this book is different. It doesn't prescribe worthless "strategies" for stock scenarios (like those dreadful LSAT books), but instead attempts to get you to rethink your approach to the exam--from preparation to execution. What impressed me the most about _Getting to Maybe_ is that it makes a point not to provide pat answers, or to patch up poor preparation. Rather, it suggests new ways to think about the law, and about the scenarios that appear on law school exams.

One caveat is that, to get anything out of this book, you need to pick it up well before finals: this book tries to get you to approach law school differently, and this is something that can't be done a day before the exam. This book is worth your time--not only is the prose far more lively and entertaining than, say, that of International Shoe, but you really come away from _Getting to Maybe_ feeling like the effort was worthwhile.

An essential tool for law students, March 20, 2007
I am a law professor at the oldest night law school in San Francisco who has struggled for years to communicate to my stdents how to prepare for exams. I wish someone had told me about this book years ago. It explains cogently and distinctly why law school exams are different than those exams you did so well on in college (or you wouldn't be in law school) and why you need to start thinking differently. The book goes through the different types of questions one mught find on an exam and shows how to address them. It also provides numerous tips on how to study and how to approach exam writing. The book also does a great job of explaining a theme I have pushed for years --- that exam-writing skills are really the writing and thinking skills students will need when they become lawyers. It should be required reading in law schools. And it wouldn't hurt law professors to read the book either. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Arguably the most valuable reference tool available to the legal community, Black's Pocket Dictionary provides more than 10,000 clear, concise, and precise definitions. The essential companion dictionary to the Standard edition and as a stand-alone tool, Black's Pocket Dictionary also includes a dictionary guide and the complete U.S. Constitution. Black's is cited more than any other legal dictionary, comes recommended by law faculty, and is available in the pocket format and a variety of other useful editions. ... Read more

Editorial Review

For more than a century Black's has been the gold standard for the language of law. Today it is the most widely cited law book in the world. Edited by Bryan A. Garner, the world s leading legal lexicographer, the 9th Edition is the most authoritative, comprehensive law dictionary ever published. It contains more than 45,000 terms and includes: 2,000 more terms than the 8th Edition and 19,000 more than the 7th Edition including click fraud, Code Adam, collaborative law, ecoterrorism, environmental tort, friendly subpoena, happy-slapping, honor crime, secret detention, Schumer box, and super precedent. The date when selected terms were first used in English-language contexts, especially in judicial opinions. Heightened accuracy having more than 200 lawyers around the country reviewed terms. Definitions of more than 1,000 law-related abbreviations and acronyms. Almost 3,000 quotations drawn from sources over five centuries. Alternate spellings or equivalent expressions for more than 5,300 terms and West Key Numbers. ... Read more

Editorial Review

A guide to effective, clear, and powerful legal writing, encouraging writers to challenge conventions. Shows how to organize ideas, create and refine prose, sharpen editing skills, and clear language of jargon. Teaches straight thinking, featuring examples and four model documents. Softcover, hardcover also available. DLC: Legal composition. ... Read more

Reviews

The Great Garner Strikes Another Blow for Good Prose, March 30, 2003
Bryan A. Garner is leading what might be a Quixotic charge to make lawyers write clear, clean, unambiguous and even interesting prose. This book is a recent addition to the Garner arsenal, which includes the excellent The Winning Brief and A Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage. The anonymous writer from New York who slams Garner is wrong. He claims that traditional legal drafting has stood the test of time and is readily understood by judges, who ultimately have to interpret it. If the writing were clear to begin with, the parties wouldn't get to a judge. They'd likely settle. And that writer ignores the fact that there are thousands, perhaps millions, of legal decisions over contract disputes, almost all arising from documents that were "traditionally drafted." And different judges can decide differently about the meaning of a clause. That writer askes rhetorically whether Garner would insist that mathematicians use prose to make their work clear to laypeople. The rhetoric ignores the fact that mathematics is its own language. Legal writing is written in English, the same English used to buy groceries, talk lovingly to your spouse, and complain to the doctor about what ails you. There is no valid reason a contract should be beyond the comprehension of a layperson, other than lawyers' need to feel like they're elevated professionals with a grip on arcana. And the writer's praise of "Notwithstanding anything to the contrary" as an incantatory phrase in contracts overlooks an obvious improvement: "DESPITE anything in this agreement to the contrary . . . ." Garner is a brilliant, insightful teacher who cares deeply about the language and its highest and best use. We know what happens with legalese: litigation and contention and noncomprehension. Give plain English a try, with Garner as your guide to Aquinas's trinity of wholeness, harmony, radiance, and of course clarity clarity clarity.

Common sense for people who need it., December 3, 2002
The point of Garner's book is to write for the reader. This book would be helpful to any lawyer, if only because it forces us to think about how and why we are writing.

Too often, writers treat style manuals as if they were infallible--written on stone tablets by a divine author. Garner's book is not perfect and cannot be applied with a thoughtless rigor. As an appellate lawyer, I generally try to follow Garner's style, but sometimes it doesn't fit.

The corporate lawyer who complained about the book did not read it closely enough. Garner opposes thoughtless attachment to legalese, but he acknowledges that sometimes legal writers have to use terms of art. He also urges writers to be concise. I don't know where the corporate lawyer got the idea that Garner advocates "two pages of easily accessible prose over two sentences of conventional drafting," but it is not from this book.

Accept or reject Garner's advice as you wish, but thinking about clear writing will make you a better lawyer. Most of what Garner writes is common sense, but it's common sense legal writers often lack.

A Wonderful Guide!, September 3, 2002
I strongly agree with five of the six amazon.com reviews, which are highly favorable and award five stars. This book is beautifully written, well organized, and eminently sound. Garner tackles the difficult job of convincing staid, inflexible lawyers to abandon the age-old practice of using incomprehensible legalese and thus ensuring that their contracts will have to be translated for those whose lives are affected by them and later interpreted in costly litigation.

Most prestigious lawyers, law firms, and judges strongly favor Garner's plain-language approach to drafting. For example, the late Charles Alan Wright, a brilliant Supreme Court lawyer and noted author, called Garner "the world's leading authority on the language of the law." And the Texas Supreme Court enlisted Garner's aid in redrafting the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure. So it's hard to believe that judges would generally prefer "conventional drafting" over the clear, accessible language that Garner advocates.

The five five-star reviews of the book on this website came from a law professor, a practicing lawyer, a book reviewer, and two others who appear to be nonlawyers. I wondered if the anonymous New York corporate lawyer who gave the book a meager one star knew something that everyone else didn't. So I checked for reviews from highly respected sources. And I found that Harvard Law Review, the Law Library Journal, and Trial have all published very favorable reviews of this book.

The plain-language drafting recommended in this book is widely viewed as beneficial, not only by nonlawyers, but also by highly skilled lawyers who seek to avoid ambiguity and litigation and who strive to improve the tarnished image of lawyers generally. I believe that Garner's approach would be condemned only by a few rich corporate lawyers who thrive by making themselves indispensable in drafting, translating, and later litigating the long, dense form contracts that they produce.

Plain English is Shorter, More Precise., February 17, 2004
The problem with the 1-star review is that it has the problem completely reversed. The reviewer suggests that traditional legal drafting is *shorter* than the plain english drafting that Garner proposes. He need only read Garner's books to learn that traditional drafting is *significantly* longer and more difficult to read than plain English.

Furthermore, the reviewer needs to realize that Garner is not advocating that all legal writing be poetry. First and foremost, he advocates for clarity and precision. If the writer can also make it interesting to read (or even a joy to read), then more power to the writer.

If you're a lawyer and hate seeing "WHEREAS" before each recital and prefer a simple sentence, Garner is the man for you.

Attorneys can't write well without this book!, July 24, 2001
Quit searching -- this is the best book on legal writing that you will find. It is outstanding.

I am an attorney in Texas, and I have attended two of Mr. Garner's legal-writing seminars. He is currently the leading authority on legal writing; he is also an engaging speaker. His approach is to eliminate legalese and to present a powerful and succinct message. This approach has a very practical foundation -- over the years, Mr. Garner has polled judges across the country to see which writing elements they prefer.

This volume distills Mr. Garner's findings into a compact, 227-page format. The book also contains model documents -- a research memorandum, a legal motion, an appellate brief, and a business contract -- which serve as excellent reference tools for the legal practitioner.

Put simply, if you don't subscribe to Mr. Garner's advice, you don't know how to write well. And this book is the best way yet to access to Mr. Garner's valuable insight. This book is an ESSENTIAL reference tool.

EXCELLENT, March 10, 2003
EXCELLENT BOOK, ALSO MODERN LEGAL USAGE, 2ND EDITION. ENOUGH SAID.

