Legislative Drafter's Deskbook: A Practical Guide

The Legislative Drafter's Deskbook offers practical advice and insight for those engaged in legislative drafting, those more interested in policy than drafting itself, or those interested in reading and interpreting the law. This book explains why laws are drafted the way they are. Legislative drafting is - to the extent it is writing at all - the form of writing used for legislative measures, a category that covers original bills and resolutions as well as amendments. Ultimately, legislative drafting is the form of writing used for enacted law. The focus of this book is on legislative drafting for the Congress of the United States, but many, if not most, of the principles described here apply just as well to drafting for other legislatures. As forms of writing go, drafting is not freewheeling like poetry, nor showy like rhetoric, nor personal like a novel. Drafting is disciplined, rigorous, and analytical. Done well, drafting can also be creative, elegant, and clever. (Unfortunately, drafting is not always done well.) The purpose of this book is to provide practical advice on drafting to anyone who does, or may, engage in drafting, and indirectly to provide insight into the drafting process to other interested people. For example, this book is for people who are more interested in policy than in drafting, but want to understand why drafters operate the way they do. It is also for people who are more interested in reading and interpreting the law than in drafting, but want to understand why laws are drafted the way they are. It is hoped that this book will be accessible to beginners while remaining valuable to veterans. The traditional method of training drafters is to train them on the job; the consensus is that drafting is best learned holistically, on a case-by-case basis. For that reason this book is best used as a resource, not a course. It is a supplement to, not a substitute for, the learning that comes from experience. The author designed this book to answer the variety of questions about drafting that arise daily in the work of individuals with a professional interest in how bills, resolutions, and laws are drafted. The approach used here is pragmatic: You will find no linguistic theories or esoteric conundrums discussed here. What you will find is solid advice for everyday drafting projects. "A masterful work. It is comprehensive and exceptionally well written. It is an essential tool for anyone who drafts legislation or interprets the law." -- William K. Suter, Clerk of the United States Supreme Court "An essential and indispensable book, both as a reference work and as a thorough introduction to Federal legislative drafting." -- Frank Burk, Legislative Counsel of the United States Senate 1991-1998 "The succinct and thorough assessment of good legislative drafting techniques provides a set of 'best practices' for drafters at all levels of government." -- Elizabeth Garrett, Sydney M. Irmas Professor of Public Interest Law, University of Southern California "State legislative drafters will also greatly appreciate this work." -- Bruce Feustel, Senior Fellow, NCSL Summary of Contents 1. Being a Drafter 2. Understanding How Laws Are Made 3. Considering the Courts: Statutory Interpretation 4. Thinking Through the Policy 5. Choosing the Right Measure 6. Writing Effectively 7. Organizing and Arranging 8. Using the Right Style 9. Affecting and Amending Other Laws 10. Working in, and Working with, the Executive Branch Appendices Back of the Book Table of Cases Table of Constitutional Provisions Table of Statutes at Large Table of Public Laws Table of U.S. Code Sections Index Complete Table of Contents online at www.LegislativeDraftersDeskbook.com

Dorsey, Tobias A.

Legal Education

TheCapitol.Net

The exercise of judicial power often requires that courts construe statutes in applying them in particular cases. Judicial interpretation of the meaning of a statute is authoritative in the matter before the court. However, the methodologies and approaches taken by the courts in discerning meaning can help guide legislative drafters, legislators, agencies, and private parties. This book reviews the primary rules courts apply to discern a statute's meaning. However, each matter of interpretation before a court presents unique challenges. While there is no unified approach in all cases, all approaches start with the language and structure of the statute itself. Still, the meaning of statutory language is not always evident. To help clarify uncertainty, judges have developed various interpretive tools in the form of canons of construction. When drafting federal law, the most important audience is the federal courts--in particular, the Supreme Court. Fortunately, it is not difficult to get inside the mind of the Court and understand how it thinks. The Court makes this process public in its published opinions; collectively, the process is known as statutory interpretation; it is also known as statutory construction. Also included is a chapter on drafting federal grants statutes. Several rules of drafting have special relevance to statutes in the field of federal assistance (grants), and those are set forth. Summary Table of Contents 1. Statutory Interpretation: General Principles and Recent Trends, by Larry M. Eig and Yule Kim, CRS Report for Congress 97-589, October 14, 2009 2. Statutory Structure and Legislative Drafting Conventions: A Primer for Judges, by M. Douglass Bellis, Federal Judicial Center, February 2008 3. "Considering the Courts: Statutory Interpretation," Ch. 3 from Legislative Drafter's Deskbook, by Tobias Dorsey. 4. A Guide to Federal Grant Statute Drafting, by Malcolm S. Mason, from "Drafting Federal Grant Statutes: Studies in Administrative Law and Procedure 90-1," Admin. Conf. of the US (ACUS) 5. Tracking Current Federal Legislation and Regulations: A Guide to Resources for Congressional Staff, by Pamela A. Hairston, RL33895 6. Legislative Planning: Considerations for Congressional Staff, by Judy Schneider, RS20991 7. Other Resources from TheCapitol.Net Legislative Drafter's Deskbook, by Tobias A. Dorsey, ISBN: 1587330326 www.LegislativeDraftersDeskbook.com Live Courses How to Research and Compile Legislative Histories: Searching for Legislative Intent LegislativeResearch.com How to Find, Track, and Monitor Congressional Documents TrackingLegislation.com Drafting Effective Federal Legislation and Amendments DraftingLegislation.com Capitol Hill Workshop CapitolHillWorkshop.com Capitol Learning Audio Courses Statutory Construction: A Primer on How to Read and Understand Statutory Text, ISBN: 1587330784 Drafting Effective Federal Legislation and Amendments in a Nutshell, ISBN: 1587330326 Authorizations and Appropriations in a Nutshell, ISBN: 1587330296 Researching Federal Legislative Histories: Bills, Resolutions, Committee Hearings, and Committee Reports, ISBN: 1587330822 Researching Legislative Histories: Finding Legislative Intent in Bills and Committee and Conference Reports, ISBN: 1587330334 Researching Federal Legislative Histories: Statutory and Code Research, ISBN: 1587330806 - Researching Legislative Histories, ISBN: 1587330334 8. Other Resources For complete Table of Contents, see www.TCNSI.com

