Legalwriting.net Blog by Wayne Schiess

Sources on grammar

Posted on June 6, 2011 by Wayne

I’ve been asked if I can recommend some sources on grammar for lawyers who want to improve their knowledge. Yes I can. I’ll start with websites:

Purdue University’s Online Writing Lab (OWL).

The Tongue Untied

Grammar Girl (Mignon Fogarty) and her Quick-and-Dirty Tips

And some books:

Mignon Fogarty, Grammar Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing (Holt 2008).
Patricia T. O’Conner, Woe is I: The Grammarphobe’s Guide to Better English in Plain English (Riverhead Books 1996).
Margaret Schertzer, The Elements of Grammar (Macmillan 1986).

And a reference:

Bryan A. Garner, Garner’s Modern American Usage (3rd Ed. Oxford U. Press 2009).

SAM, on June 23rd, 2011 at 11:36 pm Said:

I liked C. Edward Good’s book, on amazon at:

http://www.amazon.com/Grammar-Book-You-Oops-Me/dp/1892123231/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1308889743&sr=1-1

Also, Garner has released (or is about to release) a new edition of his Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage, on amazon at:

http://www.amazon.com/Garners-Dictionary-Legal-Usage-Garner/dp/0195384202/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1308889913&sr=1-6
John, on July 27th, 2011 at 1:41 pm Said:

In 2003, Ms. O’Connor updated Woe Is I, and it remains a fine resource for basic grammar.