It's superb., April 15, 2002
Yikes! There is no longer anywhere to hide, and there are no more excuses. This book shows you how to drop the jargon, the gobbledygook, the archaisms, and the fluff. So your writing is exposed. Now you must think--and write--clearly, and Legal Writing in Plain English will help. Lawyers and law students have needed this book for a long time. It's superb. (From back cover.)

Worthy advice only exceeded by challenging exercises, September 19, 2005
Bryan Garner brings clarity and insight to the confounding world of legal writing. "Legal Writing in Plain English" contains dozens of comments and guidelines that should be burned into the brain of every attorney. Some of these are obvious (e.g., use a readable typeface), while others are more nuanced (e.g., delete perhaps the legal drafter's favorite legalism, "provided that"). Each suggestion urges the writer toward a simple yet difficult goal -- be a good writer so that your reader doesn't have to work so darn hard to understand you.

As everyone knows, a simple manual of rules can be maddeningly dull and preachy. Garner has enlivened his book by including a number of practical exercises so that the reader can put these guidelines into practice before the next memo or brief. These exercises range from "basic" to "advanced," and are well worth the time.

After reading this book (and attending Mr. Garner's one-day seminar), I submit that this book should be required reading for every One-L and associate.

Attorneys can't write well without this book!, July 24, 2001
Quit searching -- this is the best book on legal writing that you will find. It is outstanding.

I am an attorney in Texas, and I have attended two of Mr. Garner's legal-writing seminars. He is currently the leading authority on legal writing; he is also an engaging speaker. His approach is to eliminate legalese and to present a powerful and succinct message. This approach has a very practical foundation -- over the years, Mr. Garner has polled judges across the country to see which writing elements they prefer.

This volume distills Mr. Garner's findings into a compact, 227-page format. The book also contains model documents -- a research memorandum, a legal motion, an appellate brief, and a business contract -- which serve as excellent reference tools for the legal practitioner.

Put simply, if you don't subscribe to Mr. Garner's advice, you don't know how to write well. And this book is the best way yet to access to Mr. Garner's valuable insight. This book is an ESSENTIAL reference tool.

Excellent book, January 9, 2007
This is an excellent book for law students, paralegals and lawyers. I have been learning so much with it. The writing is pretty straight forward, very easy to understand and learn. Enough with the legalese! Let's write well! ... Read more

Editorial Review

Create a nonprofit in your state without spending big on attorney's fees!

The process of becoming a tax-exempt organization may appear intimidating, but with How to Form a Nonprofit Corporation, you can do it quickly, easily and with confidence.

This bestselling book includes complete instructions for obtaining federal 501(c)(3) tax exemption and for qualifying for public charity status with the IRS. It will help you:

Editorial Review

Raise money for your nonprofit with unique advice and tactics

Getting tax-exempt status for your nonprofit organization is just the first step toward succeeding in your mission -- ultimately, your nonprofit's effectiveness depends entirely on your ability to raise money. Fortunately, Effective Fundraising for Nonprofits will show you how.Featuring advice and stories from over 40 experienced fundraisers, foundation staffers, journalists, and more, the 3rd edition of Effective Fundraising for Nonprofits offers strategies for raising donations from individuals, companies, and institutions, and covers the tools and staff you'll need to get the job done. Find out how to:

Editorial Review

A classic ABA bestseller, you'll find over 100 chapters packed with techniques for getting started. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Provides a comprehensive guide to the essential rules of legal writing. Unlike most style or grammar guides, it focuses on the special needs of legal writers. answering a wide spectrum of questions about grammar and style both rules as well as exceptions. Also gives detailed, authoritative advice on punctuation, capitalization, spelling, footnotes, and citations, with illustrations in legal context. Designed for law students, law professors, practicing lawyers and judges, the work emphasizes the ways in which legal writing differs from other styles of technical writing. Its how to sections deal with editing and proofreading, numbers and symbols, and overall document design. ... Read more

Reviews

(Almost) everything you should have wanted to know about legal writing, but didn't ask, September 13, 2007
This is a wonderful reference work on legal style--comprehensive, authoritative, well organized, and genuinely readable. It covers an incredible range of topics: punctuation, page layout, typography, spelling, grammar, usage, and more. It makes specific stylistic recommendations for many different types of legal documents, including business correspondence, research memos, pleadings, appellate briefs, and judicial opinions, to name just a few. And it's useful for anybody who has anything to do with creating legal documents, from judges and senior lawyers, to raw associates and law students, to legal secretaries; it would even be helpful to pro se litigants (as other reviewers have noted). I really wish that Amazon provided a "look inside" that showed the table of contents - the book covers an amazing amount of ground.

It's too bad that practitioners used to obfuscatory legalese, or who needlessly produce ugly, poorly written, unreadable documents, won't ever buy, much less read, this book. There's a lot of lousy legal writing churned out every day--bad not just in the sense that a writing teacher or design and typography professional wouldn't like it, but bad in the sense of being hard to read and understand and therefore, in the end, unpersuasive. This book is an antidote.

I recommend all of Bryan Garner's books, but this is the one to start with--it's the most general, and the most broadly useful. (If you write briefs, as I do, the second one to get is The Winning Brief). Every once in a while I would quibble with one of the rules Garner espouses, but for every such rule this book must have ten others that have taught me that, much to my chagrin, I (and almost every other lawyer I know) have been doing something wrong, without realizing it, for many years. I wish I'd discovered Garner much earlier; he's really helped me improve my writing and the way my documents look. Law offices ought to make The Redbook standard issue. That's not going to happen, sad to say, but I can't think of a better, more useful book to give to new lawyers about to start their first legal jobs. Or to senior lawyers who recognize that they don't know everything there is to know about legal writing.

One downside to this book is that, because it is so comprehensive, it sometimes will seem a little too basic. If you're really a good legal writer you may want to start with one of Garner's more "advanced" books. But you'd be amazed at how many legal writers seem not to have learned what is taught in high school English classes. And in any case, this book covers much important stuff that just isn't taught in law school, much less high school, and that most legal writers don't manage to pick up along the way.

Highly recommended.

When you have to be right, this is the book., April 30, 2002
Do you edit your documents based on vaguely-recalled rules from junior high? Do you turn to a colleague when you have a question about grammar, punctuation, usage, or style? Do you rely on old forms to prepare professional documents? Stop it. The answers are here; the source is the Redbook. It's the ultimate guide to writing correctly. Every lawyer should get it and use it.

Should be on all attorneys' book shelves, March 5, 2005
As a grammarian and etymologist by avocation, my tastes are a bit weird. Maybe that's why I actually enjoyed reading this book casually. Each of Garner's books belongs on the bookshelf of any attorney who considers himself a professional. My pet peeve is the attorney who I know is writing to impress the reader with his writing skills as opposed to the attorney who is writing to persuade the reader as to a particular position. The former will not have Garner's books in his library.

A Great Introductory Work on Legal Style, February 12, 2009
THE REDBOOK is an excellent resource for beginning students of legal style. It's a concise manual for the multivariate points of English grammar, vocabulary, and document presentation. It covers nearly every major grammatical rule in concise form, loaded with tight and concise examples; discusses commonly misunderstood words and their usage (ala Mr. Garner's MODERN LEGAL USAGE); and provides a concise presentation of legal document type, purpose, and presentation. Overall--well done.

Unfortunately, no work is without its flaws. This text has a few typographical errors. For instance, one instructional note indicates that articles contained in periodicals should not be italicized, however the example provided is italicized! Additionally, one example which was supposed to contain the word "not" was incorrectly typed as "note." Though these are not major errors, they undercut the author's lexicographic philosophy of clarity, due care, and empathy for the reader; such errors force the reader to invariably double-take--and in a grammar style book! Even so, these errors are not the norm in this work.

I greatly enjoy studying this text and I would encourage any one to purchase it if they are either 1) beginning legal style training or 2) learning English grammar in a legal-business professional environment.

May God bless you in your diligent studies of the written and spoken English word!

An Excellent Resource for the Pro Se Litigant and Newbie Pra, February 11, 2005
The Redbook: A Manual on Legal Style is an invaluable resource for the Pro Se litigant. Many Pro Se litigants are not as fortunate as I have been. I have working relationships with several well-respected attorneys who allow me to borrow their templates and make my own from theirs. The attorneys actively practice in the area and are known for writing documents that win cases.

Most litigants are forced to resort to grabbing another attorney's brief off the internet and format theirs in a similar manner. But this can be problematic. After all, how do you know that the attorney you grabbed the brief from is doing it correctly? You dont -- until you get into court and the judge and the opposing counsel both give you 'the look' which inaudibly says "What the heck is this piece of garbage and why is it in my courtroom?".

