Legislative Drafter's Deskbook provides practical advice on drafting to anyone who does, or may, engage in drafting, and provides insight into the drafting process to other interested people. It is also for people who are more interested in policy than in drafting, but want to understand why legislative 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.
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Editorial Reviews
Review
"Legislative Drafter's Deskbook: A Practical Guide presents legislative scholars, legislation drafters, and quite frankly anyone interested in the construction of statute with a meticulous exploration of the planning and thought processes that must occur in order for clear, understandable laws to be written. Dorsey accomplishes his desired missions of providing practical advice to drafters and interesting insight to scholars (and normal people) on the drafting process." -- -- Curtis Ellis, American Political Science Association's Legislative Studies Section Newsletter, Volume 29, Number 2, July 2006
"The Legislative Drafter's Deskbook is essential reading for both professional and occasional legislative drafters. Dorsey's solid experience as a journalist, lawyer, and professional drafter shines through as he delivers scores of vital tips for successful drafting and provides keen insight into how our laws are made and how they are interpreted by the courts. Highly readable and thoroughly enjoyable from cover to cover, Dorsey's deskbook offers practical guidance to the aspiring drafter in not only polishing essential writing skills, but also in asking tough questions, spotting thorny issues, and offering creative solutions that will capture the intended choices of policymakers. If each legislative draft is indeed a puzzle, as Dorsey suggests, he has given us in this book the tools by which we can solve even the most vexing of legislative drafting problems." -- -- Louis S. Rulli, Practice Professor of Law, University of Pennsylvania Law School
"The Legislative Drafter's Deskbook: A Practical Guide is 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
"The Legislative Drafter's Deskbook: A Practical Guide is exactly that. It should be a part of every Federal practitioner's library. Even the experienced legislative attorney will find things in the Deskbook that he or she did not know. It is 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
"Tobias Dorsey has created a valuable and practical tool for all legislative drafters. He correctly notes that much of the drafter's work involves helping the client think through and clarify the policy choices in the request and he provides clear tips on how to persistently carry out that work. His chapters on writing and organizing bill drafts similarly identify common mistakes and suggest better practices. Dorsey's obvious drafting skills play out on every page of the book, as readers will find solid thinking and clear writing throughout his publication. Although the book has a federal perspective, state legislative drafters will also greatly appreciate this work." -- -- Bruce Feustel, Senior Fellow, National Conference of State Legislatures
"The Legislative Drafter's Deskbook is essential reading for both professional and occasional legislative drafters. Dorsey's solid experience as a journalist, lawyer, and professional drafter shines through as he delivers scores of vital tips for successful drafting and provides keen insight into how our laws are made and how they are interpreted by the courts. Highly readable and thoroughly enjoyable from cover to cover, Dorsey's deskbook offers practical guidance to the aspiring drafter in not only polishing essential writing skills, but also in asking tough questions, spotting thorny issues, and offering creative solutions that will capture the intended choices of policymakers. If each legislative draft is indeed a puzzle, as Dorsey suggests, he has given us in this book the tools by which we can solve even the most vexing of legislative drafting problems." -- -- Louis S. Rulli, Practice Professor of Law, University of Pennsylvania Law School
"The Legislative Drafter's Deskbook: A Practical Guide is 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
"The Legislative Drafter's Deskbook: A Practical Guide is exactly that. It should be a part of every Federal practitioner's library. Even the experienced legislative attorney will find things in the Deskbook that he or she did not know. It is 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
"Tobias Dorsey has created a valuable and practical tool for all legislative drafters. He correctly notes that much of the drafter's work involves helping the client think through and clarify the policy choices in the request and he provides clear tips on how to persistently carry out that work. His chapters on writing and organizing bill drafts similarly identify common mistakes and suggest better practices. Dorsey's obvious drafting skills play out on every page of the book, as readers will find solid thinking and clear writing throughout his publication. Although the book has a federal perspective, state legislative drafters will also greatly appreciate this work." -- -- Bruce Feustel, Senior Fellow, National Conference of State Legislatures
About the Author
Tobias A. Dorsey is an attorney in the Office of the Legislative Counsel of the U.S. House of Representatives. Within that office, he works primarily on issues relating to national defense, homeland security, and civil and criminal justice. He has taught at drafting seminars and is an active member of various drafting and professional associations. He serves on the governing council of the Capitol Hill Chapter of the Federal Bar Association.
