AY 2007-2008 Projects - Europe/Eurasia

Country                       Czech Republic
City                              Prague
Host Institution           CEELI Institute

Project Description
The regional project in Legal English focuses on working with a team of over 20 law faculty professors and legal English specialists from 12 countries across southeastern and central Europe to develop on-line instructional modules that address the language and legal content needs of users. The project started with the present EL Fellow in September 2005 and has come a long way. During the first year or so of the project, the members of the development team of 20+ fluctuated due to unforeseen circumstances. Presently, the team has solidified and the EL Fellow has worked intensively to train them to develop these on-line materials. Although they have made great progress, additional training is still needed. The initial plan was to develop a minimum of 20 modules using a flash-based on-line format (see demonstration module at www.language4law.org). Due to financial considerations, the EL Fellow was forced to abandon this format and, in consultation with technical experts, migrated the entire project to a Moodle format which is turning out to be nearly as flexible and engaging and exponentially more cost effective than the flash based approach (see www.l4law.org). To date, modules on Joint Ventures, International Sales and Goods, Mergers and Acquisitions, Trademark Infringement, and Medical Malpractice are nearing completion. 5 additional modules will be complete by June 30, 2007. One additional year of an EL Fellow Program based at the CEELI institute in Prague is needed to develop an additional 10 modules and complete the training of the development team so that additional modules can be developed for years to come. The EL Fellow travels among the universities where collaborating module developers are based, consults with them and conducts training sessions as requested. S/he pilots the language4law materials with practicing lawyers and advanced law faculty professors and students and incorporates their reactions into the materials. With the financial support of White and Case (an international law firm that the Language4Law NGO is already providing fee generating services to in order to help defray some of the development and training costs that the EL Fellow incurs), the EL Fellow invites selected members of the development team to the CEELI Institute in Prague on a quarterly basis to participate in module development and training sessions facilitated by the EL Fellow. The EL Fellow also conducts intensive courses on legal drafting for interested law faculty professors, legal English instructors, practicing attorneys and legal advisors assigned to a variety of ministries.

Project Objectives
Legal English programs provide opportunities for educators across the region to collaborate, coordinate and find common ground. They provide a mechanism for linking universities across borders. They also provide us with opportunities to expose new generations of lawyers, judges and other legal professionals to the fundamentals of the US legal system. Recent experience with legal English instructors has demonstrated that there is a desperate need for contextually appropriate instructional materials, an interest among law students to learn the legal registers of English and also learn more about the American legal system and a desire among instructors from across the region to work together to address their shared needs. The project’s objectives include: to continue training the international Language4Law development team to develop world-class on-line instructional materials designed to teach legal English, legal reasoning skills and relevant US legal content; to organize and facilitate quarterly development/training sessions for module developers (to take place at the CEELI Institute in Prague); to pilot the modules with appropriate practicing lawyers and other legal professionals (including those working for international law firms like White and Case), law faculty students, law professors and legal English specialists through seminars and intensive institutes and funnel the feedback into later versions of the modules.

About the Host Institution
The CEELI Institute has been involved in legal training in central and southeastern Europe for four years. One of their priority areas is legal education reform. Their efforts have included curriculum reform, judicial training centers and skills based education programs. Legal English is a critical need area they want to address. The CEELI Institute is a public-private partnership initially founded with USAID SEED funds and matching private sector donations. The arrangement with the CEELI Institute has worked out well. CEELI has hosted events initiated and carried out by the EL Fellow and has provided administrative support. The CEELI Institute will soon complete a major renovation of their facilities and will be able to offer state-of-the-art training facilities with all the amenities, including accommodation facilities for participants. The regional EL Fellow project has proven to effectively compliment other CEELI institute efforts in legal education.