Its often not just about what you say, but rather how you lay it out on paper. Presentation is very often just as important as what you actually say. That's why style guides like The Redbook are so important.

time-tested excellence, August 24, 2006
I remember getting an earlier rendition of this book when I was in grade school, and now while in law school, it still comes in handy. If you are in any class or position where you need to write letters, compositions or just about anything else, you need this book. It will tell you when to use what word, when not to use what word, and is easy to use. Can't beat it!

A must have resource that is easy to use, February 20, 2008
A must have for the legal writer. The Red Book picks up where the Blue Book leaves off. Very useful, practical, easy to find information. Keep this beside you when you need a quick answer. Well worth the purchase.

A must-have, June 14, 2007
This book is a must-have for any attorney or law student's collection. I have used it to settle many debates among colleagues :)

Great reference, very friendly., February 16, 2006
The Redbook is a great have-by-your-side manual for legal or other writing.

Overhyped, but comprehensive, November 22, 2010
I purchased this book after hearing several faculty members at my law school sing its praises, and reading rave reviews here on Amazon. When the book came, I was disappointed.

There's absolutely nothing wrong with the book. It's a good book. It has a lot of great information. But, if you write well already, if you had a good legal writing course, or if your written material scored well in moot court, this book is just going to collect dust on your shelf. I know plenty of lawyers who could really benefit from an afternoon with this book, but I know plenty of lawyers who could have written it, too. If you feel your legal writing could use some work, by all means, purchase this book; if you're confident in your legal writing, and you're just looking for that little boost, you probably won't find it here.

By way of explanation, here are chapters in this book:
1) Punctuation. This chapter covers the use of common punctuation marks, such as commas, semicolons, and quotation marks, as well as lesser-used marks like the em dash, slashes, and bullets.
2) Capitalization. 'Nuff said.
3) Italics, Boldface, and Underlining.
4) Document Design. Arguably one of the more valuable chapters in this book; it covers the use of white space, margins, headers, headings, etc. Things that get very little attention unless they begin to interfere with the flow of the document.
5) Numbers.
6) Typographic Symbols. E.g., the section symbol, the paragraph symbol, the degree symbol, etc.
7) Spelling. While I sincerely believe that spelling is becoming a lost art that desperately needs revival, I'm not sure that a book (at least, any book other than the dictionary) is the appropriate avenue for doing so.
8) Citation. Or, you know, just spin through that other book named after a primary color.
9) Footnotes.
10) Grammar. Grammar _has_ taken a back seat in modern-day primary and secondary school curriculum, but again, I'm not sure that this book is the best way to fix that problem.
11) Stuffy Words and Legalese. If you didn't learn this stuff in your legal writing class, you need to learn it somewhere, so I guess I can't complain about it being here.
12) Troublesome Words. No joke, this book has a chapter on homonyms, idioms, etc. This also makes a passable attempt at replacing your legal dictionary, but I wouldn't toss ol' Black just yet.
13) Editing and Proofreading. This chapter is better than it sounds, but the important takeaway from this chapter is just to ask yourself what you're trying to say, and why you're saying it in any particular manner.
14) Research Memos. Now we're getting to the good stuff. From here on out, it gives two model documents for each of the chapters. Depending on your legal writing class, this stuff can be invaluable, or can be a complete review.
15) Opinion Letters.
16) Demand Letters.
17) Pleadings. Be sure to be aware that your jurisdiction or judge might require a different format than what's in this book.
18) Motions.
19) Appellate Briefs. I've gotta say, I hope you're not entering appellate practice with just this book to guide you, but if you are, it's definitely better than nothing.
20) Contracts. Ignore the examples, focus on the tips for formatting and style. Write your own contract and tailor it to your practice area.

... Read more

Editorial Review

"If Matthew Butterick didn't exist, it would be necessary to invent him." From the Foreword by Bryan A. Garner

Based on the popular website, Typography for Lawyers is the first guide to the essentials of typography aimed specifically at lawyers. Author Matthew Butterick, a Harvard-trained typographer and practicing attorney, dispels the myth that legal documents are incompatible with excellent typography. Butterick explains how to get professional results with the tools you already have quickly and easily. Topics include special keyboard characters, line length, point size, font choice, headings, and hyphenation. The book also includes tutorials on specific types of documents like résumés, research memos, and motions. ... Read more

Reviews

Lawyer? Ingest this., November 23, 2010
There are two things lawyers use daily: a chair and a word processor. Smart lawyers get comfortable with both. For me, adjusting my chair is straightforward. Adjusting my word processor (and my word processing habit) is not.

Butterick helps you make the adjustment from the typewriter rules that you learned in school. As a result, your documents will have predictable style. Your document's style will clearly guide your reader. Will this make your document more persuasive? Yes, with surprisingly little work.

If you are still not sure whether you should buy this book, just spend a little time at the companion website: typographyforlawyers.com. The advantages of the book over the website are three: better guidance for choosing a professional font, more examples of before/after, and word processor specific advice. The only thing missing is CLE credit.

Finally, I spent about 2 hours on the website and 4 hours with the book. This included the time spent modifying my default templates, fiddling with word processor defaults, buying & installing fonts, and incorporating the advice into my workflow. Looking at documents that I create now, I feel great about the return on the time invested.

Indispensible, November 29, 2010
This is a book that every lawyer should own.

Lawyers prepare many papers, but rarely have solid information on how things should be arranged. They don't know about the best practices that have developed in the centuries since Gutenberg. Matthew Butterick supplies that information. In 200 easily-read pages, he explains what typographers have learned about how text should be arranged.

For example:

* Add only one space after periods. There is no good reason to add two spaces.

* Use real "small caps," rather than imitation ones created by your word processor.

* Use italics, not underlining.

* Never use courier as your font.

* Use Times New Roman only if you are absolutely required by court rules.

There is much more. Read about the book on his web site, [...]. And then buy the book.

Buy more than one copy, December 10, 2010
Excellent! If you only adopt one or two suggestions from this book, your writing, and more importantly, its presentation will improve exponentially. BUT one word of warning, buy two books, because as soon as you share this book with another lawyer (or anyone who writes for a living), the book will be lifted from your hand, never to be seen again. That's what happened to me, and why I'm back to buy another copy. Matthew has done a great job, the book is written well and will be a boon to the folks who read any of my letters, pleadings and grant proposals from now on.

The Typography is Part of the Telling, November 25, 2010
Stories are powerful tools for prioritizing and communicating complex ideas. Notice it or not, the typography is part of the telling. It adds emphasis, or not. It leads the eye smoothly down the page, or not. It communicates clearly, or not.

That the typography shapes and shades your message is undeniable. And therein lies the necessity for knowing how it works.

Your brief is brilliantly argued. But the 'look' of it is the very first thing that the trial judge sees. Crafted properly, the typography tells him that you're serious and should be taken seriously. Page after page, the typography visually reinforces your message that your client is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.

The book has a companion website at [...] that allows you to plug in a 5-digit code and see examples of different fonts onscreen. You can also download a variety of sample documents in PDF format. The book and website work splendidly together.

I bought the book. I stayed up late reading it. Eventually, I'll wear it out and buy another copy. In the meantime, I'll be recommending it to friends and colleagues without reservation--you among them.

Not just for lawyers--for anyone who uses a word processor, December 17, 2010
This book is a masterpiece.

I discovered the website typographyforlawyers.com when it first launched. I'm not a lawyer, but it was the best guide to typography I'd ever seen.

The book is like the website, but bigger. It's concise and extremely intelligently written. (I see that the author was a Harvard-educated expert in typography before becoming a lawyer.)

A tip for lawyers: I'm not a lawyer, so I struggle to determine whether a lawyer is any good--so I judge you by the things I can discern. If your documents are typographically shambolic (loads of rogue spaces, spelling mistakes, using hyphens instead of em dashes, etc.) I assume that this sloppiness extends to the legal aspects of your work. Perhaps I'm wrong to do so--but I guess that's your problem, not mine.

Changed my thinking about my craft of writing, December 16, 2010
I got this book less than a week ago and finished reading it last night. If you are a student of plain english for your writing style, don't miss this unusual book. I spent about 2 hours today with a focus on revising my two major documents and checked out the fonts the author clearly loves. Us lawyers are professional writers and it is time we did ourselves justice. Buy the book. I only hope the author will develop a future edition with sections on powerpoint and typography for the readers of wills and trusts, my area of focus.

The book will be a classic for the progressive attorney. I put down a favorite fiction writer's book to read Typography and, believe it or not, found this book fascinating. I'm not sure exactly why. But, if you sit and write all day, as I do, as an attorney, why not improve your work product? It takes some focus to achieve.