Before joining the office, Mr. Dorsey was a trial and appellate lawyer in private practice. He has brought appeals to the highest State court of Maine and of California and to the Supreme Court of the United States. He has written articles, edited a legal magazine, and directed the in-house research and writing program at several law firms. He is a member of the bar in Maine, Massachusetts, and California, and a member of the bar association of the Supreme Court of the United States.
Before becoming a lawyer, Mr. Dorsey was a reporter and editor for several newspapers. He earned his bachelor's degree from Cornell University and his law degree from UCLA School of Law.
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1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
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"An essential tool for anyone who drafts legislation or interprets the law.",
This review is from: Legislative Drafter's Deskbook: A Practical Guide (Legislative Series) (Hardcover)
"The Legislative Drafter's Deskbook: A Practical Guide is 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 "The Legislative Drafter's Deskbook: A Practical Guide is exactly that. It should be a part of every Federal practitioner's library. Even the experienced legislative attorney will find things in the Deskbook that he or she did not know. It is 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 Legislative Drafter's Deskbook is an invaluable resource for any legislative drafter working to hone her skills or student seeking to become proficient in legislative drafting. Uniquely among drafting guides, this book demonstrates a sophisticated institutional awareness, devoting substantial attention to statutory methods and techniques that will be used by courts to interpret statutes and to the approach that agencies are likely to take when interpreting or implementing Congress' directives. It is clear that this Deskbook was written by an expert with experience in actual legislative drafting; it carefully analyzes the role of the drafter relative to the policymaker and includes helpful discussions of professional norms and expectations. Although the Deskbook is focused on legislative drafting at the federal level, where Tobias Dorsey works in the House of Representatives' Office of Legislative Counsel, 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, Legal Ethics, Political Science, and Policy, Planning and Development, University of Southern California "Dorsey's Legislative Drafter's Deskbook is the perfect companion for both drafters of legislation and students of statutory interpretation. It is a well-written and clear guide to the do's, don'ts and whys of writing effective legislation." -- Rick Hasen, William H. Hannon Distinguished Professor of Law, Loyola Law School "Tobias Dorsey has created a valuable and practical tool for all legislative drafters. He correctly notes that much of the drafter's work involves helping the client think through and clarify the policy choices in the request and he provides clear tips on how to persistently carry out that work. His chapters on writing and organizing bill drafts similarly identify common mistakes and suggest better practices. Dorsey's obvious drafting skills play out on every page of the book, as readers will find solid thinking and clear writing throughout his publication. Although the book has a federal perspective, state legislative drafters will also greatly appreciate this work." -- Bruce Feustel, Senior Fellow, National Conference of State Legislatures "Comprehensive yet still accessible, thorough yet refreshingly clear--Dorsey's new book, the Legislative Drafter's Deskbook, is a stellar reference. If you are drafting federal legislation, you need this book. If you work with legislative drafters, you need this book. Even if you are just interested in the drafting process generally, you will want this book." -- Mary Barnard Ray, Senior Lecturer and Assistant Director of Legal Research and Writing, University of Wisconsin, and author of "Legal Writing: Getting It Right and Getting It Written," "The Basics of Legal Writing," and "Beyond the Basics: A Text for Advanced Legal Writers" "The Legislative Drafter's Deskbook is essential reading for both professional and occasional legislative drafters. Dorsey's solid experience as a journalist, lawyer, and professional drafter shines through as he delivers scores of vital tips for successful drafting and provides keen insight into how our laws are made and how they are interpreted by the courts. Highly readable and thoroughly enjoyable from cover to cover, Dorsey's deskbook offers practical guidance to the aspiring drafter in not only polishing essential writing skills, but also in asking tough questions, spotting thorny issues, and offering creative solutions that will capture the intended choices of policymakers. If each legislative draft is indeed a puzzle, as Dorsey suggests, he has given us in this book the tools by which we can solve even the most vexing of legislative drafting problems." -- Louis S. Rulli, Practice Professor of Law, University of Pennsylvania Law School "Legislative Drafter's Deskbook: A Practical Guide presents legislative scholars, legislation drafters, and quite frankly anyone interested in the construction of statute with a meticulous exploration of the planning and thought processes that must occur in order for clear, understandable laws to be written. Dorsey accomplishes his desired missions of providing practical advice to drafters and interesting insight to scholars (and normal people) on the drafting process." -- Curtis Ellis, American Political Science Association's Legislative Studies Section Newsletter
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