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Research shows that the learning process is enhanced when the students can attach an emotion to the subject-matter that they are being exposed to. I suppose it is a process similar to the one of remembering a film: I recall very well the story of “About Time” because it made me both laugh and cry; […]
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Global Legal Skills / Lawyering / Legal Analysis / Legal Reasoning / Legal Skills / Legal Writing / Teaching and Learning November 19, 2017
READ MOREThese past two weeks, I have been grading my Year Two Legal Analysis take-home examinations. The exam is a legal writing exercise testing persuasive writing ability. The students wrote a stakeholder report for Amnesty International in the Universal Periodic Review of the United States of America. Students drafted a section of the report arguing that […]
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collaborative learning / Cooperative learning / Lawyering / Legal Skills / Peer Review / Teaching and Learning November 6, 2017
READ MOREGroup work, cooperative classrooms and collaborative learning. These phrases describe learning environments where students carry out some or all of their coursework in groups with their peers. While there is a difference in the focus of cooperative learning and collaborative group approaches to coursework, this post will not outline those differences, but merely advise readers […]
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counseling / Global Legal Skills / law school / Lawyering / legal advice / Legal Communication / Legal Skills November 3, 2017
READ MOREThe emphasis on competence-based learning in today’s law school curriculum has enriched experiential courses and clinical programs for law students. My law school has designed its curriculum in first and second year to reinforce four competences: legal analysis, legal advising, legal representation and decision-making. Admittedly, some lecturers struggle to differentiate advising from representing. That […]
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exam preparation / Global Legal Skills / law school / Lawyering / test taking skills October 30, 2017
READ MOREEvery law exam has an essay prompt and/or a short answer section. First year students sometimes struggle with what to write for their exam essay. Often, the written law school exam responses contain information and discussions that are not pertinent to what is asked in the prompt. Here is a three-step exercise for answering essays […]
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Global Legal Skills / Lawyering / Legal Analysis / Legal Communication / Legal Skills / Legal Writing / Peer Review / Teaching and Learning October 24, 2017
READ MORELegal writing professionals have been touting the benefits of peer review in their legal scholarship. Kirsten Davis wrote back in 2003 that “[b]y introducing peer editors into the writing process and allowing students the chance to see how other students approach the same legal problem, however, the peer review experience can teach students […]
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Much like healthy eating and nutrition, good legal citation habits are formed early. I have had the good fortune to have taught legal skills in three different law schools – one in the US and two in The Netherlands. In each law school, I have observed that good citation results from a combination of good […]
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Typical legal writing courses cover persuasive and objective legal writing. Think: court brief and internal memorandum. International practitioners, on the other hand, will often write for informational purposes. What is informative legal writing? Informative legal writing is found in expert reports or policy briefs. Informative legal writing permits us to use our expertise to […]
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Legal Analysis / Legal Skills / Legal Writing / Teaching and Learning September 30, 2017
READ MOREMy legal skills colleagues at the Hague University for Applied Sciences Department of International and European Law have an on-going debate about the utility of IRAC in the legal skills classroom. IRAC is the classic legal analysis tool used in (Anglo-American) law schools. IRAC stands for Issue, Rule, Analysis and Conclusion. It’s users claim that […]
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Global Legal Skills / Legal Analysis / Legal Communication / Legal Reasoning / Legal Skills / Legal Writing September 20, 2017
READ MOREWith the 72nd Opening of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) this week, eyes are turned to New York City and the parade of heads of state to address the world’s diplomats. As always, the opening address by the new UNGA president, MIROSLAV LAJČÁK, emphasized the year’s goals and themes. Among those topics were the climate and […]