Course Content and Outcomes Guides (CCOG)

CCOG for PL 128 archive revision 201501

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Effective Term:
Winter 2015

Course Number:
PL 128
Course Title:
Legal Correspondence and Forms
Credit Hours:
3
Lecture Hours:
30
Lecture/Lab Hours:
0
Lab Hours:
0

Course Description

Covers basic forms of legal writing generally required of a paralegal in a general law practice. Uses writing techniques and tools common to internal law office communications as well as communicating techniques between lawyer and client. Audit available.

Addendum to Course Description

An elective satisfying the requirements of either a Legal Assistant Certificate or an Associate of Applied Science degree.
 

Intended Outcomes for the course

.

Course Activities and Design

Lectures with class discussion.  Students may be required to prepare and participate in discussions of particular subjects.  Also requires
extensive reading and weekly writing assignments  (in and/or out of class).
 

Outcome Assessment Strategies

Grades will be based upon student performance on writing assignments, and possibly a final exam, designed to measure mastery of competencies listed below.
 

Course Content (Themes, Concepts, Issues and Skills)

Identify following elements in case opinions:  parties, their
     objectives and theories, procedural posture, holdings, dictum, and
     disposition.
*    Write grammatically and clearly using techniques such as
     parallelism, positive phrasing and active voice to strengthen your
     argument. 
*    Utilize techniques of fact comparison, rule of law comparison,
     primary and secondary authority, and legislative history to give
     your arguments legal support.
*    Understand the content and form distinctions amongst different
     types of legal writing so as to produce professionally acceptable
     examples of legal letters, legal memos, etc.