Today we salute Meade Ali. Meade is a longtime reader, but he also happens to be a participant in one of the current series of Drafting Clearer Contracts: Masterclass. It was in that capacity that he laid it on me: in chapter 3, in table 1, on page 52, example [1-2b] is marked with two […]
Business Law Today Cheers “A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting.” Really!
My peeps at the ABA Section of Business Law were in a mood to have me talk about MSCD: go here for an item in Business Law Today entitled BLS Book Celebrates 16 Years in Guiding Practitioners on Contract Drafting. I tried to make it more entertaining than it might have been.
Why I’m an Absolutist in My Pursuit of Clearer Contracts
These days I live something of an incrementalist life. For example, in an overnight switch I now pour oat milk, instead of cow’s milk, on my industrial quantities of granola, but I don’t expect to give up cheese anytime soon. And in an attempt stop using so many paper towels and so much plastic wrap, […]
How to Get a “A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting” on Your Kindle
Amazon used to sell a Kindle version of A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting, but it doesn’t anymore. (Something to do with Kindle versions being vulnerable to piracy.) But you can still get MSCD on Kindle, by buying the ebook version sold by the ABA here. It’s a MOBI file, so you can transfer […]
What (If Anything) Does It Mean to Have a Court Cite My Work?
An anonymous informant—oh what the heck, it was Glenn West—told me that in Channel MedSystems, Inc. v. Boston Scientific Corporation (here), an opinion issued just yesterday by the Delaware Court of Chancery, Chancellor Bouchard cites A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting. More specifically, here’s footnote 236: The parties frame their arguments in terms of […]
MSCD Fourth Edition Reviewed in the Law Society Gazette
The current issue of the Law Society Gazette (published by the Law Society of England and Wales) contains a review of the fourth edition of A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting (here). It’s by Daphne Perry. You might recall that earlier this year Practical Law Company recorded a video of me chatting with Daphne […]
ABA Sale: 25% Off “A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting”
You have two days left—21 and 22 August—to get 25% off the ABA price for A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting. That might be a better price than what Amazon is currently offering. Go here. I couldn’t help noticing that MSCD is the ABA’s biggest-selling title for 2018. I wouldn’t be surprised if that […]
Two Items from Radiant Law (and a Shout-Out to MSCD)
Readers of this blog will be familiar with the ever-raffish Alex Hamilton, but I haven’t had occasion to mention his UK-based business, Radiant Law, which describes itself as “a law firm leading the way in optimising how large companies create, negotiate and manage their commercial contracts.” I’m doing so now because two items on their […]
My Exchange with an English Reader of MSCD
Before I published my post The Post-Truth Mindset and “Endeavours” Provisions (here), I ran a draft by one of my English readers. I found what he had to say particularly eloquent, so here it is, with my response. I welcome you to chime in. You’re asking me to guess UK audience reaction, right? If you carry […]
What Incremental Change Looks Like, Part 2
I keep my eye open for signs that MSCD-compliant language is seeping into contracts. For example, last week while rooting around on Edgar, I noticed a contract that uses my force majeure language. (Go here for my force majeure language.) But if I were looking for A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting to quickly […]