'No one reads a business document for enjoyment. They read it because they have to. And that is the essential difference between business writing and creative writing. But that doesn't mean that business writing should not be creative: even the writing of legal documents (with their terrible reputation for hereinafters and heretofores) should be tackled creatively. So, in his Legal English, Rupert Haigh takes legal language as his focus for a book on the use of business English.He demonstrates how sentences can be clear and precise, yet vigorous and readable (he argues, for example that the famous 'notwithstanding the fact that' should be replaced with simply 'although' or 'despite') and he shows how much of this is down to sensible planning and structure. For example, his eighteen-point checklist of factors that affect the content and style of a business letter is just one extract from the book that deserves to be pinned over every business writer's desk. Because Mr Haigh is concerned with English, not just writing, his book expands into the use of business English in presentations, interviews, phone calls and other contexts. This is an analytical approach to clarity and style wherever business English is used'. Writing Magazine, Feb 2005. 'Although aimed at professionals whose first language is not English, this is a helpful guide to communicating in clear concise English. Divided into Writing, speaking and contractual English, the book covers a wide spectrum in just 250 pages: grammar; punctuation; style and writing legal letters; legal job applications; telephone skills; client interviews; chairing meetings; and the structure of contracts. There is also an interesting comparison on the difference negotiation styles comparing English lawyers with US counterparts.The style is easy to read with plenty of examples and very useful glossaries.' tsgLIFE!, Spring 2005. 'So where do lawyers go for help when English isn't their first language? They beg, borrow or buy a copy of Haigh's Legal English.' '...what do magistrates get out of this book? - an understanding of the words, and demeanor, of the representatives appearing before them; the ability to 'talk legal' on equal terms with their clerk, and how to explain it all to defendants and witnesses'. Magistrate, January 2006, page 29
