Introduction to International Legal English 国际法律英语入门

Who is the coursebook for?

Introduction to International Legal English (IILE) is an intermediate-level course for learners who need to be able to use English for the study of the law and in the legal profession.  It can also be used effectively in legal English courses of all kinds and will also be useful for business professionals who work with lawyers or whose work involves legal issues. No prior knowledge of the law is necessary.

The course is based on the best-selling printed coursebook of the same name and includes additional and rewritten materials to bring the legal issues, language, and topics up to date. It is suitable for both self-study and classroom use.

Since the vast majority of practising lawyers in the world deal with commercial law, IILE focuses on the use of English for this purpose. Within the field of commercial law, a number

of important topics (such as real property law, contract law, company law, to name a few), as well as subjects commonly taught at law faculties (such as comparative law), have been selected as the legal subject matter of the units.

The legal concepts introduced in this book are those found in the legal systems of the UK and the USA, but it also includes texts about legal matters in other countries and legal systems. Nearly all of the legal concepts covered are common to legal systems and jurisdictions the world over. Since many of the tasks encourage you to compare aspects of the law in your own jurisdiction with those presented in the book, an international perspective is fostered.

Introduction to International Legal English: course aims

• To improve your ability to write common legal text types in English, such as letters or memorandums.
• To improve your ability to read and understand legal texts, such as law journal articles, commercial legislation and legal correspondence.
• To increase your comprehension of spoken English when it is used to speak about legal topics in lectures, presentations, interviews, discussions, etc.
• To strengthen your speaking skills and to enable you to engage more effectively in a range of speaking situations typical of the study of law and the practice of law, such as client interviews or discussions with colleagues and fellow students.
• To introduce you to some of the language-related aspects of the work of a commercial lawyer.