Jun 23

What is Legal English?

English Language Training, Legal English Training Courses No Comments »

Why does legal English need to be separated from other types of English, such as business English and scientific English? The case is clear for anyone who has had dealings with a lawyer and the law. The language used by trained legal professionals, such as solicitors or barristers or by paralegals, such as legal secretaries and law professors, is very distinct from everyday professional English (commonly referred to as ‘business English’). For this reason there now exist specific legal English examinations: TOLES (Test of Legal English Skills) and the Cambridge ILEC (International Legal English Certificate).

Business People 4 Neustockimages i What is Legal English?

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In order to understand these differences, one needs to understand that both Latin and French were used as legal languages before English became the official language of law in Britain in the 17th Century. By this time, a substantial amount of earlier vocabulary had already become part of legal usage and is used today (Latin phrases such as ‘mens’ and ‘rea’ and French loanwords such as ‘lien’, plaintiff’ and ‘tort’). Learning the vocabulary of legal English is not enough, however, as the style of legal writing refers back to these complex origins as well. Sentences are often long and contain very complex grammatical structures, which are not used in any other form of English. All of this language needs to be practised in context so that the learner is sure of how to communicate appropriately in different situations.

The complexities of this style of writing are most pertinently conveyed by a qualified legal professional; not only for these purely grammatical and lexical considerations but also because there are such things to consider that go above and beyond the spheres of vocabulary and grammar. Examples of these areas are: the varying levels of formality to use when addressing different audiences and the need to write documents that are ‘airtight’. There also exists the overriding concern that this writing should be, in spite of its technical complexity, clear, simple and direct. In addition to satisfying linguistic requirements, a qualified legal professional would also be able to give the delegate more of a feel for the culture of the legal profession in question. Anecdotes and advice are an invaluable source of knowledge.

A legal English course is therefore best delivered by a professional with qualifications in the legal field. This, however, does not necessarily lead to a well-structured, pedagogically-sound course. The second requirement would be that this professional person needs to be a qualified trainer as well. Knowing your subject and knowing how to train it are not the same. How to adapt to the delegate’s exact needs and his/her learning style, how to create easy to understand, interesting, rounded training sessions and how to create delegate-friendly material are some of the additional concerns that a qualified trainer would bring to the training course.

It is therefore essential that a potential delegate does his research before deciding upon a legal English training course and makes sure that his future trainer is dual-qualified. An example of a training organisation which only employs dual-qualified legal English trainers, lawyers as well as qualified English language trainers, is the Culture and Skills Consultancy Communicaid. If the training organisation you make enquiries to does not clearly state this fact and can not provide credentials, then it is highly probable that the training course will be lacking in several of the above-mentioned key areas.

© Communicaid Group Ltd.2010

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Jun 22

What is Business English?

Business English Training Courses, English Language Training No Comments »

English became the predominant language of business during the second half of the Twentieth Century for various reasons. The USA became the world’s most important economic power and was also one of the ‘victors’, alongside Britain, of the Second World War. The increasingly international nature of business made moving towards a ‘common’ language a necessity. English was a perfect candidate as it was already spoken as a first or second language by many people around the globe (partially as a result of British colonialism). It is now spoken by over 500 million people in a vast number of territories, including Britain, Canada, the United States of America, Australia, India and Southern Africa and has truly become a ‘global’ language. Business English is therefore considered as being essential for all people who wish to work in any area of business, aviation, computing, etc. As the economy becomes increasingly global, the importance of Business English continues to grow.

Definition Business samdiesel i What is Business English?

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‘Business English’ is the wide-embracing term that is used to describe the type of English that is used by people to do business. ‘English for Business focuses on the English language skills necessary to communicate in an increasingly global business environment.’ The range of different subject areas included under the umbrella term ‘Business English’ is wide. The Oxford Business English Dictionary includes the following areas : accounting, commerce, e-commerce, economics, finance, HR, insurance, IT, law, manufacturing, marketing, production, property, the stock exchange, (international) trade, transport. Does this mean that everything which is not considered to be General English is in fact Business English? The answer is no. There is a wider term for English which is not considered to be general: ESP (English for Specific Purposes). This acronym includes all the different areas of ‘Business English’ and more (English for hotels and catering, English for Science, English for Academic Purposes (EAP), etc).

