Project
Abstract
Learning ‘legal English’, the specialized language that students encounter in law school, is particularly challenging. Law students must learn to use English forms and structures in such a way as to meet the expectations of members of the legal academic community, consistent with the conventions of the legal discipline. Learning legal English is therefore a process which involves elements of both legal expertise and language expertise. As a result, both lawyers and language teachers have something to contribute in order to support this learning process. This interdisciplinary project combines the expertise of lawyers and language teachers/applied linguists to develop a digital multimedia resource for legal English based on an analysis of the language needs of Hong Kong law students. This resource will target the most common tasks and genres for law students, e.g. essays, legal problem questions, memoranda, dissertations, oral mooting, and provide input in two forms: 1) edited video interviews with legal experts providing advice on legal writing and legal argument; 2) task-based activities created by applied linguists providing language-focused extensions on experts’ observations.
Aim
- To provide an in-depth analysis of the English language needs of Hong Kong law students;
- To develop video-based teaching materials to target these needs, including expert videos, language-focused activities and resources;
- To promote the use of these language-focused materials by law professors in legal skills and content courses.
Project Investigators
- Dr. Christoph A. Hafner, Associate Professor, Department of English, City University of Hong Kong (PI)
- Mr. John Burke, Senior Teaching Fellow, School of Law, City University of Hong Kong
- Prof. Katherine Lynch, Associate Professor, Faculty of Law, The University of Hong Kong
- Prof. Anne Scully-Hill, Associate Professor, Faculty of Law, Chinese University of Hong Kong
- Dr. Rajesh Sharma, Senior Lecturer, School of Global, Urban and Social Studies, RMIT University, Australia
Funding Source
University Grants Council of Hong Kong: Collaborative language-related project
Professor Anselmo Reyes (1): Advice on legal writing
June 28, 20176299 views/by adminProfessor Johannes Chan Man-mun (2): Advice on oral advocacy
June 21, 20172843 views/by adminProfessor Johannes Chan Man-mun (1): Advice on legal writing
June 14, 20175351 views/by adminMr Michael Lin (2): My composing process
June 7, 20171915 views/by adminMr Michael Lin (1): What makes good legal writing?
May 31, 20174431 views/by adminMs Vandana Rajwani (2): Advice on oral advocacy
May 24, 20175425 views/by adminMs Vandana Rajwani (1): What makes good oral advocacy?
May 17, 20178730 views/by adminMr John Budge (2): My composing process
May 10, 20172850 views/by adminMr John Budge (1): Advice on legal writing
May 3, 201721518 views/by adminProfessor Michael Hor (2): What makes good oral advocacy?
April 26, 20171680 views/by adminProfessor Michael Hor (1): What makes good legal writing?
April 19, 20173696 views/by adminProfessor Geraint Howells (2): Advice on legal writing
April 12, 2017794 views/by adminAbout Us
We are a team of law teachers and English language teachers working at universities in Hong Kong. We have designed this website for law students, their teachers, and anyone with an interest in language and the law.
Email Us
contact [at] legalenglish.hk
Latest Videos
Mr Ian Mann (3): Advice on client correspondenceMarch 20, 2019 - 12:00 am
Mr Ian Mann (2): Advice on client Emails and text messagesMarch 13, 2019 - 5:41 am
Mr Ian Mann (1): What makes good client correspondence?March 6, 2019 - 12:00 am
Professor Janet Ainsworth: How does the discourse of police interrogation create risks for false confession?August 10, 2017 - 9:52 am