Legal Forms

Everything you need to know!

Legal Instrument
Legal Instrument
● A written document; a formal or legal
document in writing, such as a contract, deed,
will, bond, or lease
● Anything reduced to writing, a document of a
formal or solemn character, a writing given as
a means of affording evidence

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Legal Instrument
● A document or writing which gives formal
expression to a legal act or agreement, for the
purpose of creating, securing, modifying, or
terminating a right

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Contract
● A contract is a meeting of minds between two
persons whereby one binds himself, with
respect to the other, to give something or to
render some service.

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Affidavit
● A voluntarily sworn declaration of written
facts. Affidavits are commonly used to present
evidence in court.

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Negotiable instruments
● Promissory notes
● Bills of exchange

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Promissory notes
● A promise in writing to pay a sum certain in
money
Bill of Exchange
● The order or command to pay

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Information
● An information is an accusation in writing
charging a person with an offense, subscribed
by the prosecutor and filed with the court.

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Pleadings
● Pleadings are the written statements of the
respective claims and defenses of the parties
submitted to the court for appropriate
judgment.

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Theories
Legal Writing

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Sitko; Zimmerman & Risemberg
● Metacognition and Writing

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Three Stages:
1. Pre-action: consist of planning and getting
motivated
2. Action Phase: ideas are translated to written
text
3. Revision Phase: written text are evaluated

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William Putman
Legal Research, Analysis, and Writing.

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Three Stages:
1. Pre-writing Stage: the assignment, constraints
affecting the assignment, and the
organization of the assignment.
2. Writing Stage: DO NOT TRY TO MAKE FIRST
DRAFT THE FINAL DRAFT
3. Post-writing Stage: revising and editing

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Legal Writing
process

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1. Legal writing is highly organized and
structured.
2. If you do not have a writing process and
merely gather research material and
immediately begin to write, you will waste a
great deal of time because you are not ready
to write.

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3. When researching or analyzing an assignment
or engaging in legal writing, a writing process
provides a framework that helps to capture ideas
and record them in their proper place as they
occur

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4. A writing process helps you avoid these
problems by providing a stepped approach.
Becoming stuck or blocked is often the result of
having missed a step or left something out. A
process is a guide that includes all the steps and
helps ensure that nothing is left out.

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 David Howard Spratt
Tips for Effective Legal
Writing

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Check verb tense.

● A singular subject should have a singular verb

and a plural subject should have a plural verb.

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Note word placement.
● “The verb should come after the subject and
be as close to the subject as possible,”

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Stay active.
● Writing in the active voice is clearer, more
concise and easier for the reader to
understand. Writing in the passive voice
makes the reader “struggle to figure out what
you’re saying,”

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Aim for clarity
● Avoid double negatives: if you have no reason
to use it, don’t use it. Words such as “not
insignificant” and “not uncommon” generally
confuse the reader and slow them down.

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Other Tips for Effective
Legal Writing

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Tip 1: Understand your purpose
● Ask yourself: Why are you writing what you are
writing? What are you hoping to accomplish?
What is the outcome you wish to achieve?

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Tip 2: Understand your audience
● Knowing who you’re writing for will help shape
the structure and tone of your piece.

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Tip 3: Do your research
● Good legal writing requires researching and
incorporating relevant legal precedents into
your documents. Before you start writing,
make sure you thoroughly read any material
provided to understand the legal issues and
are cognizant of the applicable jurisdiction.

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Tip 4: Create an outline
● One of the most helpful legal writing tips to
improve your legal writing skills is organizing
your research into an outline. Starting with an
outline will help keep your writing organized
and focused.

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Tip 5: Put words on the page
● On your first draft, focus on capturing the right
information. Make sure the information is complete and
sufficient, and that the content flows nicely from one
section to the next. Give yourself as many drafts as you
need before your deadline. Also, give your writing some
room to breathe by taking a break from your work and
coming back to it with fresh eyes.

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Tip 6: Be aware of content structure
● Pick your best or most persuasive arguments to focus
your writing on, then filter additional, supporting
arguments thereafter. Use headings to break up
sections and transition from one argument to the next,
and start new sections with summary sentences. Where
appropriate, it also may be helpful to use lists and
bullets to make your writing scannable for the reader.

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Tip 7: Be clear
● When writing any type of document, state your
point directly and clearly within the first few
sentences to help guide the reader along.
Assume your reader has very little time or
patience, that they hate to read, and that
they’re only going to read the first 200 words.

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Tip 8: Use jargon only when
appropriate
● When appropriate, strive to use plain
language instead, while showing that you
understand jargon and can present it in easy-
to-understand ways for the reader.

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Tip 9: Edit and proofread

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Tip 10: Read other writers’ work
● The most common piece of advice writers give
for those looking to improve their writing
skills is to read—this rings true for any kind of
writing.

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Assignment:
Instruction: Be guided by the tips that we
discussed in answering the following questions.
Your answers should not be more than 10
sentences. However, make sure that you answer
them clearly and concisely.

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Question No. 1
1. Zecharias was terminated as Accountant in the bank
where he was working. After his dismissal, he went home to
his pregnant wife, Zendaya. Zendaya constantly nagged
Zecharias to give her money for her prenatal medicine and
checkups. Saddened by his termination and angered by the
actions of his wife, Zecharias hit Zendaya. Zendaya fell to
the ground. This resulted to the death of Zendaya and their
unborn child. What crime did Zecharias commit?

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Question No. 2
2. Mari and Dingdong are candidates in the
national elections. In his speeches, Dingdong
constantly attacked Mari by alleging that she is
incompetent and a daughter of a rapist. May Mari
file a case against Dingdong for grave oral
defamation? State your reasons.

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Format
● 14 font size
● Times new roman
● Letter (paper size)
● PDF

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