This three-week course is for newly qualified lawyers and law students to give them the specialised language they will need for their careers.

The course concentrates on developing participants’ English skills in a legal context, and the vocabulary of aspects of criminal law, civil law, including contract law, and EC law is covered on the course. Although there are opportunities to learn something about English and EC law and the English legal system, this is a language course, not a course in law.

The following areas provide the framework for the course:

• Visiting legal experts: there are usually two per course, chosen to provide up-to-date professional input into the course. At least one will be actively involved in practising law.
• Visits to legal London: a visit to the Old Bailey; a visit to the Civil Courts if they are sitting.
• Speaking activities including case studies in legal problems and various aspects of the legal process; negotiations.
• Vocabulary expansion: particularly relating to commercial law, contracts and describing legal concepts.
• Grammar: revision of some of the most important grammatical aspects of the language, practised within a legal context.
• Listening comprehension: with live speakers; by using audio and video interviews with lawyers or legal experts.
• Negotiating skills: important for lawyers as they become increasingly involved in the commercial process.
• Communication skills: key language skills used in discussions, negotiations, conflict and dealing with difficult situations.
• Social English: basic situations such as business hospitality, travelling, inviting, advising, apologizing etc; more advanced situations demanding tact and careful presentation.
• Using the telephone effectively.
• Word Mine – Legal English: all participants on this course will receive our six month Word Mine – Legal English online course (from 2012).  The course will be used for some practice and testing during the three weeks of the Young Lawyers course, and for continued learning and revision for a further 5 months.
• At the end of each three-week course, there is an optional fourth week preparation course for TOLES (Test of Legal English Skills). The TOLES examination itself takes place at the school at the end of that week.
• At the end of some three-week courses, there is an optional preparation course for ILEC (International Legal English Certificate).  The course is an additional three weeks.

Whichever course you take with us, you can expect to improve your English in the following ways:

• communicate more confidently
• speak more accurately and fluently
• participate more successfully in meetings
• improve your written English including emails
• expand your professional vocabulary
• improve your understanding of grammar
• socialise and network with greater confidence
• work successfully in a cross-cultural environment

In addition to the benefits outlined above, this course will enable you to communicate more confidently in legal situations and use specialised legal vocabulary more effectively.