Must reading for all lawyers!!, December 14, 2010
I recently purchased this book and I am very glad I did. I have been practicing law for almost 20 years, and I can say that in the modern legal world, often your first impression of attorneys is through written documents. It could be court pleadings, discovery, letters or even e-mails. It is amazing to me how ugly and unreadable many legal documents are.

That is what this book is all about. I can tell you that after reading this book, I am going to go through and review every document that I have in my library, and I'm going to make sure that I implement many of the rules as outlined in this book. I thought my written documents looked fine, especially compared to some other documents that I've seen over my years of practice, but after reading this book, I can tell that my documents are deficient in many respects.

I bought this book from Jones McClure publishing, not really knowing what I was getting. In fact, once I received the book, it sat on my desk for three or four weeks before I actually even looked at it. Now I am completely obsessed with how all of my documents appear!

When I file a motions, pleadings and briefs with the court, I want them to be easy to read and to understand. We have all seen those documents that have paragraphs that go on and on and on and that never get to the point. Documents can also be ugly, and there are still attorneys and law firms out there that use the Courier font! Nothing is more painful to read that a long document with long paragraphs in the Courier font!

You will not go wrong buying this book, and it does not matter if you are a solo practitioner or you're a partner in a big law firm. Whatever your legal practice is, you will learn something from this book, and if you implement the suggestions, you will be very pleased and so will the recipients of your documents.

If you are an attorney you owe it to yourself to get this book. If you're law student, get the book now, and learn from it before you start practicing. It might even help you get a job in the crowded legal profession.

I just wish the appellate courts would read this book and implement the suggestions!

This is an outstanding book and I highly recommend it.

If you were on law review (or wished you were), this book is for you!, December 28, 2010
There is exactly one problem with this book: It didn't come out the year I entered law school. This text is a great reference tool and companion to any usage or style guide (e.g., Bryan Garner's "The Red Book"). It explains the reasons for each rule, and gives great guidance on:

1) numbered lists
2) emphasizing text
3) letterhead & business cards

Butterick lays the rules out in a way that's incredibly easy to follow, and in addition to providing great insight to making your legal documents more reader friendly, he shares good word processing shortcuts that will significantly cut down the time you spend drafting and editing.

For $25 (and free shipping), no lawyer can afford not to buy this book.

Short, clear, informative, December 29, 2010
Short, clear, and informative--what more could you want from about book written about any subject? This book certainly has these characteristics, but is also written in a graceful and interesting manner. The subject is illustrated with numerous examples. All lawyers would be well advised to read this book just for the practical guidance in preparing briefs. They are especially well advised to read the book before micromanaging their print or web marketing efforts. If nothing else, it should give lawyers an appreciation, if not respect, for the advice they may receive from marketing professionals. Anyone not a lawyer, but who wants to learn much about typography in a short time, should also read this enlightening book.

A great resource, December 27, 2010
Butterick has written a smart and informative book that I plan to use in my daily practice. Implementing Butterick's suggestions for page and type design require little effort but have great returns. I encourage everyone to invest in this book! ... Read more

Editorial Review

For the lawyers who think they know it all or for those of you who worry that your legal counsel can't tell a tort from a tart Stump Your Lawyer! is a hilarious tour of the quirks and curiosities of our legal system. This tongue-in-cheek volume offers witty, practical, and thought-provoking challenges for the legally minded. Short case histories, definitions, multiple-choice quizzes, and other formats mock the bar exam approach and probe the reader's knowledge of obscure statutes, baffling decisions, bizarre legal concepts, and antiquated jargon. Whether you're studying, practicing, or running from the law, this book will keep you laughing and learning all the way to the courthouse. ... Read more

Editorial Review

First-time landlord? Learn landlording fundamentals in this primer.

The declining U.S. economy has forced many homeowners to make tough decisions about their property. If you're one of the millions of Americans affected by the credit crisis, struggling to make your mortgage payments, and are considering renting out your home to make ends meet, you'll need to learn the basics of being a landlord.

Let First-Time Landlord show you how to start your landlording business and maintain it in your spare time. Get the concise information you need to start making money with a single-family home, written for property owners with little business savvy -- and even less time and patience. Learn how to rent out your property lawfully and safely with valuable information on:

Editorial Review

This is not your mother’s low-fat cookbook. There’s no foolish tricks, no bizarre concoctions, no chemicals, no frozen meals…no fake anything! Appetite for Reduction means cooking with real food, for real life. (Skimpy portions need not apply.)In Appetite for Reduction, bestselling author and vegan chef Isa Chandra Moskowitz has created 125 delectable, nutritionally-balanced recipes for the foods you crave—lasagna, tacos, barbecue, curries, stews, and much more—and it’s all:- Only 200 to 400 calories per serving- Plant-based and packed with nutrients- Low in saturated fat and sugar; high in fiber- Drop-dead deliciousYou’ll also find lots of gluten-free and soy-free options, and best of all, dinner can be on the table in less than 30 minutes. So ditch those diet shakes. Skip that lemonade cleanse. And fight for your right to eat something satisfying! Now you can look better, feel better, and have more energy—for health at any size. ... Read more

Editorial Review

An all-in-one authoritative guide every landlord needs

Every Landlord's Legal Guide is the most comprehensive and up-to-date legal and practical guide for residential landlords. The best, most effective way to make and save money as a landlord is to keep up with the law --and with Every Landlord's Legal Guide, you can do all that and more.

From move-in to move-out, this book covers a wide range of issues , including fair housing, repairs, sublets, screening for good tenants, environmental hazards such as mold and bed bugs (yes, bed bugs). You'll find legal and practical solutions backed by many 50-state charts with specific laws for each state. This complete resource will help you avoid hassles and headaches --not to mention legal fees.

Here is everything you need to:

Editorial Review

* You have an idea you want to pitch to a production company; how do you safeguard your concept?
* There's a painting in the background of your independent film; is it necessary to clear the rights?
* The screenplay you and a friend wrote gets optioned; how do you split the proceeds fairly?
* How do you get a script to popular Hollywood actors or deal with their agents?
Find quick answers to these and hundreds of other questions in The Pocket Lawyer for Film and Video, the next best thing to having an entertainment attorney at your beck and call. Written by a TV-producer-turned-entertainment-lawyer, this no-nonsense reference provides fast answers in plain English: no law degree required! The Pocket Lawyer is designed to help producers reduce legal costs by providing the vital information needed to make informed decisions on the legal aspects of film, video, and TV productions.

Film and video production is a litigation lighting rod: actors get hurt, copyrights are infringed, and contracts are broken. Big-budget producers have lawyers on retainer, but many independent filmmakers are left legally exposed. Arm yourself with the practical advice in this book. You will not only avoid common pitfalls, but become empowered in your daily work. Too many otherwise competent producers turn over every aspect of the deal negotiations to their lawyers and agents. This book explains the principal deals common to every production, putting producers back in the co-pilot seat with their representatives.

The format is carefully designed for quick reference, so you get the answers you need, fast. Features include:
* Clause Companion: explains the meaning and impact of typical contract clauses, taking the headache out of reading them.
* F.A.Qs: instantly answers the most commonly asked legal questions.
* Warnings: alerts you to critical areas and common mistakes.
* Pro-Tips: advice on unions, escrow accounts, etc. for producers who want to distribute their video widely.

* Avoid legal pitfalls with this quick reference guide: get instant answers
* Written in plain English for filmmakers, not lawyers
* Three books in one: a handy manual on film contracts, a step-by-step guide to critical legal issues on and off the set, and a quick reference on copyright and intellectual property issues ... Read more

Reviews

Excellent and Approachable Guide to Key Filmmaking Legal Issues - Great for Non-Lawyers, March 3, 2007
Even though I've practiced law for many years outside of the entertainment law area, now that I have moved over into independent film production, I have found the legal issues involved in properly putting together a film to be daunting. If these entertainment law issues are hard for me, as an experienced attorney, I can imagine that they are dramatically more difficult to handle for everyone else. As a result, it is frankly tempting to instead focus on the artistic side of filmmaking so you can skip slogging through the legal quagmire, but you do so at your peril. This is true for a number of reasons, but most importantly, you are taking a huge risk because distributors won't touch a distribution deal for a film with serious legal problems. Fortunately, I've found that this book takes away much of the pain of learning about the legal issues in film, simply because it is so approachable. After reading this book, I really believe that even non-lawyers can quickly grasp the legal challenges of filmmaking. Best of all, the book skips typical "legalese" and instead offers easy to understand, quick references to the contracts, rights clearance and negotiating issues that everyone should understand. Not only did I like the book, but it really is unique, because there's very little else out there on this subject. It really should be on the desk of every producer. I couldn't recommend it more.

