Legislative Drafting Archives

Teaching Law Students the Intricacies of Legislative Drafting

May 16, 2022 3:40 pmMay 16, 2022 9:19 am

At the University of California, Davis King Hall School of Law, the author co-teaches a 2-unit, semester-length course dedicated entirely to legislative drafting. Meeting weekly for 2-hour sessions, students in this course are provided practical experience in researching, analyzing, and...

A sea of empty desks inside the California State Assembly

How Do We Prepare to Amend or Repeal Statutes?

December 6, 2020 2:31 amDecember 7, 2020 10:56 am

Like other forms of drafting legislation, in preparing to amend or repeal existing statutes, there are several steps for the bill drafter to take. In this regard, helpful guidance is provided by the Graduate Degree in Legislative Drafting from Athabasca...

The Use of Definitions in Legislation

November 6, 2020 6:31 amNovember 9, 2020 11:24 am

Definitions can play an important role in legislation. Defining words or phrases is done to provide the reader of the legislative text with clear guidance regarding how those words or phrases are to be understood. Where there are multiple definitions,...

The Seven Cs of Basic Legislative Drafting

October 22, 2020 6:25 amOctober 22, 2020 10:50 am

What are the “Seven Cs” and what do they have to do with legislative drafting? During this time of pandemic, I have been researching and reading about legislative drafting and studying some of the materials that are available to the...