ODW2222 – Legal Writing Outlining 101

In this course, we will cover the basics of legal writing so that you will gain confidence in creating the first draft of a pleading. We will provide an overview of citations, preparing an initial draft, and creating a Table of Authorities.

Course Category: On-Demand Webinars

Course Level: Basic

CLE Credit: Substantive

CLE Hours: 1.0

Fees: $49 for Members and $70 for Non-members

Course Materials: Webinar recording and a PDF of the PowerPoint slides.

Description: 
In this course, we will cover the basics of legal writing so that you will gain confidence in creating the first draft of a pleading for the attorneys in your office. Join career litigator and Clearbrief founder Jacqueline Schafer for an engaging course that will provide an overview of:

  • Citations, including an understanding how to find factual and legal source documents to support your writing;
  • How to prepare an initial draft for others on the team to review; and
  • Creating a Table of Authorities. 

We will discuss each of these skills and explain how to leverage new tech like the Clearbrief platform in Word to improve efficiency and accuracy with your legal writing. Growing your legal writing skills and learning new technology are the best ways to impress the attorneys and staff you work with every day, as well as expand your career in the legal field.

Course Year: 2022

Presenter Biography: Jacqueline Schafer is the founder and CEO of Clearbrief, a Word Add-In that leverages AI to help litigators find the best evidence for any sentence in their draft, and instantly complete tedious litigation tasks like the Table of Authorities. Clearbrief is used by hundreds of firms across the country, as well as several government agencies and court systems. Clearbrief was named 2022 New Law Company of the Year (LegalWeek), 2021 Startup of the Year (American Legal Technology Awards), and Schafer won the 2021 WA State Bar Award for Legal Innovation for founding Clearbrief as well as for her 2020 law review article (“Harnessing AI for Struggling Families”). Schafer was also honored by inclusion on the ABA’s “2022 Women of Legal Tech” list and was recently honored as part of the 2022 Fastcase 50, Honoring ‘Innovators, Techies, Visionaries and Leaders’ in Law. Jacqueline began her career as a litigation associate at the New York law firm of Paul, Weiss, and spent the majority of her career as an Assistant Attorney General in the Washington and Alaska Attorney General’s Offices, where she specialized in appellate practice and complex litigation. Before joining the startup world, she also served as in-house counsel for the national nonprofit Casey Family Programs, where she negotiated agreements with state courts across the country and managed impact litigation. In addition to her pro bono appellate advocacy for several nonprofits in the Northwest, she serves as a founding board member of the Washington State CASA Association. She received her B.A. in English and French from the University of Pennsylvania (where she sang with John Legend’s former a cappella group!), and her J.D. from Boston University School of Law.

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Yes, these courses qualify for mandatory continuing legal education for: National Association of Legal Assistants, State Bar of California, Florida, North Carolina, and Louisiana State Paralegal Association.  For all others please check with the corresponding institutions.

After successfully completing this course a completion email will be sent stating that your certificate is now available. To view your certificate and transcript please visit nala.education. Click on the blue arrow in the top right and select transcript. From this menu, you can view or print certificates or your transcript.

Courses are priced for individual use and consumption and are not intended for rebroadcast and sharing.