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16 - CMN - Contract Management and Negotiation Skills
CMN-ON 150 - Writing Effective Legal Documents and Commercial Contracts
Course Description
Well drafted legal documents such as advice, correspondence, contracts or other written materials lead to more successful outcomes: better performing contractors, more satisfied internal and external customers, reduced risks and smaller liabilities, and mitigate the risk of legal disputes and the need for mediation, arbitration and litigation.
The course teaches the essential skills of writing clear legal documents and commercial contracts, explaining essential legal vocabulary and phrases. The practice of writing effective legal documents and commercial contracts is explored.
The course includes the drafting, use and legal effect of basic contracts, non-competition and confidentiality agreements, assignments and third party rights, guarantees, indemnities, warranties, conditions and other contract terms. Rights, remedies and enforceability are all covered in lessons.
The training aims helping to develop the skills of in-house and external lawyers, advisers, turning them into highly effective written communicators and legal draftsmen. It will highlight why effective English legal writing is important and teach participants how to write well-structured and useful advisory and contractual documents.
Course Objectives
- Better understand the needs of internal and external clients
- Create more effective legal documents and commercial contracts
- Structure legal documents and commercial contracts in a clear and understandable manner according to the professionally accepted international standards of the legal profession
- Write and explain legal concepts and obligations confidently and easily
- Improve the clarity and usefulness of legal writing
- Structure a standard legal document and commercial contract
- Use technical legal document and commercial contract vocabulary more accurately, concisely and effectively
- Identify the key terms and conditions that should be included in legal documents and commercial contracts
- Use model contracts and templates as a basis for own work
- Draft appropriate terms and conditions for a range of commercial activities
- Identify unacceptably risky terms and conditions in the proposed contracts of partners, contractors, vendors or other parties
- Propose alternative draft wording to protect their client’s commercial interests, when negotiating with others
- Advise on contractual rights, remedies and enforceability
Who Should Attend?
- Corporate and commercial legal associates
- Commercial contracts professionals
- Members of the procurement team
- Any other staff member who assists or is involved in preparing legal documentation and contract
Course Details/Schedule
Day 1
- Principles of Effective Legal Writing
- Introduction, objectives, and scope of the workshop
- What is effective legal writing?
- Techniques to write clearly
- Structuring your legal analysis
- Choosing appropriate legal language while avoiding ‘legalese’
- Effective editing of a legal document
- Applying the principles to letters, emails and general correspondence
- Drafting exercises
Day 2
- Best Practices in Drafting a Legal Memorandum
- Choosing an appropriate heading
- Describing the background and purpose of the memorandum
- Framing the legal issues
- Providing the short answer
- Statement of the facts
- Analysis of the issues and how the law applies
- Conclusions and recommendations in the memorandum
- Drafting Exercises
Day 3
- Principles of Contract Drafting
- Why contract drafting skills are important
- Complying with contract law essentials
- Using appropriate contract language
- Contract methodologies, including
- Bespoke written agreements
- Using general and special terms and conditions
- Using Purchase Orders with standard terms and conditions
- Framework agreements
- Deeds
- Letters of intent,
- Heads of terms and MoUs
- Working with model contracts and templates
Day 4
- Preparing the Contract Draft
- Reflecting the purpose of the transaction
- Analysing and mapping out the contractual transaction process
- Structuring the contract draft
- Contents of the front and back of the contract
- Using Boilerplate clauses, such as
- Drafting exercises
Day 5
- Managing the Negotiated Draft Agreements
- Analysing a fact pattern and recognize legal issues
- Identifying the appropriate legal form for use in mediation, arbitration and litigation
- Preparing and organizing legal argument to the mediator, the arbitrator and the court
- Drafting persuasive, analytically complete written arguments
- Being prepared to orally and persuasively presenting client’s position to the mediator, the arbitrator and the court
- Evidence of facts
- Judgments, orders and enforcement
- Appeals
