Legal English Language Certificate (LELC) Level 1 - CPD

Articles 'a' and 'an' are an essential skill in writing. 

This course is designed to give you an overview of when to use 'a' & 'an' and by you participating in the exercises, you will see their importance in practice. 

For example: we say 'an advocate' and we say 'a lawyer'.

On completion of the course you will:

1. acquire a better understanding of when to use the articles: 'a' & 'an' in your sentences;
2. acquire an understanding of when exceptions apply; and
3. by completing the exercises during the lessons, you will further your knowledge of the use of 'a' & 'an'.

The article 'the' is an essential skill in writing.  It is probably the most used article in the English language and it is considered a 'definite article'.

For example we say: 'the' client, when we know the client. 

This course is designed to give you an overview of when to use 'the' and by participating in the exercises, you will see its importance in practice. 

On completion of the course students will:

1. acquire a better understanding of when to use the article 'the' as a definite article in your sentences;
2. acquire an understanding of when to use 'the' and when to use 'a' and 'an'; and
3. by completing the exercises during the lessons, you will further your knowledge of the use of 'the'.

Articles are sometimes unnecessary in our sentences. 

This course is designed to give you an overview of when articles are unnecessary for example when we talk of our interests: 'I like playing golf'.

On completion of the course you will:

1. acquire a better understanding of when articles are unnecessary in your sentences; and
2. be in a position to construct your sentences correctly.

Prepositions are important because they work to connect various parts of a sentence and a preposition can explain the position, location and timing of a noun. They generally appear before a noun or gerund verb. 

For example: 'The lawyer sat by the barrister'.  or 'The lawyer is sitting by the barrister'.

This course provides you with an overview of some prepositions and how they are used in sentences. 

On completion of the first lesson regarding you will:

1. acquire knowledge of when to use the prepositions: 'with, by, at, in, for & from'; and
2. by doing the exercises during the lesson you will understand the importance of prepositions when you come to write your correspondence to your clients';
3. Further reading material will provide you with an overview of 'idioms'. 

Prepositions: 'on', 'to' and 'of' and 'in' are commonly used and this lesson gives you examples of when and how they are used in sentences. 

For example: 'It is quarter to five' or 'you can get to the office if you go now'.

The prepositions: 'since' and 'until' are often misused and this lesson explains to you how they are used in a practical context. 

On completion of the second lesson you will:

1. acquire knowledge of when to use prepositions: 'on, to, of, in, since, until & into'; and
2. by doing the exercises during the lesson you will understand the importance of prepositions when you come to write their statements or correspondence to your clients';
3. Further reading material will give you a greater knowledge of 'idioms'. 

The importance of punctuation is a key skill in writing. 

If we use punctuation incorrectly this could lead to misunderstandings and the reader may not understand what we want to say or convey. 

For example: 'John, your hat' or 'John, your hat?'.

This firs lesson starts by introducing simple common punctuation marks.

On completion of 'Punctuation - Part 1' you will:

1. acquire knowledge of when to use punctuations: the comma (,), full-stop (.), (exclamation mark), question mark (?), colon (:) and the semi-colon(;) and
2. by doing the exercises during the lesson you will understand the importance of using these punctuations correctly when you come to writing correspondence to your clients.

Quotation marks are used when a person states a direct quote for example:

John said, “I really love Kate”.

Here we are quoting exactly what John said. 

This second lesson provides you with an overview of how and why we use double quotation marks and single quotation marks. 

This course also shows you examples of where to place other punctuation marks such an exclamation mark or a punctuation mark when there are quotation marks in your sentence. 

Emphasis is placed on British English punctuation. 

On completion of 'Punctuation - Part 2' you will:

1. acquire knowledge of when to use single and double quotation marks: ; and
2. you will understand where to place other punctuation marks when quotation marks are used in a sentence. 

Legal terminology is specialised, technical legal words used by lawyers, judges and law assistants who work in a legal environment. 

Anyone working in a law office or law firm needs to understand legal terminology and when to use such terminology.

This course provides you with an overview of some legal terms.  During the course examples are provided which will help you further grasp how such legal terms are applied in practice. 

On completion of 'Legal Terminology - Part 1(a)' you will:

1. acquire a good understanding of some legal terminology;
2. understand how such terms are applied in practice;
3. Further reading material will improve your understand of further legal terminology. 

This course provides you with an understanding of some legal terminology which is used in the corporate/financial legal sector. 

The course explains the meaning of legal terminology such as: 'collateral', 'debt', 'debtor' and 'debenture-holder'. 

You will be provided with examples and exercises which will help you fully consolidate your understanding of such terms.

On completion of 'Legal Terminology - Part 1(b)' you will:

1. acquire a good understanding of some legal terminology used in the financial/corporate legal sector;
2. understand how such terms are applied in practice;
3. further reading material will improve your understand of further legal terminology. 

• If you are an aspiring lawyer who wants to work in International law firm or a business executive who needs to negotiate deals, knowing how to write your letters with precision to your clients is an essential skill in ensuring a long lasting relationship with your client.
• This course starts from the basics and shows you where first to place the recipient's address on your firm's letterhead.  The course also provides you with the rules regarding salutations: 'Dear Sir' and end with 'Yours faithfully'.

On completion of 'Start Writing your Letter' course you will:

1. acquire a good understanding of how to structure your letter from the beginning to the end;
2. you will understand the reasons behind why abbreviations such as 'p.p.' are inserted in letters;
3. you will be able to draft with confidence a simple appointment letter & request for information letter.