COURSE INFORMATION Course Title: LEGAL ENGLISH

Code	Course Type	Regular Semester	Theory	Practice	Lab	Credits	ECTS
LAW 110	D	2	3	0	0	3	5

Academic staff member responsible for the design of the course syllabus (name, surname, academic title/scientific degree, email address and signature)	Dr. Gentjan Skara gskara@epoka.edu.al
Main Course Lecturer (name, surname, academic title/scientific degree, email address and signature) and Office Hours:	Dr. Dea Haxhiu dbashkurti@epoka.edu.al , Monday 10:00-12:30
Second Course Lecturer(s) (name, surname, academic title/scientific degree, email address and signature) and Office Hours:	NA
Language:	English
Compulsory/Elective:	Compulsory
Study program: (the study for which this course is offered)	Integrated second cycle study program in Law
Classroom and Meeting Time:
Teaching Assistant(s) and Office Hours:	NA
Code of Ethics:	Code of Ethics of EPOKA University Regulation of EPOKA University "On Student Discipline"
Attendance Requirement:
Course Description:	Legal English aims to give the student a general overview of the law and constitutional institutions using all legal terminology. Through this course, students will become familiar with the language used in treaties and international institutions, and will have the opportunity to discuss the most important topics in law.
Course Objectives:	The course seeks to develop students’ abilities to critically analyse legal texts in English, and create and edit their own English texts in legal contexts. Students will also learn to orally present and discuss legal issues in English. The course also focuses on rhetorical aspects of English, including adjusting the use of English to the type, and purpose of the text, as well as to the reader or audience.

BASIC CONCEPTS OF THE COURSE

1	Fundamental Legal Concepts

COURSE OUTLINE

Week	Topics
1	Introduction to legal English (The English language contains elements from many different European languages and has also borrowed words from a wide variety of other languages. It is impossible to grasp how these influences affect the language without understanding a little about the history of the British Isles) Pg.1
2	Elements of legal writing; Punctuation for legal writing (The aim of this chapter is not to provide comprehensive coverage of all aspects of grammar, but merely to provide guidance on various issues that may cause difficulties in legal writing.) Pg. 6-32
3	Basic standards of legal writing ( The most unusual aspects of old-fashioned contract drafting was the belief among lawyers and judges that punctuation was unimportant. The prevailing view in common law jurisdictions was that the meaning of legal documents should be ascertained from the words of the document and their context rather than from punctuation. Accordingly, old-fashioned legal drafting tends to involve little or no punctuation. This makes it extremely hard to read and potentially highly ambiguous.) Pg. 32
4	Elements of good style: clarity, consistency, effectiveness; What to avoid (Style in legal writing is to some extent a matter of personal preference or company policy. The only unbreakable rules of style in legal documents and letters are that your writing should be as easy to understand as possible and that it should avoid offensive terms. ) Pg.46-67
5	Contracts: structure and interpretation; Contract clauses: types and specimen clauses (Contracts may also be varied by mutual agreement. Alternatively, where a party agrees to a request of the other party to the contract not to insist on performance of part of the contract, that second party is said to have waived his or her right to insist on performance in the manner originally agreed. The parties are then bound by the terms of the waiver and no consideration is necessary to support this. )Pg. 85-98
6	Drafting legal documents: language and structure (As a rough rule, the functions of contractual language can be summarised using the acronym COAL (conditions, obligations, authorisations, limitations). These functions require different words and phrases, will be explained in the Week 6.)Pg. 119
7	Correspondence and memoranda; Applying for a legal position (he main aims of legal correspondence in all cases are clarity and accuracy. However, the style of correspondence will differ slightly according to whom the correspondence is being written for. When writing to another lawyer, the writer can assume that legal jargon and terms of art will be understood and do not need to be explained. When writing to clients and other third parties, this assumption cannot be made. Care should be taken to explain legal technicalities in terms that a layperson can understand.) Pg. 138-158
8	Interviewing and advising; (The essence of an interview between a lawyer and a client is an exchange of information and views. The lawyer requires certain information from the client in order to advise the client. The client wants advice from the lawyer. The lawyer and the client must then jointly decide what should be done to progress the case, and what each of them must do to contribute to this process. In addition, the lawyer must ensure that the client has been informed of and understands certain vital points.) Pg. 180
9	Midterm exam
10	Dealing with difficult people: 10-point guide (Most legal professionals, at some time or another, have to deal with difficult people – or with otherwise perfectly pleasant and rational people who for some unknown reason become highly emotional and completely irrational in the presence of a legal adviser. What strategies does the English language provide for dealing with such situations? This chapter contains a 10-point guide outlining the types of approach that may assist in taming an enraged client, colleague or partner – and the language that can be used to support these approaches.)Pg. 192
11	Court advocacy (This chapter looks at the typical stages of a court hearing and the linguistic requirements of those stages; Structure of a Civil Trial, Examination-in-chief, Cross-examination, General points and Modes of address in court.) Pg. 198
12	Negotiation; (Negotiation style refers to the personal behaviour the negotiator uses to carry out the strategy that s/he has chosen. Three main styles of negotiation have been identified, and these are usually referred to as cooperative, adversarial and problem-solving. Negotiation strategy refers to the specific goals to be achieved and the pattern of conduct that should improve the chances of achieving those goals.) Pg. 237
13	Chairing a formal meeting; Making a presentation (Most formal meetings commence with the reading of the minutes of the previous meeting and the presentation of the agenda for the current meeting. The matters set out on the agenda are then introduced and discussed by the participants. Towards the end of the meeting, motions are proposed and votes are taken on the matters proposed as motions. The participants then deal with any other business (often marked as ‘AOB’ on meeting agendas), which needs to be dealt with at that point, and the meeting is then closed.)Pg. 243
14	Telephoning; Discussion. (Most lawyers use the telephone many times during a typical working day. There is nothing especially different about using English on the telephone to using any other language on the telephone. However, there are a number of common phrases that people tend to use when speaking on the telephone. Knowing what these are, what they mean and how they are used should help make communication easier.) Pg. 253

