TOLES Foundation Certificate in Legal English Skills

Legal English is a different language from general English. Just as lawyers in any particular country write in a different language from other people in that country, so do English lawyers. Sentences are often structured differently in legal English.

The words lawyers use are often centuries old and no longer commonly used in general English. New prepositions must be learned and practiced. When reading a commercial contract or a letter, there is new technical vocabulary to understand on every page.

This course is designed to look at authentic rather than artificial legal context. For this reason, there is a strong focus upon practical and authentic tasks, and upon candidates having a good grasp of terminology from the outset.

The course takes account of significant language reforms in the English legal system and the legal profession’s continued movement towards clearer use of English as recommended on Legal Practice courses at all major UK universities and legal training centers.

The Test of English Legal English Skills (TOLES) governing body is a member of the International Division of the Law Society of England and Wales. Multi-national companies such as Allen & Overy LLP, Baker and McKenzie, PWC, KPMG, Sony Ericsson, European Court of Justice, European Central Bank and many more use TOLES training and exams to prepare their law professionals whose first language is not English for the international legal challenges.

On the final day of the course, participants will take their TOLES Exam to earn the TOLES Foundation Certificate in Legal English Skills.

The course consists of group discussions as well as individual and team tasks. There will be writing exercises and practice exams at the end of each day, culminating in sitting the TOLES Foundation Exam on the final day of the course.

By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

• Apply correct legal vocabulary when communicating with clients/law professionals and will be familiar with modern legal writing style
• Recognize common mistakes in English and will be able to identify accurate prepositions and collocations within a legal context, particularly within the context of written contracts
• Differentiate between the English legal system and the American legal system
• Recognize improvements in their reading and comprehension skills of legal documents and demonstrate accurate written solutions within a legal context

This course is useful for law and legal professionals, translators, contract assistants and managers who already possess good general English and are now acquiring legal vocabulary, as well as those who are required to obtain a TOLES certification by their organization.

• Legal vocabulary and grammar
• Legal communication
• Legal comprehension skills
• Formal written contracts

The Test of English Legal English Skills (TOLES)  governing body is a member of the International Division of the Law Society of England and Wales. Multi-national companies such as Allen & Overy LLP, Baker and McKenzie, PWC, KPMG, Sony Ericsson, European Court of Justice, European Central Bank and many more use TOLES training and exams to prepare their law professionals whose first language is not English for the international legal challenges. The TOLES Foundation level exam tests Legal reading and writing. The focus of the exam is on testing the absolute linguistic accuracy required of lawyers in a modern international office. This means accuracy in two main areas: technical legal vocabulary, and grammar. Vocabulary from commercial deals, company documents, commercial contracts, intellectual property agreements, financial documents and forms of business are tested, as well as legal terminology from other areas.

Upon passing the exam, participants will receive the TOLES Foundation Certificate.