This area of law addresses the organization and operation of banks and other types of depository institutions and financial institutions.  These institutions are heavily regulated by both state and federal law, so the regulatory and statutory frameworks are extremely complex.   Most work in this area of law tends to be of a transactional nature, and as a lawyer in banking and finance, you may want to specialize in a particular class of financing, whether that is project acquisition, asset, property, securitization, derivatives, capital markets or Islamic finance. In addition to affecting banks, banking and finance law often plays a large role in mergers and acquisitions of corporations, stock purchases and investments by both individuals and companies, and tax audits of bank accounts.  In addition, people need legal help in banking and finance law when forming a new business. There are many laws, contracts, and regulations that may dictate how new businesses spend and account for investment funds.

Legal Writing in Topic: Banking & Finance Law

Banking and Finance Law crosses two worlds, the law and Wall Street (or other stock market).  Lawyers need to be well versed in both worlds to make an impact.  Financial law is crucial to appreciating the creation and formation of banking and financial regulation, as well as the legal framework for finance generally.  Bankers and financiers are not known for their writing skills, often relying on economics analysis and spreadsheets to make their points.  However, expertise in English is a necessity in this area of law, especially because of the global impact of many decisions and transactions.  Unless you’re operating locally, English will most likely be the language of the deal, and contracts and other documents will be complex and detailed, so English will be a real asset. Lawyers working in the field must have all tools related to negotiation, mediation, and litigation to operate effectively.

Solving Drafting/ Editing Problems:

  1. Organization – The complexities of banking and finance must be well organized so that you can communicate with clients and the opposition, including the various challenges of local, state and federal governmental requirements. The ability to take multiple issues with multiple parties and multiple potential outcomes, and make them clear, concise and well communicated is amongst the most important things for an attorney to consider.  In addition, the need to respond quickly and
    accurately creates some new challenges.
  2. Research Skills – Being able to research in an effective manner is an essential. The primary aim of conducting clear and methodical legal research is finding the answer to a legal question in the most time effective way and knowing that you have searched all the relevant sources.  In legal practice it can help to show any client that your work is accurate and that it is value for money.  In banking and finance, research may have a breadth that other areas of law may not have, so knowledge of business activities, economics, structures, histories and other details may be needed.
  3. Formality – While several areas of the law do not require formality in writing, banking and finance law often requires preparation of very formal, corporate documents. With this type of document, the reader should pay close attention to avoid negative and double-negative statements. This use of English is not only incorrect grammatically but can also cause confusion.   These complicated documents, whether they are prospectuses or final contracts, require highly regulated and formal use of English for compliance.  When not preparing such documents, a banking and finance lawyer will need to read and understand the complexities of this type of document on a regular basis.

Legal Writing Resources:

  • Legal Writing EU’s free Commercial Law Glossary – 250 of the most frequent and important words and phrases. Also used as a Twitter daily vocabulary practice tool.
  • https://briefcatch.com – BriefCatch is a Word plug-in that offers editing suggestions that you can implement in real time. The program not only catches common mistakes but spots editing and advocacy opportunities that many lawyers and other writers miss.
  • https://www.iflr.com – International Financial Law Review – Market-leading financial law publication for lawyers in financial institutions, corporates and
    private practice.
  • https://www.fdic.gov/regulations/laws – Federal Deposit Insurance Company, United States, List of laws and regulations related to banking and finance law.

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