50 Things EVERY Lawyer Should Know about Drafting Contracts
Date: Oct 25, 2024 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Location: Online
Member Price: $159
Non-Member Price: $199
Areas of Law: For All Attorneys
Earn up to 3.3 credits! (More Information)
Keynote
Moderator
Presenters
- Lenné Eidson Espenschied
- Lenne Espenschied Continuing Legal Education, Atlantais a national speaker from Atlanta, Georgia, who has trained thousands of lawyers in the U.S. and Canada in the art of contract drafting through continuing legal education seminars for bar associations, law firms and corporate legal departments. Her passion is helping new lawyers acquire the skills they need to be successful in transactional practice.
Ms. Espenschied practiced law in Atlanta, Georgia for 25 years, and focused on technology and intellectual property matters. She began her legal practice with the firm now known as Eversheds Sutherland and eventually worked as senior counsel in the legal department of Bank of America. Prior to attending law school she was a Certified Public Accountant at Ernst & Young, where she audited Fortune 500 companies and assisted in preparing financial statements and reports for shareholders.
Ms. Espenschied is the author of two books published by the American Bar Association: Contract Drafting: Powerful Prose in Transactional Practice (ABA Fundamentals, 3rd Ed., 2019) and The Grammar and Writing Handbook for Lawyers (ABA Fundamentals, 2011). She was a Professor at Charlotte School of Law and an Adjunct Professor at the University of Georgia School of Law, and taught commercial law, contracts and contract drafting. She is also a contributing faculty member at Thomson/Reuter’s West Legal Ed Center.
Ms. Espenschied received her B.B.A., with high honors, from the University of Georgia and her J.D., magna cum laude, from the University of Georgia School of Law, where she served on the Editorial Board of Georgia Law Review and was a member of Order of the Coif. She also won a prestigious award as a teaching assistant in the UGA Terry College of Business.
(8/23)
Lenné Espenchied, known for the popular “Rookie Mistakes Even Expert Lawyers Make in Contract Drafting,” is back with a dynamic new drafting program. In this practical, high-energy, fast-paced seminar, Lenné will reveal 50 tips to help every lawyer draft contracts with precision and clarity, avoid embarrassing mistakes and keep clients out of litigation. The three-hour seminar will be packed with practical information you can immediately use in your practice.
Here are some highlights of the 50 indispensable drafting rules:
- Why it’s necessary, but also efficient, to begin with a statement of agreement;
- How to get more out of recitals (or better yet, a statement of purpose);
- How to avoid creating an illusory contract;
- Chronic errors good lawyers make with definitions;
- Words and phrases to avoid;
- Phrases that strengthen and extend the governing law provision;
- When “and” means and; when it means “or”, and when it could mean either;
- How to avoid ambiguity when incorporating by reference;
- When it’s WRONG to use representations and warranties; and
- Much more.
About the Presenter:
Lenné Eidson Espenschied has earned her status as one of the two most popular contract drafting speakers in the country by continually striving for excellence and providing innovative, practical, skills-based training for transactional lawyers. She practiced law in Atlanta, Georgia for more than 20 years, focusing on corporate and transactional representation of technology-based businesses. Espenschied is a contributing faculty member for West Legal Ed Center. She is the author of two books published by the American Bar Association: Contract Drafting: Powerful Prose in Transactional Practice (ABA Fundamentals, 3rd Ed. 2019) and The Grammar and Writing Handbook for Lawyers (ABA Fundamentals, 2011). After graduating from the University of Georgia School of Law magna cum laude, Espenschied began her legal practice at a large national law firm; she also served as senior counsel in the legal department of Bank of America before opening her own law office. As a law professor, Espenschied taught commercial law, contracts and contract drafting. Her passion is helping lawyers acquire the skills they need to be more successful in transactional practice.
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