Go here for the last teaser for the fourth edition of A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting, the index. You can tell a lot about a reference work from its index. You can’t make a good index from a mediocre reference work. But you can make a mediocre index from a good reference work. I’m happy with the fourth … Read More
Go here for the introduction to the fourth edition of A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting. The introduction serves as a manifesto. It’s a reflection of what was on my mind at the time; if I were to write it now, I might emphasize some parts more or less. But I think it sets the scene appropriately. Bear with … Read More
Go here for the preface to the fourth edition of A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting. It will give you a sense of what has changed from the third edition. Once the print version is available, I’ll put online more detailed information about changes.
My first-ever public seminar was in Toronto with Osgoode Professional Development, back in 2006, I think. And way more people have attended my seminars in Toronto than in any other city. So I always enjoy going back. I’ll be back on 23 October for my regular “Drafting Clearer Contracts” seminar. It will be my first seminar in Toronto at which … Read More
Go here for the table of contents to the fourth edition of A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting. If you’re not familiar with the book, it will give you a good idea of what it covers. Before the ABA receives copies of the print edition from the printer—in other words, before 10 October—I’ll put online a version of the … Read More
In the past ten years I’ve done seminars in many countries. I haven’t counted them, and it would be juvenile to list them, although I’ve sporadically done “Notes from the Road” posts about my travels (here). I’ve also visited many cities in the United States and Canada that I wouldn’t have seen otherwise. So what do I get out of … Read More
Here’s another indication that A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting has reached maturity with the fourth edition: for the first time, it has a foreword. And not just any old foreword. It’s by Vice Chancellor J. Travis Laster of the high-profile Delaware Court of Chancery. I think you’ll find it of interest. If Travis’s foreword brings MSCD to the … Read More
We’ve changed the binding for the fourth edition of A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting. This might seem a trivial matter, but the binding was enough of an issue for me to ask readers about it in this 2008 post, and in 2014 I did this post about Amazon reviews objecting to the binding. The slight first edition was a … Read More
The print version of the fourth edition of A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting will arrive at the ABA warehouse on 10 October, but you can preorder it by going here. That being the case, next week I’ll do posts about the foreword, the table of contents, the preface, the introduction, and the index. The print version costs $119.95, … Read More
What does the word excellence have to do with contract drafting? Bear with me. I’m not fond of the word excellence. It’s not a word you hear much in everyday English. Instead, we use adjectives (excellent, not to mention great, outstanding, and others) or adverbs (excellently, not to mention amazingly, splendidly, and others). But excellence is an abstract noun—you can’t see, hear, … Read More
