At Chelsea Legal English we help our students, whose first language is not English, to develop strong legal English skills (including listening, speaking, reading and writing). We also specialize in helping lawyers obtain an extensive vocabulary in essential areas of international commercial law.

In order to do this, our courses are split into specialized areas of law and preparation for the TOLES examinations. Below is a brief description of each of the courses that we offer:

Ideal for lawyers and law students with a good level of general English but with little or no experience in legal English and the Common Law System.
Level of English required: B1/Intermediate

The main purpose of this level is for students to acquire greater confidence when using legal English with clients and other lawyers from the Common Law system and to prepare them for practice in major law firms, as international arbitrators or as international in-house lawyers.

It is an overview of the Common Law System, including the legal systems of the U.K. and the U.S.A, plus an introduction to the vocabulary and terminology of major areas of law, such as banking, commercial contracts, torts, employment, business and company/corporate law. The course includes comparisons to civil law systems and plenty of practical reading, writing and listening exercises.

This course prepares students to take the TOLES (Test of Legal English Skills) Foundation International Certification available at Chelsea Legal English.

Please click here to see the Syllabus.

Level of English required: B2/Intermediate-Advanced, C1/Advanced
Ideal for lawyers and law students with a good level of general English and with experience in legal English and the Common Law System and who have taken “Legal English 1” at Chelsea Legal English or other similar courses.

The main purpose of this level is for students to develop valuable commercial awareness and to build on the skills acquired in “Legal English 1” (or similar courses). Students engage in more complex tasks, such as on correcting the style of legal documents, interpreting the language of commercial contracts and on drafting memos, emails, formal letters and contracts.

Students must prepare presentations and continue to build confidence when using the language of major areas of commercial law, such as banking and insolvency, mergers and acquisitions, tax, real and intellectual property and other areas of corporate law.

One of the main differences between “Legal English 1” and this course is that more emphasis is placed on the language of international cross-border and commercial contracts and on mastering the skills of speaking and writing like a native lawyer.

There are plenty of listening, speaking, reading and writing exercises.

This course prepares students to take whichever one of the following TOLES (Test of Legal English Skills) International Certifications: TOLES Higher, TOLES Advanced or the brand-new TOLES Professional Certificate, all of them available at Chelsea Legal English.

Please click here to see the Syllabus.

This is a course that gives students the ideal foundation to understand how Anglo-Saxon contracts are drafted and thus develop a better understanding of the vocabulary used in international contracts. Additionally, students will study the main clauses in commercial contracts in depth and will develop skills for the correct translation, interpretation and drafting of contracts in English.

There are many different types of technical words and expressions that appear in contracts that lawyers (whose first language is not English), may not always easily identify. This often leads to concepts getting lost in translation. By studying the concepts of a commercial contract drafted in English, legal practitioners can develop strong interpretation skills and therefore, be in a much stronger position to negotiate terms and conditions.

Please click here to see the Syllabus.

This is a course that focuses on business and corporate law. It allows students to develop a better understanding of the different forms of business available in both the UK and the USA and their advantages and disadvantages.

By having this information, lawyers can develop strong commercial awareness and be in a much stronger position to compare these forms of business to the different types of business that exist in their own jurisdictions and therefore, give better legal advice.

Much emphasis is also placed on understanding the role of an in-house or external corporate lawyer in a company or corporation.

Having a strong knowledge of the language of different areas of law is vital. This includes competition law, employment law, intellectual property law as well as tax law.

This course also includes a study of the language of bylaws, shareholders’ agreements, joint ventures, company meetings, mergers and acquisitions (M&As), raising finance, litigation, alternative dispute resolutions (ADRs), insolvency and compliance.

Please click here to see the Syllabus.

The main purpose of this workshop is to help lawyers, translators, law students and other legal practitioners to acquire a professional style of writing.

Developing a good style requires guidance as well as practice. Lawyers are expected to produce emails, memos and letters, amongst other legal documents, that meet the highest standards of quality.

This may seem daunting if English is not your first language, which is why students at Chelsea Legal English are encouraged to follow specific writing rules. This includes knowing when and how to use the active voice, keeping sentences short and using words and phrases that are appropriate in certain legal scenarios.

Explaining the implementation and application of the law in certain jurisdictions, writing a letter before legal action and explaining the contents of various forms of agreement are just some examples of the topics covered in this practical workshop.

Please click here to see the Syllabus.