| Book of the Month | ||
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International Legal English | |
Publisher: Cambridge Professional English Course series
Author: Amy Krois-Lindner
€41.10
ISBN 978 3 12 534251 4
This, like last month's review, is a book designed with a particular type of student in mind. In this case, either you are interested in commercial law and need help with your English, or you do not need this book. Though the book advertises itself as suitable preparation for the International Legal English Certificate (ILEC) its use goes further than this. For example, the owner of a small business might want to use this book to familiarize himself with 'legalese' - the strange use of English that makes even a straightforward legal document look terrifying to someone who is not sure what it all means. (Unsurprisingly, a good proportion is given over to 'text analysis'.) The book is produced in collaboration with a company called TransLegal, who specialize in law and language.
There are 320 pages in the book, most of which is taken up by fifteen units of about ten or twelve pages each. These units are further sub-divided into reading, listening, writing and speaking and language. 'Language' is not just vocabulary, as it includes how the vocabulary is used. The topics of the units are what one might expect in a book of commercial law – captialization, company formation, contracts, secured transactions, employment law, and intellectual property, to name a few. The reading and listening both describe the concepts of the type of law involved, while the speaking and writing are in the form of tasks such as role-playing contract negotiations, summarizing requirements, preparing a case brief or giving opinions on a legal matter. Most of the remainder of the book is given over to exam practice. The exam focus begins on page 218 and is divided according to the different papers. Each part clearly explains what you have to do, what is being tested, and follows this up with exam tips, and then moves on to the paper itself. There is an index at the back and a glossary of terms such as 'extraordinary general meeting' or 'paralegal'. The colour scheme within the book is leaf-green and white, with very occasional diagrams. The questions are along the usual lines of true or false, multiple choice and gap-fill (cloze). However the context requires the user to answer questions from the reading such as 'In the event of a breach of contract why might the prejudgement attachment lein be unsuccessful?'
Who is this book for? In teaching the vocabulary required to understand commercial law, this book is also a mini-law course on the topic. Anyone who has to deal with commercial law might find this book very useful, as it makes clear many of the terms that even non-lawyers come across, for instance when signing a tenancy agreement. Furthermore, with English rapidly becoming the main language of trans-national business agreements, many solicitors who have English as a second language will find this a very useful addition to their bookshelves. And of course, anyone studying for the exam will need this book as there do not seem to be many alternatives to choose from. For those people who need it, the price is a reasonable investment. But it is not something you would buy out of simple curiosity.
Verdict: Good for those who need it.
Assessment 8/10