A powerful guide in a small package!, March 22, 2007
This book contains a wealth of information presented in a clear, concise, yet thorough manner. Whether you are a writer, producer, composer, or actor, this book will help you understand the legal issues that are part of the process of filmmaking. You can use it as a quick reference to answer a specific question, or you can read it from the beginning as the author unpacks legal concepts and the step-by-step process of setting up a production company to selling your film. As a bonus the book has appendices that make up a valuable law library of intellectual property, i.e. copyright, trademarks, contract law, labor, and employment law. And if you are a lawstudent or lawyer, this book is better than any entertainment law class you will ever take and at a fraction of the price.

Good Legal Advice Has Never Come So Cheap!, June 16, 2007
This book has allowed me to craft a sound legal structure around my ideas, and my film making has become a true business venture. "Pocket Lawyer" has already saved me from several minor blunders, like not posting a Notice Release when shooting in public, and it will undoubtedly save the day in bigger ways as my projects grow. Where was this book when I was in film school? Valuable legal advice has never come so cheap--well worth the $21.75.

A Law Student's Perspective, August 1, 2007
Mr. Crowell has done the art and legal worlds a great service by distilling so many critical issues of intellectual property into an enjoyable and widely informative format. The index and chapter systems make quick searching easy; and the humorous and humble prose let's you relax while learning. The demystification of legalese is not an easy task, but it's much needed, and Mr. Crowell has thrown a valuable contribution into the fray. Being a film and music artist, as well as a law student, Mr. Crowell's work is a must read for any with a similar background; and it goes a long way to supporting those artists who seem to underestimate themselves when it comes to the legal side of their creative endeavors. The Pocket Lawyer for Filmmakers empowered me, and I'm sure it will do the same for countless others.

You need this book!, April 14, 2007
This is an outstanding tool for anyone and everyone working in film. If you're a creative artist, it's easy to forget that making a film is a business venture--and one you hope will turn a profit! "The Pocket Lawyer for Filmmakers" is a welcome wake-up call. Thomas Crowell gently reminds readers to protect their interests and keep an eye on the bottom line at all times. If thoughts of "business" and "protecting your interests" make your eyes glaze over, have no fear. "The Pocket Lawyer" is a breeze to work with. It's clearly written, full of helpful examples, and anticipates every question you could have. The book follows the entire process of making a film, from forming a production company to distributing a completed film. Each chapter tells you what to expect at every step, and how to deal with it. Personally, I found the sections translating copyright law into simple English massively useful. Also, the book includes a stripped-down "law library" that gives filmmakers a primer in intellectual property and labor law. Whether you're a novice screenwriter wannabe (like me!) or a seasoned independent producer, you need this book! "The Pocket Lawyer for Filmmakers" is indispensable.

Awesome book! Just what a filmmaker needs!, March 6, 2007
Not only does this book give you the answers you need - it does so quickly without your first having to sort through a bunch of legalese. If you want to find out how to negotiate an actor's deal, just flip to the right page and start negotiating.

No long, boring contracts to fight through. Each deal is broken down into handy "deal points," allowing you to get a grip on the important aspects of each deal without caught up in legal mumbo jumbo.

The fact that the author was a television producer helps make the book readable - even humorous at times. Highly recommended.

Pure and simple...it's great., February 14, 2009
I was so hesitant about this book. I was thinkig "Pocket Lawyer?" Great, like a mini-dictionary that the Starbucks writer crowd uses and still attept to look cool with.

No, I was wrong. The information in this book is not only necessary, but vital. If you want to be a producer, this is the no-nonsense bible you've been looking for. It's straight forward and clear. The language isn't dense. Rather, it's helpful.

This is a book that can help you make the transition from, "Producering" to PRODUCER. It honestly is the real deal.

Finally...a book I can use, February 13, 2009
This book is a great help and a fantastic reference. I refer to this book all the time. I usually can just open up the book to find the answer to whatever legal question I'm looking for.

My copy is all beat up and dog eared.. I never read it straight through, just skipped around to the stuff I want to know about. If I have a question, I know the answer is in there. It's more than just law, It's a guide to be in this business.

Plus, it's easy to understand. The copyright section helped me out the most.
I have produced things before, but life would've been easier with this book. They should require this book in film classes.

Great resource, March 4, 2008
I am an in-house attorney for a film production company. This book is a great resource to point you in the right direction in many respects: reminders of what terms various contracts/agreements should contain, the different types of agreements common to the film industry, copyright information ... just to name a few items. Money well spent for a very focused look at legal aspects to the film industry.

A must have for anyone in the entertainment industry, June 22, 2008
This book helps anyone who wants to do or is doing anything in entertainment be on top of their game. I carry this book with me, along with my bible (that says a lot about the book right there!) I read it every chance I get and learn so much more as a Writer/Producer, about the legalities and expectations of each member of a production team. This book is necessary for a business minded person. Crowell educates the readers in the basics of entertainment law, however he does not use language that only an attorney or judge can comprehend. He breaks concepts down in bite size pieces. I have gained a better understanding of what needs to happen in pre, pro. and post production of a film and will make sure that the many areas in film making get the attention and documentation that it needs because of this book. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Apply important legal concepts and skills you need to succeed



Get educated, land a job, and start making money now!

Want a new career as a paralegal but don't know where to start? Relax! Paralegal Career For Dummies is the practical, hands-on guide to all the basics -- from getting certified to landing a job and getting ahead. Inside, you'll find all the tools you need to succeed, including a CD packed with sample memos, forms, letters, and more!

Discover how to
* Secure your ideal paralegal position
* Pick the right area of the law for you
* Prepare documents for litigation
* Conduct legal research
* Manage a typical law office


Sample resumes, letters, forms, legal documents, and links to online legal resources.

Please see the CD-ROM appendix for details and complete system requirements. ... Read more

Reviews

Great resource!, November 3, 2006
This book says it all! I have been instructing paralegal courses for fifteen years, and have seen and used many texts. This one is by far one of the best, if not the best! It clearly and concisely covers pretty much everything a paralegal should know in an easy to understand format. The CD included with the book contains samples of documents and references to many, many important resources. I would highly recommend it for practicing paralegals, as well as anyone interested in the field of paralegalism! While the book is not a substitute for formal education, it goes a long way towards filling in the gaps in education for paralegals trained "in-house," as well as for those who have completed (or plan to complete) a paralegal program.

Helped My Career, May 30, 2007
As an online paralegal student at the Washington Online Learning Institute, (WOLI) for short, I bought this book towards the end of my certificate program. It was quite useful in putting a lot of information in perspective. I had a course in career preparation at WOLI and this book reinforced and expanded upon that information so the combination of knowledge from WOLI and this book was really powerful. This book is basic, but it is accurate and very useful for someone entering the field. I ended up with a job just two weeks after graduating and this book helped for sure. So I would recommend it. I think it is interesting that Amazon bundles this book with the Statsky paralegal book because we used the Statsky book in three courses at WOLI. So I would recommend both books, actually. This is a good book for a person who is serious about entering the paralegal field, but keep in mind you should really get certified if you want to be truly successful. The days of just learning on the job are pretty much over, especially in terms of advancement in a law firm, which is a valid point made in this book. Recommended.

Great Paralegal Reference!, August 30, 2006
This is the first "for Dummies" book that I have purchased and I must say it is great for the beginning paralegal student as well as a paralegal graduate students. This book is a great refresher! When I purchased the book I was able to recap legal research and writing courses that I had completed a couple semesters ago. I was in the process of taking business law and ethics and this book helped me to understand the basics of the two courses I was about to explore as well as refreshed my memory on past courses. I will refer back to this book as a reference. This book really does cover EVERYTHING THERE IS TO KNOW about the paralegal profession!!!

The reason I gave this a 4 star is because the legal documents on the CD are pretty basic, although they provide good information for things to include in these documents, the CD does not provide an in-depth look at the complete documents to file or send, just an idea. The CD is useful when it comes to learning more about the system and I must say this CD does have a pretty good idea of what to include in your resume and cover letter. In conclusion, the book is great but the CD should be referred to as a beginning idea of what goes into legal documents and not a template.

Thinking of a Paralegal Career?, August 29, 2006
Are you thinking of becoming a legal professional? Have you considered a career as a paralegal? Paralegals are legal professionals who assist lawyers but don't have to spend 3 years in law school!

If you are thinking of becoming a paralegal this may be the book for you. Paralegal Career for Dummies gives you an in-depth picture of the profession and introduces you to some of the concepts you will be working with as a paralegal. By the time you have completed this informative book and the accompanying CD-ROM you will not only know much more about the paralegal profession, but also how to get started on your paralegal career.

