This guide provides explanations of the rules of grammar, punctuation, and good writing that are most important to legal writing. It also includes exercises (with answers) on each of the topics discussed. Because efficiency in use is an important goal, it is by necessity not a complete reference to good writing. For such a reference, you may want to consult one of the commonly utilized style guides, such as the Chicago Manual of Style. You will also find help in the required legal writing text, Richard K. Neumann, Jr., Legal Reasoning and Legal Writing (2d ed. 1994).

Version 1.1 of this guide is the first edition, created specifically for use by the Chicago-Kent College of Law first-year class entering in August 1994.