WELCOME! Refresher Series English Grammar Maureen P. Kane The Legal Writing Coach Parts of Speech Noun A noun names a person, place, or thing. Nouns include abstract things (idea, freedom, hazard, irritation, violation, rights) as well as concrete things (roof, class, school, radio, car, things) The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Proper nouns state the name of a person, place, or thing; they must be capitalized. He read a story from the New York Times. We’re visiting the Arizona Supreme Court. Find Defendant guilty! Then Officer Ali arrested Axel. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Noun Many common nouns may be preceded by articles (a, an, or the) the court a defendant the man the evidence a child a job an excuse an actor the men The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Nouns other than proper nouns are not capitalized. When an article precedes a common noun, the noun is not usually capitalized. Find the defendant, Alphi Beta, guilty. We are visiting the court tomorrow. The court ruled against us. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Plural Nouns The plural form of a noun never has an apostrophe. right – rights alias – aliases book – books class – classes court – courts mess – messes The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Plural nouns (more than one item) that are NOT showing possession NEVER take an apostrophe: ✑She was born during the ___ (decade between 1979 and 1990). ✑The _____ (Mr. and Mrs. Bluth) tried to keep up with the _____ (Mr. and Mrs. Jones), but the parking ______ (ticket) for illegally parking the Segway drained all their savings. • Rare exception: when an apostrophe is needed for clarity: Dot your I’s. She got all A’s. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Which of the following words is NOT a noun? apply woman guardian of establish be adjustment in application homes establishment his constitute explain proof prove constitution decide happy abilities apparently decision week evidentiary The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Which of the following words is NOT a noun? apply woman guardian of establish be adjustment in application homes establishment his constitute explain proof prove constitution decide happy abilities apparently decision week evidentiary The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Plural nouns (more than one item) NEVER take an apostrophe: ✑She was born during the 1980s. ✑The Bluths tried to keep up with the Joneses, but the parking tickets for illegally parking the Segway drained all their savings. Unfortunately, autocorrect programs in emails and texts add apostrophes to plurals. Always check your document before hitting send. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Pronoun A pronoun is a noun stand-in. Subject pronouns take the subject’s spot: I, you, he, she, it, we, they, who Who let the dogs out? She or he did. Object pronouns take the object’s spot: me, you, him, her, it, us, them, whom The dogs chased us and bit him and me. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Pronoun Quiz SHE I HE ME HER HIM Choose from these six pronouns and fill in the blanks. My sister is driving to the graduation ceremony with ___(I/me). ___ (She/Her) and ___ (I/me) will sit near the podium because we like to hear the speakers. Our brother and his wife are coming with ___ (we/us). Between ____ (he/him) and ____(she/her), they have nine children. Between you and ___(I/me), that’s a lot! The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Pronouns HER SHE I ME HE HIM Choose from these six pronouns and fill in the blanks. My sister is driving to the graduation ceremony with me (I/me). She (She/Her) and I (I/me) will sit near the podium because we like to hear the speakers. Our brother and his wife are coming with us (we/us). Between him (he/him) and her (she/her), they have nine children. Between you and me (I/me), that’s a lot! The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Pronouns My sister is driving to the graduation ceremony with me. She and I will sit near the podium because we like to hear the speakers. (Pronouns are in the subject position, so subjective form is used: she, I, NOT her, me.) Our brother and his wife are coming with us. Between him and her, they have nine children. Between you and me, that’s a lot! (Pronouns are in the object position, so objective form is used.) The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Possessive Pronouns Nouns may also be preceded by possessive pronouns, which show “belonging to.” My understanding is that the court reversed its order. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Possessive Pronouns Possessive pronouns (my, her, his, hers, its, our, your, their, whose, mine, ours, theirs, yours) show “belonging to.” • These possessive pronouns NEVER have an apostrophe. The court issued its decision. Whose gun was used in the shooting? Isn’t this book hers? No, it’s theirs. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Possessive v. Contraction Write “who’s” only if you mean “who is” or “who has.” Who’s the owner of this ring? Who’s been the professor for the last six years? Write “it’s” only if you mean “it is” or “it has.” It’s come to my attention that you passed the exam. It’s something to be proud of. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Pronoun – Antecedent Agreement A possessive pronoun must match the noun it refers to in number. Identify the correct possessive pronoun: The court issued ___ decision. The judges won ___ elections. Each judge won ___ election. WalMart Corp. published ___ annual report. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Pronoun – Antecedent Agreement A possessive pronoun must match the noun it refers to in number. The court issued its decision. (collective nouns = singular pronouns, in US English) The judges won their elections. Each judge won his or her election.* WalMart Corp. published its annual report. *Scholars now debate whether it is better to use “their” in this context, even if it does not match in number, to acknowledge and respect non-binary people. Please ask your professor their preference. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Possessive nouns always have an apostrophe, unlike possessive pronouns, which never have an apostrophe: (Go figure….) Fill in the blanks: _____ car (the car belonging to Al) has a three- year warranty. It’s time to check ___ (its/it’s) oil. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Al’s car has a three-year warranty. Al is a proper noun. To show his possession, or ownership, of the car, add apostrophe + S. It’s time to check its oil. The first use of the pronoun “It” is a contraction for “It is.” The apostrophe shows there is a letter missing, and the word is a contraction, or short form of the two-word phrase. The second use is the possessive pronoun “its,” a completely different word; it shows possession and takes no apostrophe. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook PREPOSITIONS Prepositions Prepositions link nouns, pronouns and phrases to other words in a sentence. They show a relationship between other things in a sentence, and they often show location. For example (non-exhaustive list): of in over with by on without between around from to among beyond beside amid at toward above below near for about into upon under The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Prepositions Prepositional phrases consist of a preposition plus an object (a noun or pronoun): •in the court of appeals •of the no-duty rule •by aggressive fans The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Prepositions Always follow a preposition with the objective form of a pronoun (me, you, us, him, her, them). If multiple pronouns follow the preposition, you will hear the right pronoun if you delete the “and” (or other conjunction): Max conceded the argument to her and I. WRONG Max conceded the argument to [her and] I. Hear how it sounds? Max conceded the argument to her and me. RIGHT Max conceded the argument to [her and] me. Hear how it sounds? Use objective pronouns as indirect objects, too. Max gave her and me a winning ticket. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Prepositions • Prepositional phrases can separate the subject from the verb, so make sure the verb matches the subject in number: L The cost of the programs have not been assessed. WRONG: cost does not match have J The cost of the programs has not been assessed. RIGHT: cost has been assessed. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook "Limit the number of prepositional phrases in each sentence. When you use too many prepositional phrases, each with its own object, you run the risk of confusing the reader. The subject of the sentence often gets separated too far from its predicate (the verb). BAD EXAMPLE: The gun that was found in the tank by the water next to the shed with the falcon painted on it by the defendant was not registered. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Verbs The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Verbs are words that show action, that indicate a state of being, or that link the subject with the complement (the word or phrase that follows the verb). Some verbs are followed by an object – something that receives the action of the verb. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Verb Examples by Type Action: jump, give, hear, dance, teach, mention, read, write, etc. State of being: seem, is, were, was, am, are, will be, has been, etc. Linking subject with complement: appears, tastes, smells, looks, sounds, grows, remains, becomes, etc. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Some verbs show an action of some type: The judge sentenced her harshly. She stabbed him only once. The law favors finality. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Some verbs show a state of being. These verbs, if used exclusively, add words and may your writing: They were not in fear of harm. The defendant was in violation of the statute. The court was not in agreement with that argument. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook They were not in fear of harm. They did not fear harm. They feared no harm. Simple, stronger, and shorter. The defendant was in violation of the statute. The defendant violated the statute. Simple, stronger, and shorter. The court was in agreement with that case. The court agreed with that case. Simple, stronger, and shorter. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook CLAUSES Independent clauses An independent clause contains its own subject and predicate (verb), and it expresses a complete thought: The jury sentenced the defendant to death. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Dependent clauses A dependent clause may or may not contain its own subject and predicate, but it fails to express a complete thought: Although the defense presented mitigating circumstances Because it was parked on the sidewalk The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Dependent clauses A dependent clause may come before or after an independent clause. When you place it before an independent clause, you must use a comma after the dependent clause: Although the defense presented mitigating circumstances, the jury imposed the death penalty. Because it was parked on the sidewalk, Bluth’s Segway was legally parked. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Dependent clauses A dependent clause may come before or after an independent clause. When you place it after an independent clause, you usually do not need a comma: The jury imposed the death penalty even though the defense presented mitigating circumstances. Blum’s Segway was legally parked because it was parked on the sidewalk. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook Dependent clauses and Dangling Modifiers When you begin a sentence with a dependent clause that contains an –ing word (a gerund), the word after the comma should indicate the doer of the –ing word. Otherwise, you have created a dangling modifier: L After rotting by the pool for weeks, my father cleaned up the oranges. J My father cleaned up the oranges that had been rotting by the pool for weeks. The Legal Writing Coach on Facebook
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