This course aims to provide students with the necessary communicative competence to operate effectively in academic legal contexts. Students on the course will learn how to find and critically evaluate a range of legal texts (including legislation and judgments) and how to present these texts creatively, in plain legal language that is accessible to both specialist and non-specialist audiences. Students will learn how to construct legal arguments by ‘thinking like a lawyer’ and using the English language in a way that is appropriate to an academic legal context, drawing on appropriate rhetorical structure, grammar and vocabulary. Students will learn how to explore legal texts using linguistic search tools, making discoveries that inform their learning and use of the language of the law. Finally, students will have the opportunity to collectively reflect on their learning by engaging in online discussions related to key concepts on the course.