David Newland, J.D.

Fast read, packed with information!, January 27, 2008
I originally purchased this book for my friend, who was considering pursuing a paralegal certificate to help with a career change. Before giving it to him, I managed to read this book in its entirety. With only my brief academic background in law (Business Law I&II, and Law of the Workplace) I found this book to be an enjoyable, easy read, and full of useful information and insight into the paralegal industry. (Not to mention a CD full of bonus material.)

I also found it intriguing that this book was written by the founders of The Center for Legal Studies, providers of paralegal courses in many of this country's junior colleges. (The same course, as it were, that my friend will be taking in the coming months.) While I don't know how good it will be as preparation for the course, I'm relatively certain that the two have some interrelated elements that may prove useful.

Excellent buy, April 17, 2007
I am currently a full time paralegal student. I will be graduating in December 2007. This book has covered some of the same information I have learned in my courses. If you are a paralegal student, or someone who may be thinking about going to school to become a paralegal student. I would recommend that you purchase this book. The DVD is superb with example of memo's, briefs, resumes.This is a must have for anyone who is a paralegal for your library reference.. I want to thank the authors of this book so much.

This book is a DECISION guide...., December 1, 2009
I like this book. This book is educational, but, as the title implies, it is maintains a focus on one's actual career.

Don't get me wrong, it is informative, and provides a high-level overview of technical paralegal tasks, but the book's primary goal is to explain the personal and professional ramifications of choosing to become a paralegal. It covers WHO should be a paralegal, WHY to be a paralegal, and HOW to become a paralegal.

Finally, the authors' collective teaching and legal experience is translated into a clear and even fun reading experience.

No Longer a Dummy, April 26, 2010
Prior to my purchase, my knowledge as to what a paralegal does was very limited. My rationale for buying this book was to gain an in-depth understanding into the paralegal profession. Thankfully, I found everything I was looking for and more. This book taught me the pros and cons of the profession. It gave me the warning signs to avoid. Finally, it helped me determine which route to pursue....law school or paralegal studies? The book provided a realistic comparison between the two in terms of cost of attendance(school);starting salaries;and the amount of practical experience gained or lost. I especially liked the CD-Rom attached with helpful forms and checklists. At this point in my life, becoming a paralegal is best suited for me rather than becoming an attorney.

Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone interesting in the paralegal profession or undecided which course to take between ascertaining a law degree or bachelors or masters degree in paralegal studies.

Lanay-
Washington DC

Paralegal careers for dummies, January 9, 2009
a must have for anyone new to the legal field or anticipating a career in the future; this reference book now sits beside my legal dictionary and will be used often ... Read more

Editorial Review

Since the first edition was published in 1991, The Elements of Legal Style has established itself as the authoritative guide on all the major issues of writing style in law. Now its coverage has been expanded in this new edition, which features additional sections, many more examples, and a thoroughly researched appendix that contains 80 major statements on prose style what it is and how to attain it. Inspired by Strunk and White's The Elements of Style, this book clearly (often wittily) explains the full range of what legal writers need to know: mechanics, word choice, structure, and rhetoric, as well as all the special conventions that legal writers should follow in using headings, defined terms, quotations, and many other devices. The Elements of Legal Style, 2nd Edition is written for lawyers, law students, judges, and their law clerks--and for anyone who writes in and about the law. With broad experience as a practitioner, academic, and writing consultant, Bryan Garner knows firsthand where legal writing so often goes wrong, and he pays particular attention to these trouble spots. ... Read more

Reviews

The best single investment in legal writing., May 18, 2000
I bought this book in 1994 or so, and try to read it every year as a refresher course. You can read the entire book (skimming the examples) in a long weekend. Doing that will immessurably improve the coherence and power of your writing. This book has helped me. The examples are clear and relevant and relatively easy to use in your own writing.

Garner has a real gift and this early book was just the first sign of his abilities. Enjoy!

A more scholarly look at legal-writing style., July 3, 2002
This review is of the Second Edition, published in 2002.

This book takes an intelligent, thoughtful, and somewhat scholarly approach to legal-writing style, yet it is still readable and practical. Garner presents good writing advice, with examples of how to do it taken from the great legal writers: Holmes, Cardozo, Llewellyn, and others.

And the coverage is broad: from punctuation to citation; from commonly-misused words to rhetorical devices for persuasion. The book covers enough basics to reward the novice, but it can take the experienced writer farther than other legal-writing books.

A well-designed and highly useful guidebook, September 6, 2003
My first Garner book was "The Winning Brief," purchased as I was preparing for an ultimately successful fight against a speeding ticket, and I was instantly taken by his clear and informative style.

This book continues that trend. Garner is an exceptional writer, and even the best of writers, legal or otherwise, can learn a great deal from this book.

Every lawyer and judge should have a copy., April 10, 2000
Perhaps because Garner's major work, "A Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage," has received so much attention, this little book is often overlooked. This is unfortunate because "The Elements of Legal Style" is an outstanding resource and it is probably more accessible and more useful to the working lawyer than "A Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage." As Professor Wright indicates in his incisive Forward, "anyone, no matter how good a writer, will find much that is useful in the book." This book should be in the library of every lawyer and judge. Highly recommended.

Helped me get on the Law Review, July 11, 2005
I read a review where someone said they read this and it got them on the law review. That was what I was looking for, so I bought it and the same thing happened to me (which is incredible considering my grades). This book gave me the tools to express what I want to say without trying to cram everything into one sentence. Somehow, after reading this book, I felt much less inhibited about my writing and more confident that I was using correct grammar, sentence structure, etc. Now that I think about it I'd like to read it again. I'd highly reccomend this to someone who wants to write legal papers that are actually readable and have some style.

For those who wish to reach beyond the stars., October 22, 2005
First introduced to Bryan A. Garner at one of his brief writing seminar, several years ago, I have since been a loyal reader of his works.

This book is (1) a reference book, (2) an invaluable resource, (3) more than just a grammar or style book ever thought of being, (4) chocked full of historical information and legal literary quotes, (5) presented in a humorous and accessible manner, and (6) the standard to which all legal writers should aspire.

Poor writing and the use of legalese have always been bug-a-boos of mine. And, over the lifetime of my legal practice, having to slave over thousands of statutes, briefs, decisions, motions, etc., has only intensified my belief that too few lawyers know how to write well, and that the legal profession should abolish the use of legalese from the practice of law.

In Mr. Garner, I have found a champion. In "The Elements of Legal Style", writers wishing to take their craft beyond the stars will find a valuable cache of information that will lay the foundations to improve their writing and persuading skills. He shows you how to remove the legalese from your writing, how to make your writing dynamic and exciting, and how to use your writing to better persuade. This book, along with "The Winning Brief", should be the foundation of your arsenal of writing tools.

Not up to Prof. Garner's high standard., August 21, 2001
As a great admirer of Prof. Garner's other works, I was very disappointed by this volume. It provides little advice that cannot be found, in equally brief form, in any number of "general" writing guides already on the market. I believe lawyers and law students would be better served by buying, first, Garner's *Modern Legal Usage* (a true masterpiece) and reading the essays on general stylistic topics in that excellent volume. If one has additional money and time, Garner's "Winning Brief" would be a wise second purchase. [Note: This review, originally written several years ago, was of the first edition of Prof. Garner's *Elements.* The second edition appears to be much improved over the first.]

A "Must Have" for Anyone Engaged in Legal Writing, February 19, 2004
Despite the fact that many attorneys spend much of their time writing motions, briefs, memos and such with the intent of writing clearly and persuasively, most attorneys fail miserably at doing so. Many judges, the very people the attorneys are attempting to persuade complain of how terribly most attorneys write.

Now we have Bryan Garner to the rescue. If you don't know about Bryan, he is one of the preeminent legal scholars on the subject of writing clearly and persuasively. Bryan helps attorneys cut through the clutter of legalese, organize their arguments, and, ultimately, draft documents that often will win their argument solely on the basis of the fact that the Judge can at least read and understand the message.

Law students can also benefit from the information found in this book. I would even recommend it for the average layperson who wishes to represent their self in court or who simply wants to write more clearly and directly. Every lawyer should have this book on their shelf and follow its advice religiously. This book may very well be the "bible" of legal writing.

Not just for lawyers, August 10, 2006
I am a physician who tested out of all college English to focus on science. Writing chart notes, scientific articles, or even parts of textbooks does not prepare one for the type of writing one must do when performing legal work.

Scientific-technical writing, legal writing, or the best-selling novel all require different writing styles. Mr. Garner's book must be a help to law students based on other reviews but importantly to me; it is very accessable to those who have never attended law school.