What is generally associated with a ‘Business English’ course are the skills that most people need to be able to do their jobs well: writing e-mails and reports, making presentations, doing negotiations, using the telephone, attending and participating actively in meetings or telephone conferences, receiving visitors, etc The big difference, therefore, is that Business English focuses on the delegate’s job whereas the aim of General English is to improve all the four skills, regardless of the language content.

Consequently, Business English courses need to be carefully planned. The delegate or delegates (if the course is not one-to-one) should initially have their needs and objectives, as well as their language level, analysed before the specific training programme is drawn up. A delegate usually does not want to waste valuable course time learning skills or practising language which are not relevant to his/her professional requirements. Business English training courses are normally paid for by companies and the delegates are therefore in some way accountable for what is achieved. As a result, some sort of agreement needs to be established between the training organisation and the delegate’s company before the training course begins Answers to questions such as: ‘how many hours of training will the delegate require in order to achieve his/her stated objectives?’ or ‘What can the delegate expect to be capable of doing at the end of this course of X number of hours?’ need to be taken into consideration

Company English language training budgets are spent almost entirely on Business English courses. It is therefore imperative that language training organisations fine-tune their service and put themselves in a position from which they can respond rapidly and effectively to this ever-increasing demand.

© Communicaid Group Ltd.2010

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Jun 21

Legal English Courses for Legal Secretaries and Paralegals

English Language Training, Legal English Training Courses 1 Comment »

It is logical that the international language of business is also used as the international language of law. English, and more correctly, Legal English is now the established language of international law and contract drafting. Lawyers across the world working in private practises, large multinationals and international institutions are now required to possess competency in Legal English.

While legal English courses such as English for Lawyers and Drafting Contracts in English are now widely available for lawyers, training specifically targeted at legal support staff is less commonly recognised. Legal secretaries and paralegals play a vital role in the successful running of any law firm or legal department.

Business Woman 13 nicole waring i Legal English Courses for Legal Secretaries and Paralegals

© istockphoto.com/ Nicole Waring

We all know what a legal secretary is, but what exactly are paralegals? Also known as legal assistants, they support solicitors in their legal tasks. As the Law Society stated in the findings of its research and policy planning study n° 23, ‘…Paralegal staff, properly qualified, enable solicitors to concentrate on the more complex cases and they also increase the productivity of the firm’

As far as finding a suitable training course is concerned, properly trained paralegals and legal secretaries in legal English will help increase the efficiency of the profession they work in and, logically, the confidence of the company’s clients

Legal secretaries and paralegals need to have the skills and technical knowledge to be able to carry out their daily tasks efficiently. These competences can best be acquired on a specialised legal English course.

The content of such a course provides the delegate with essential background knowledge about the different legal systems and the specific terminology associated with them. Punctuation and certain grammatical points can be different in legal writing from everyday business and general language. Therefore, comprehending and being able to interpret legal documents in English is a skill to be learned. Drafting texts such as contracts and legal letters is also important.

Although there are certain fundamentals that all legal secretaries and paralegals should know, law is a vast area and the delegate should look for a training course that adapts as much as possible to his/her specific field of work: tax, intellectual property, real estate, corporate finance, to name a few. It is important that the delegate feels that the time spent on a training course is well spent. This concern diminishes if the training organisation approaches the course in a specific way. The delegate’s level of English and specific needs should be diagnosed before a tailored programme is drawn up. The training organisation should also guarantee that its trainers are dual qualified: legal professionals and English language trainers.

Even though the training course focuses on a specific professional area, it must not be forgotten that the course is in English and the delegate will be learning to carry out specific legal tasks in this language. It is therefore logical to look into the range of legal English courses in the UK, England or even London. In this way, the delegate can be immersed in the English language outside as well as inside the training room. Confidence in the language, clear pronunciation, fluency and ability to understand English spoken at a natural speed are skills which improve by following a course in an English language speaking country. Another advantage of following a legal English course in the UK is that as a paralegal you can experience the legal terminology being used in a natural environment through visits to a Court or to a law firm.

There are a lot of courses for paralegals and legal secretaries in the UK, but there are not many specially designed by organisations to improve the delegate’s linguistic skills at the same time. One such organisation, however, is Communicaid, whose Legal Englishcourses are available in its main training centre in London or in any other place of the delegate’s choice at any time of the year.

© Communicaid Group Ltd. 2010

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