Statutory Construction and Interpretation: General Principles and Recent Trends; Statutory Structure and Legislative Drafting Conventions; Drafting Fe

Business

TheCapitol.Net, Inc.

The Legislative Drafter's Deskbook offers practical advice and insight for those engaged in legislative drafting, those more interested in policy than drafting itself, or those interested in reading and interpreting the law. This book explains why laws are drafted the way they are. Legislative drafting is - to the extent it is writing at all - the form of writing used for legislative measures, a category that covers original bills and resolutions as well as amendments. Ultimately, legislative drafting is the form of writing used for enacted law. The focus of this book is on legislative drafting for the Congress of the United States, but many, if not most, of the principles described here apply just as well to drafting for other legislatures. As forms of writing go, drafting is not freewheeling like poetry, nor showy like rhetoric, nor personal like a novel. Drafting is disciplined, rigorous, and analytical. Done well, drafting can also be creative, elegant, and clever. (Unfortunately, drafting is not always done well.) The purpose of this book is to provide practical advice on drafting to anyone who does, or may, engage in drafting, and indirectly to provide insight into the drafting process to other interested people. For example, this book is for people who are more interested in policy than in drafting, but want to understand why drafters operate the way they do. It is also for people who are more interested in reading and interpreting the law than in drafting, but want to understand why laws are drafted the way they are. It is hoped that this book will be accessible to beginners while remaining valuable to veterans. The traditional method of training drafters is to train them on the job; the consensus is that drafting is best learned holistically, on a case-by-case basis. For that reason this book is best used as a resource, not a course. It is a supplement to, not a substitute for, the learning that comes from experience. The author designed this book to answer the variety of questions about drafting that arise daily in the work of individuals with a professional interest in how bills, resolutions, and laws are drafted. The approach used here is pragmatic: You will find no linguistic theories or esoteric conundrums discussed here. What you will find is solid advice for everyday drafting projects. "A masterful work. It is comprehensive and exceptionally well written. It is an essential tool for anyone who drafts legislation or interprets the law." -- William K. Suter, Clerk of the United States Supreme Court "An essential and indispensable book, both as a reference work and as a thorough introduction to Federal legislative drafting." -- Frank Burk, Legislative Counsel of the United States Senate 1991-1998 "The succinct and thorough assessment of good legislative drafting techniques provides a set of 'best practices' for drafters at all levels of government." -- Elizabeth Garrett, Sydney M. Irmas Professor of Public Interest Law, University of Southern California "State legislative drafters will also greatly appreciate this work." -- Bruce Feustel, Senior Fellow, NCSL Summary of Contents 1. Being a Drafter 2. Understanding How Laws Are Made 3. Considering the Courts: Statutory Interpretation 4. Thinking Through the Policy 5. Choosing the Right Measure 6. Writing Effectively 7. Organizing and Arranging 8. Using the Right Style 9. Affecting and Amending Other Laws 10. Working in, and Working with, the Executive Branch Appendices Back of the Book Table of Cases Table of Constitutional Provisions Table of Statutes at Large Table of Public Laws Table of U.S. Code Sections Index Complete Table of Contents online at www.LegislativeDraftersDeskbook.com

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Books by Dorsey, Tobias A.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Dorsey, Tobias A.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Legislative Drafter's Deskbook: A Practical Guide

Statutory Construction and Interpretation: General Principles and Recent Trends; Statutory Structure and Legislative Drafting Conventions; Drafting Fe

Legislative Drafter's Deskbook: A Practical Guide