Legal style is a "style" that is important in the profession of law. If you do any work in this area at all, whether it is on the stand or writing essays, it behooves the non-lawyer to read this book. So, even though I agree with the glowing reviews from lawyers, this book may be even more important to those of us who must do legal work but have never been to law school.

A fantastic resource for legal writers, October 29, 2004
There is a dirty little secret in the world of the law. Not many people outside the legal world know about it. I will share it with you:

Few judges, lawyers and law students know how to write effectively. Even fewer would readily admit to being poor writers.

But fear not! This book gives valuable advice and suggestions on how any legal writer can improve their writings. It helps the reader understand exactly what it is that makes a piece of writing "good." It gives many examples of bad writing and suggestions on how to make it better. It also tries to convince legal writers to keep their prose short and simple: a writer is not going to make up for a poorly-written argument by using lots of Latin words/phrases and legal mumbojumbo.

If you are a legal practitioner, this book is an absolute requirement for your bookshelf. Since buying it, I have consulted it regularly. I have yet to be disappointed by the guidance it has given me.

... Read more

Editorial Review

Good legal writing wins court cases. In its first edition, The Winning Brief proved that the key to writing well is understanding the judicial readership. Now, in a revised and updated version of this modern classic, Bryan A. Garner explains the art of effective writing in 100 concise, practical, and easy-to-use sections. Covering everything from the rules for planning and organizing a brief to openers that can capture a judge's attention from the first few words, these tips add up to the most compelling, orderly, and visually appealing brief that an advocate can present. In Garner's view, good writing is good thinking put to paper. 'Never write a sentence that you couldn't easily speak,' he warns-and demonstrates how to do just that. Beginning each tip with a set of quotable quotes from experts, he then gives masterly advice on building sound paragraphs, drafting crisp sentences, choosing the best words ('Strike pursuant to from your vocabulary.'), quoting authority, citing sources, and designing a document that looks as impressive as it reads. Throughout, he shows how to edit for maximal impact, using vivid before-and-after examples that apply the basics of rhetoric to persuasive writing. Filled with examples of good and bad writing from actual briefs filed in courts of all types, The Winning Brief also covers the new appellate rules for preparing federal briefs. Constantly collecting material from his seminars and polling judges for their preferences, the second edition delivers the same solid guidelines with even more supporting evidence. Including for the first time sections on the ever-changing rules of acceptable legal writing, Garner's new edition keeps even the most seasoned lawyers on their toes and writing briefs that win cases. An invaluable resource for attorneys, law clerks, judges, paralegals, law students and their teachers, The Winning Brief has the qualities that make all of Garner's books so popular: authority, accessibility, and page after page of techniques that work. If you're writing to win a case, this book shouldn't merely be on your shelf--it should be open on your desk. ... Read more

Reviews

A must-have for practitioners, November 18, 2004
I became familiar with this book in law school and it has helped me tremendously. It debunks the myths about which practices are truly expected in briefs and which provide more latitude and freedom for legal writers.

The information is presented in 100 easy-to-understand "tips." Each tip provides quotes from judges, legal scholars, and other literary figures who help to explain why a particular facet of writing is important. Garner also includes examples, oftentimes what-to-do's and what-not-to-do's.

The format of the book makes it easy and helpful to use and the information is invaluable. It's like an advanced course in legal writing.

Highly recommended!

Clear Writing is Persuasive Writing, January 9, 2007
The Winning Brief is essential reading for any lawyer who cares about writing clearly and persuasively. As a litigation partner and trial lawyer, I am always looking to improve my own skills and find that Bryan Garner's comments are clear and practical. I strongly recommend The Winning Brief because it goes well beyond many texts that discuss generalisms on trial and appellate briefs--Mr. Garner provides instead direct insight into how to move the trier of fact.

Kindle Format Not Well-Suited for Reference Style, November 4, 2008
This is a great book, filled with great advice, from a great legal writing professional. Unfortunately, the Kindle version of this book fails to earn similar praise. There is no "master" list of the 100 tips to quickly browse. The examples, in image format, are hard to read--if not impossible on the small screen. There's no quick-flipping to the tips you want--a problem inherent to the Kindle format. So while the book and its content may be wonderful, if not essential, the Kindle format guts its value. Not bad for reading on the train, but useless when you're writing a brief at your desk.

Buy this while you are in law school, January 30, 2007
This is the only guide you will ever need to writing good briefs. Garner teaches you to write powerfully in plain English. Be a better lawyer and work with this book!

Helpful quick refernce, October 18, 2007
I am currently a law student, this book provides some insightful ideas and is useful because it doesn't require an hour of reading to pick out helpful relevant tips. All the 100 tips are outlined in the front and back cover so you can skim for something specific and go to it and read it.

The author of this book is highly respected and provides many CLE classes, I recommend this book to anyone looking for ways to improve their brief writing.

The best book on writing PERIOD, September 11, 2007
I've read a lot of books on writing, and all of the common books about legal writing, and this is the best of the bunch. If I had to recommend a single book about writing to anyone, lawyer or not, I would recommend this one. It is expensive but worth every penny. Throw away your Strunk and White!

Solid, real-world advice, September 9, 2009
I am a practicing trial lawyer in a small town. This book is the best legal writing book I have encountered. Garner challenges many of the "white elephants" that practitioners and law professors alike cling to. (For example, the myth about ending a sentence with a preposition). His advice ranges from small grammar rules, to sentence structure, to the overall strategy in formulating briefs and arguments.

From my real world experience, I can tell you that Garner's advice is right on the money and will assist you in winning cases. On multiple occasions over the years, I have had different judges compliment my briefing, but the credit goes to the techniques I learned from Garner. I give this book my highest recommendation. If you can, also take Garner's CLE class that is centered on this same book.

Uncommonly Good Advice, August 4, 2009
Yes, another by Garner, and this one is as wonderful, diverse and as instructional as his others, but in specific ways related to English drafting and argumentation in the context of litigation. Therefore, I have to say, this is the boutique book for the litigator who wants to improve his or her English (...that is, if there are some few of you out there who share those usually mutually-exclusive characteristics). The first 50 tips are listed inside the front cover, and the last 50 are inside the back cover, making it a good ready-reference. The meat is, thankfully, between the covers, and in usefully sweet doses: each tip is introduced by 'quotable quotes,' and includes an explanation and applications. Tips are particularized in other ways that endear me to this volume, including subtitles such as "Two Qualms Answered," "Uncommonly Good Examples," "Egregious Examples," etcetera. You get the drift: now, how can you resist it? I would like to suggest that this is the book for both every good litigator...and every good armchair litigator and lover of legal English. So ... Enjoy! Across the board, this was the most 'fun' book to read of the legal English books I set out to review. I note also that its substantive and universal logic and consistency will cross cultures without much difficulty.

Excellent Legal Writing Book, November 2, 2008
Love this book and the author's other books. Must have for all legal professionals who do research and writing in any form.

Outstanding, July 21, 2008
A must read for every serious law student and attorney - even if you are an experienced brief writer, this easy to understand book, filled withe clear examples forces you to think and improve your persuasive writing. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Conflict is inevitable, in both deals and disputes. Yet when clients call in the lawyers to haggle over who gets how much of the pie, traditional hard-bargaining tactics can lead to ruin. Too often, deals blow up, cases don't settle, relationships fall apart, justice is delayed. Beyond Winning charts a way out of our current crisis of confidence in the legal system. It offers a fresh look at negotiation, aimed at helping lawyers turn disputes into deals, and deals into better deals, through practical, tough-minded problem-solving techniques.

In this step-by-step guide to conflict resolution, the authors describe the many obstacles that can derail a legal negotiation, both behind the bargaining table with one's own client and across the table with the other side. They offer clear, candid advice about ways lawyers can search for beneficial trades, enlarge the scope of interests, improve communication, minimize transaction costs, and leave both sides better off than before. But lawyers cannot do the job alone. People who hire lawyers must help change the game from conflict to collaboration. The entrepreneur structuring a joint venture, the plaintiff embroiled in a civil suit, the CEO negotiating an employment contract, the real estate developer concerned with environmental hazards, the parent considering a custody battle--clients who understand the pressures and incentives a lawyer faces can work more effectively within the legal system to promote their own best interests. Attorneys exhausted by the trench warfare of cases that drag on for years will find here a positive, proven approach to revitalizing their profession.

Reviews

A Breakthrough Book, November 14, 2000
Mnookin's book is a "breakthrough book" because it redraws the context and framework of most disputes and conflicts and their resolution. Rather than attorneys acting as amplification agents for their clients, in Mnookin's scenario, attorneys are tapped to bring high-level creative problem-solving skills to complex situations at an impasse. It's the first book I've read on the subject that can actually help people approach belligerent, impassioned, irrational opponents with tactics that are systematic yet creative, assertive, and productive. This is a book to be read closely and kept handy. It is also tightly written, and well-researched and documented.