Prerequisite(s):
Textbook(s):	Haigh, R. (2020). International Legal English: A Practical Introduction for Students and Professionals. Routledge.6th Edition ___Garner, Bryan A. Legal writing in plain English: A text with exercises. University of Chicago Press, 2023.
Additional Literature:
Laboratory Work:
Computer Usage:
Others:	No

COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES

1	Knowledge and the ability to review, understand, and critically analyse legal texts in English,
2	Knowledge and understanding of the use of English in legal contexts, particularly in international legal usage
3	Knowledge and ability to independently and in time author texts in English in legal contexts
4	Ability to orally and in writing effectively communicate in English in legal contexts, including adapting the use of English to the specific situation

COURSE CONTRIBUTION TO... PROGRAM COMPETENCIES (Blank : no contribution, 1: least contribution ... 5: highest contribution)

No	Program Competencies	Cont.
Integrated second cycle study program in Law Program
1	Fitimi dhe përdorimi i njohurive të avancuara në fushën e drejtësisë dhe jurisprudencës, mbështetur në tekstet mësimore, materialet dhe burimet e tjera shkencore.	5
2	Fitimi i njohurive rreth çështjeve dhe problematikave të fushës së drejtësisë, së bashku me analizën e aspekteve historike, shoqërore e politike.	5
3	Fitimi i njohurive rreth organizimit të shtetit.	5
4	Fitimi i njohurive rreth kapaciteteve të analizës lidhur me konceptet dhe ndarjet kryesore të degëve të së drejtës.	5
5	Përmirësimi i aftësive për të punuar së bashku me disiplinat kryesore të shkencave sociale dhe disiplinat e tjera të cilat janë të lidhura me drejtësinë.	5
6	Fitimi i njohurive rreth drejtësisë duke përthithur terminologjinë profesionale të fushës.	5
7	Përcaktimi i ngjarjeve dhe temave komplekse, nëpërmjet zhvillimit të diskutimeve dhe bërjes së sugjerimeve të reja në përputhje me hulumtimet e fushës.	5
8	Fitimi i aftësive në përdorimin e programeve kompjuterike dhe të teknologjisë së informacionit me qëllim arritjen e qasjes në dijen aktuale.	5
9	Përmirësimi i të menduarit kritik dhe aftësive në kryerjen e hulumtimit në mënyrë të pavarur.	5
10	Fitimi i njohurive për të folur në një gjuhë të huaj në një nivel të mjaftueshëm për të komunikuar me kolegët dhe për të kuptuar zhvillimet bashkëkohore në fushën e drejtësisë dhe të jurisprudencës.	5
11	Fitimi i aftësive për të respektuar vlerat shoqërore, shkencore dhe etike gjatë mbledhjes dhe interpretimit të të dhënave që kanë të bëjnë me zhvillimet shoqërore dhe atyre në drejtësi.	5
12	Ndërgjegjësimi në lidhje me rëndësinë e të drejtave të njeriut dhe mjedisit.	5

COURSE EVALUATION METHOD

Method	Quantity	Percentage
Midterm Exam(s)	1	30
Presentation	1	5
Project	1	10
Final Exam	1	40
Attendance		15
	Total Percent:	100%

ECTS (ALLOCATED BASED ON STUDENT WORKLOAD)

Activities	Quantity	Duration(Hours)	Total Workload(Hours)
Course Duration (Including the exam week: 16x Total course hours)	16	3	48
Hours for off-the-classroom study (Pre-study, practice)	14	2	28
Mid-terms	1	5	5
Assignments	2	22	44
Final examination			0
Other			0
Total Work Load:			125
Total Work Load/25(h):			5
ECTS Credit of the Course:			5

CONCLUDING REMARKS BY THE COURSE LECTURER

Legal English aims to give the student a general overview of the law and constitutional institutions using all legal terminology. Through this course, students will become familiar with the language used in treaties and international institutions, and will have the opportunity to discuss the most important topics in law.