You may have heard that lawyers are precise. It’s true. In law school, you will spend a lot of time discussing the meaning of a singular word or placement of a comma.
It is also true that sometimes there is more than one way to say something, or multiple phrases may mean essentially the same thing. It can be tricky to hear both that every punctuation mark and word matters, and that you must be nimble enough to recognize when two sources are talking about the same concept in different terms. This lesson is designed to show you some examples both of precision, and of when two things essentially mean the same thing.
Learning Outcomes
On completion of the lesson, the student will be able to:
1. Recognize the importance of careful word choice and punctuation
2. Evaluate whether two terms or phrases have identical meanings
3. Understand that words may have meanings that are legal terms of art, outside of their common usage
Author(s)
Allie Robbins
Professor Robbins teaches primarily in the areas of academic skills and bar exam support. Her scholarship focuses on the areas of workers’ rights in global supply chains, legal education, and the bar exam. She is also the editor and writer of Passing the Bar (https://passingthebar.blog/), a blog about studying for the bar exam.
Associate Professor of LawCity University of New York Law School