Designing and Teaching Advanced Legal Research and Writing Courses

Authors

Lucia Ann Silecchia

Abstract

As more and more law schools have realized the importance of basic research and writing skills, they have devoted significant resources to improving first-year training in these areas - and rightfully so. However, developments in recent years have caused an explosion in the number of legal research resources with which attorneys must become familiar. At the same time, the bench and bar have expressed consistent dissatisfaction with the research and writing abilities of law school graduates. Taken together, these two trends indicate that providing advanced legal research and writing training is becoming increasingly important. This article explores the issue of whether advanced legal research and writing courses should be taught at American law schools. It begins by addressing the need for such courses, followed by a discussion as to why an advanced offering should be an integrated course, providing training in both research and writing at the same time. The article then addresses some of the practical considerations in establishing such a course. The article then provides a model for such an integrated advanced legal research and writing course offered at Catholic University's Columbus School of Law in the summers of 1992 and 1993.

First Page

203

Recommended Citation

Lucia A. Silecchia, Designing and Teaching Advanced Legal Research and Writing Courses, 33 Duq. L. Rev. 203 (1995).
Available at: https://dsc.duq.edu/dlr/vol33/iss2/3