Lawyers: Expand the Pie and Cut Transaction Costs First!, September 9, 2000
I have had the pleasure of taking a minicourse using these methods from Professor Mnookin, and can attest to the excellence of the concepts suggested here. Anyone who benefited from and enjoyed the groundbreaking work in Getting to Yes will appreciate and value this follow-on work in more beneficial negotiations. You will find BATNAs again (Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement), but also great tools for maneuvering with your client, the other attorney, and the problem at hand.

This is a book for lawyers, but indirectly it is also a book for clients and what they should look for and expect from their attorney in a dispute.

When I went to law school, every case was treated as though it had the potential to go to the Supreme Court. With the exception of a brief class in decision theory, there was no training in anything other than preparing to wage World War III on behalf of the client. Now even preparing to wage World War III is very expensive, and may chew up a lot of the benefits of contesting the issue.

The ideas here go well beyond that perspective. "At its core, problem-solving implies an orientation or mindset -- it is not simply a bundle of techniques." "The goal is to search for solutions that save the clients interests while also respecting the legitimate needs and interests of the other side." "Rather than starting a war at the outset, you can begin your legal negotiations by trying to get your clients' problem solved as efficiently and creatively as possible."

A strength of this book is to realize that although it would be great if every lawyer took this approach, more will not than will for the immediate future. So the process takes that into account. If the other side cannot and will not look for better solutions, you can take a principled approach that may still create some better results than would otherwise occur. For example, you might explain to the recalcitrant opposing attorney what you will do if they remain recalcitrant while explaining what else you will do instead if they do cooperate.

I know from the course I took that the biggest barrier is that the clients and the attorneys are reluctant to candidly share information with each other. It is from that sharing that ways of creating mutually more beneficial results can happen. For example, in one hypothetical example, a man wants to rent an apartment. He is short of money and furniture. The woman he wants to rent it from has the furniture he needs and lacks a place to store her furniture. She wants more money, and he doesn't want to pay too much. Obviously, there's a middle ground where they are both better off if they can agree. That's the type of situation where this book is aimed. Obviously, if the two parties are going to have more dealings in the future, there is greater room for mutual accommodations that are beneficial.

More and more fields in law are becoming subject to a search for resolution rather than a contest of wills. Environmental law is a good example. Recently, matrimonial lawyers have begun seeking to make this shift as well. Large law firms are starting alternative dispute resolution practices. I hope all of this will succeed. It is a great way to improve society, provide better economic results, and to create more pleasant dispute and negotiation resolution.

If you like the ideas here, I strongly suggest that you take courses where simulated negotiations with other attorneys are used. That's the way to really learn how to use these concepts.

Good luck with your next dispute!

A Winner, October 28, 2000
This book is a winner! I am not a lawyer, but I read Beyond Winning, underlined it, and used it as a guide during a difficult set of negotiations. It gave me useful ideas and language. More importantly, it helped me be both assertive and flexible. By taking me through situations that others faced and showing me the steps that they used to resolve their conflicts, I learned about myself and the person I was confronting. In my case, although neither of us came out with all we sought, both of us came out ahead. And we had the satisfaction of resolving our differences peacefully, quickly, and out of court. I recommend Beyond Winning enthusiastically!

Great new insights on negotiation, November 11, 2000
Beyond Winning is a great addition to the negotiation literature. This work helps understand the complexities of all negotiations, but is especially valuable for understand negotiations through intermediaries. This book should be required reading of all lawyers - this would help make the world a better place. THis book will also be of great value to anyone who needs to dealw ith lawyers on a regular basis.

Must Have, January 3, 2001
This is a book that should be read by every lawyer. It offers practical, useful advice for an approach to negotiation that moves above and beyond the game playing and posturing that too often characterizes a negotiation. The book also offers a useful discussion of the issues raised for a lawyer in negotiating on behalf of a client. All in all, this is a must have, must read for any lawyer.

Negotiating, March 24, 2007
A textbook for the Harvard Negotiation Project. This book is for too much for the average joe. It is more for people who must negotiate for a living - that's a lot of us. It is "Getting To Yes" writ large. Where the ground breaking "Getting To Yes" can help everyone, "Beyond Winning" is more aimed at people whose lives and careers require professional negotiation. The book is for serious negotiators, not amateurs.

Indispensable, June 1, 2006
This book taught me the critical importance of focus on interests, how they might be brought forward and woven into an agreement. And above all, the importance of paying attention to the negotiation process. Whether you are in the lawyer's or the client's shoes, don't attempt to close another deal before you understand how to create value in negotiation. Prof. Mnookin is your swimming coach.

A Must Read for Anyone Who Negotiates, August 5, 2001
Wise, comprehensive, practical, and extremely well-written. Whether you are negotiating deals or disputes, whether you see yourself as a gladiator or a problem solver, this book is indespensible.

Excellent Book!, September 16, 2000
Beyond Winning is extremely well written and informative. It has made me a much better negotiator and has taught me valuable life lessons. I'm not an attorney, but now I know how to think like one! I fully recommend this book to anyone interested in the art of negotiation.

A Ridiculous Book -- Don't Buy It, July 13, 2001
The book is not reasoned well and poorly written by a fairly arrogant author who seems only interested in building up his own reputation. The book is not practical, and its theories stir up more questions than they answer. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Get the most out of the new Medicare drug coverage!

Everyone wants to get the highest possible retirement and pension income --not to mention the best medical coverage. This book is your guide to finding retirement benefits, figuring out the best time to claim them, and then doing so quickly and easily.

Social Security benefits
Find all the latest information and instructions you need to get your retirement and disability benefits, dependents and survivors benefits, and Supplemental Security Income (SSI).

Medicare & Medicaid
Learn the nuts and bolts of both programs, plus how to qualify and apply for them. Understand Medicare Part D prescription drug coverage what it covers, how to apply for it and how to use it with your medigap policy, managed care plan or Medicaid.

Medical coverage options
Get the latest information on Medicare and Medicaid HMOs and other managed care plans, and learn about the different types of medigap health plans.

Government pensions & veterans benefits
Discover when and how to claim the benefits you have earned.

The 15th edition contains a new chapter on Medicare Advantage Plans, including information about rapidly expanding private fee-for-service plans, plus new Social Security qualifying & benefit figures, and Medicare premium, deductible, copayment & coinsurance figures. (20080508) ... Read more

Reviews

A must read, December 11, 2007
I picked up the 9th edition when I got ready to retire and it saved me a lot of money and confusion and helped tremendously getting thru all the "red" tape. So a couple of years later as I get ready now to approach Medicare I need all the information I can get so I ordered the new 12 edition. Which included tons of updated information.. A recommend for anyone retiring and/or getting ready to go on Medicare

Good, But Not Perfect, Guide to Entitlement Programs, April 27, 2010

Great book!, March 14, 2008
Bought this book for my husband (the accountant) since we are approaching Social Security age and weren't that familiar with SS benefits or Medicare. He has found this book very helpful in understanding the system. We would recommend.

A great resource to add to your collection., May 4, 2010

Not bad. Not bad at all., April 30, 2009
This book, for the main, is clear, compact, and well researched. And it lists, highlights, tips and cross references in a most delightful, easy-to-grab manner. Unfortunately for me, the very small and few sections I needed to be clear, were not. My own concerns aside, this is an outstanding reference, and a good place to start.

An outstanding, basic reference suitable for any public library., September 1, 2007
he 12th edition of Attorney Joseph Matthews with Dorothy Matthews Berman's SOCIAL SECURITY, MEDICARE & GOVERNMENT PENSIONS: GET THE MOST OUT OF YOUR RETIREMENT AND MEDICAL BENEFITS provides the latest instructions on getting the most from Medicare, social security and government and veterans benefits. From uncovering benefits and when and how to claim them to qualifying for programs and combining them, this provides an outstanding, basic reference suitable for any public library.

Worth the price, November 18, 2010
This book introduced me to how to "claim and suspend" retirement benefits. A higher wager earner can claim benefits at full retirement age; the other spouse then claims dependents benefits (which are often higher than the spouse's benefits); and then the higher earning spouse suspends his/her claim. The result is more money in your pocket. This advice by itself made the book worth the price. Because the book is clearly written and contains a wealth of useful information, I recommend it.

A clear, easy to understand guide, June 10, 2010

Functions like a road atlas, not 100% up to date, but gets you there, May 26, 2010

A great book on Social Security Pensions and more!, May 20, 2010