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The Researching Paralegal

Tag Archives: Grammar & Punctuation

A Punctuation Guide for Everyone.

05 Wednesday Oct 2016

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Legal Writing, Punctuation

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Grammar & Punctuation, Jordan Penn, Legal Writing

The Punctuation Guide, by Jordan Penn, J.D.

http://www.thepunctuationguide.com/index.html

I am impressed. Mr. Penn, after exhaustive research, created this unique punctuation guide. This is a keeper. -CCE

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Reference, Facts, News, Search Engines, Email, and More. Easy Peasy.

12 Sunday Jun 2016

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Dictionary, Glossaries, Grammar, Punctuation, Quotations, References, Research, Style Manuals, Thesaurus

≈ Comments Off on Reference, Facts, News, Search Engines, Email, and More. Easy Peasy.

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Grammar & Punctuation, refdesk.com, Reference, Research

Refdesk.com – Fact Checker for the Internet

http://www.refdesk.com/

Refdesk.com has been around a long time. If you have never seen it or used it, please give me the honor of making the introductions.

Go the home page: http://www.refdesk.com. There is a lot to absorb.  Take your time. Scroll down the page, and check it out.

Bothered by the ads popping up on the page? There is an easy fix. Support Refdesk. Contribute $25, and Refdesk is add free for a year. No, you don’t have to contribute $25. You don’t have to contribute at all. But, if you want to use Refdesk frequently, I encourage you to contribute something.

If you are like me, you do not want to keep scrolling to find what you want to see – you simply want to get there. Go to the top of the website, and look to the right. You will see three search tools: (1) Check Email; (2) Quick Links; and (3) Reference Desk.  Right away, you can see that this has potential as home page.

I want to look up grammar and punctuation rules. Go to Reference Desk, click the down arrow, and choose “Grammar/Style.” That’s a nice assortment of writing guides, but not exactly what I want. I’m looking for The Elements of Style. Click on More at the bottom of the page. There it is.

You have seen one small example of the information this site can give you. I leave it to you to seek out the rest.  -CCE

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Grammar Lessons From The CIA.

25 Wednesday Nov 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Grammar, Legal Writing, Plain Language, Punctuation, Style Manuals

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CIA, Grammar & Punctuation, Mental Floss Inc. © 2012, Nick Greene, Strunk & White, Style guide

11 Grammar Lessons from the Leaked CIA Style Book, by Nick Greene, Mental Floss Inc. © 2012

http://mentalfloss.com/article/57743/11-grammar-lessons-leaked-cia-style-book

In 2014, a leaked copy of the Directorate of Intelligence Style Manual & Writer’s Guide for Intelligence Publications found its way to the Internet. That long title belies what it actually is: A well-written style book for the CIA — the Strunk & White for Spies.

Inside the 181 pages (not including the index) is a terrific guide for normal folks, and not just government sleuths. It still offers some unique advice, however, and you won’t find some of these examples in your copy of the Oxford American Dictionary. . . .

Continue reading →

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Plain Language Examples – Before and After.

16 Friday Oct 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Bad Legal Writing, Editing, Grammar, Legal Writing, Legalese, Plain Language, Proofreading, Punctuation, Readability

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Editing, Grammar & Punctuation, Legal Writing, Plain Language, Readability

Before-and-After Comparisons, PlainLanguge.gov

http://www.plainlanguage.gov/examples/before_after/index.cfm

There are a number of superior – and free – websites available to anyone who wants to improve his legal writing skills. PlainLaguage.gov is one of them.

I doubt that anyone wants to write poorly. Often, just showing before-and-after examples improve writing skills. One of the most efficient ways I have found when teaching legal writing is to take a bad writing example, identify why it is ineffective or just plain silly, and suggest different ways to fix it.

Here are examples of government regulations, manuals, handbooks, reports, and other publications that show “before and after” examples that use plain language to improve a sentence, paragraph, or document. -CCE

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Legal Writing Tips from “Dear Scrivener.”

29 Sunday Mar 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Bad Legal Writing, Editing, Legal Writing, Plain Language, Readability

≈ Comments Off on Legal Writing Tips from “Dear Scrivener.”

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Grammar & Punctuation, Judith D. Fischer, Legal Writing, Legal Writing Prof Blog, Scott Moise

A Potpourri Of Tips About Legal Writing, by Judith D. Fischer, Legal Writing Prof Blog

http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/legalwriting/2015/03/a-potpourri-of-tips-about-legal-writing.html

For a potpourri of tips about legal writing, see Dear Scrivener by Scott Moise in the March 2015 South Carolina Lawyer. . . .

Continue reading →

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It’s National Grammar Day!

04 Wednesday Mar 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Editing, Legal Writing

≈ Comments Off on It’s National Grammar Day!

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Grammar & Punctuation, Kristin Hare, National Grammar Day, Poynter.org, Storify

National Grammar Day, by Kristin Hare, Poynter.org

http://www.poynter.org/tag/national-grammar-day/

Turns out we have a lot of pet peeves about grammar.

Happy National Grammar Day! On National Grammar Day eve, we shared the pet peeves of a handful of journalists and asked people to share their own. We got a lot. Enjoy!

[View the story ‘’Don’t make me kill you’‘ on Storify]

If you’re ready for more National Grammar Day fun, Poynter’s News University has the Webinar ‘National Grammar Day 2015’ at 2 p.m. Eastern. Use the code 15PPGRAM50 for a discount. News U’s ‘Language Primer: Basics of Grammar, Punctuation and Word Use’ is also always popular. The American Copy Editors Society is having a grammar day #ACESchat today from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern on Twitter.

Here are a few of the pet peeves we shared yesterday: . . . .

Continue reading →

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Handouts From The Writing Center.

18 Wednesday Jun 2014

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Citations, Footnotes, Legal Writing, Plagiarism, Plain Language, Proofreading, Quotations, Readability, Spell Checking

≈ Comments Off on Handouts From The Writing Center.

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Grammar & Punctuation, Handouts, Legal Writing, The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Writing, Writing Guide

Handouts, The Writing Center, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/

Not necessarily for legal writers, but downright handy nonetheless. The folks who put this together are kind enough to share this valuable resource, and welcome your ideas and suggestions. At the bottom of the post’s page, you will find contact information for contributions. Please give back if you can as thanks for this thoughtful gift. -CCE

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