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In this episode of 4LE in 4 Minutes, we look at a common Legal English mistake: saying “the court decided guilty.” You’ll learn why this sounds unnatural, when to use found guilty, and how lawyers use verbs like found, held, and decided when discussing court decisions. This short lesson will help you describe criminal verdicts, civil liability, and legal conclusions more clearly and professionally. 

Free Legal English PDF:
Download 10 Common Legal English Mistakes — and How to Avoid Them here.

Learn more about 4 Legal English:
Visit 4LegalEnglish.com to find more podcast episodes, Legal English lessons, free resources, and courses for international lawyers and law students.   

For more about the podcast, go here. 

Have a question or topic suggestion? Send a text or voicemail through the link at the top of the show notes. I may answer it in a future episode.

Join the global 4 Legal English conversation.
The podcast now has listeners in 186 countries — and I would love to hear from you. Click Send Fan Mail at the top of the show notes to send a quick text message or voicemail. Tell me your first name, country, and question about Legal English, legal communication, or the U.S. legal system. Your question may be featured in a future episode. 

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On the docket today, we explain the phrase “without prejudice”—what it means, when lawyers use it, and why it matters during settlement negotiations and other legal discussions. You’ll learn how the phrase can affect whether certain communications may later be used in court, as well as some important limits to the protection it provides. 

This episode is part of 4LE in 4 Minutes, a new series of short Legal English episodes designed to explain one useful legal term, phrase, or concept in just a few minutes. These shorter episodes will appear between our regular full-length episodes, which will continue every other week.

Learn more about 4 Legal English:
Visit 4LegalEnglish.com to find more podcast episodes, Legal English lessons, free resources, and courses for international lawyers and law students.   

For more about the podcast, go here. 

Have a question or topic suggestion? Send a text or voicemail through the link at the top of the show notes. I may answer it in a future episode.

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Send us Fan Mail

On the docket today, we look at how lawyers can communicate clearly once a virtual negotiation is underway. We discuss using short sentences, signposting, and summaries; managing interruptions, silence, and technical delays; and avoiding pressure to respond before you are ready. We also examine how to distinguish proposals, offers, counteroffers, and acceptance, clarify authority and client approval, and confirm exactly what has—and has not—been agreed. Finally, we look at the risks and advantages of chat, screen sharing, and written follow-up. This episode gives international lawyers and law students practical English for negotiating online with greater clarity and control.

Read the full Episode Brief:
Get the transcript, Legal English Lexicon, key vocabulary, and further explanation for this episode here.  

Free Legal English PDF:
Download 10 Common Legal English Mistakes — and How to Avoid Them here.

Learn more about 4 Legal English:
Visit 4LegalEnglish.com to find more podcast episodes, Legal English lessons, free resources, and courses for international lawyers and law students.   

For more about the podcast, go here. 

Have a question or topic suggestion? Send a text or voicemail through the link at the top of the show notes. I may answer it in a future episode.

Join the global 4 Legal English conversation.
The podcast now has listeners in 186 countries — and I would love to hear from you. Click Send Fan Mail at the top of the show notes to send a quick text message or voicemail. Tell me your first name, country, and question about Legal English, legal communication, or the U.S. legal system. Your question may be featured in a future episode. 

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In this episode of 4 Legal English in 4 Minutes, we explain the legal English word liable. You’ll learn why liable does not simply mean guilty, how lawyers use it in civil cases, and how to use phrases like held liable and liable for damages correctly. 

Free Legal English PDF:
Download 10 Common Legal English Mistakes — and How to Avoid Them here.

Learn more about 4 Legal English:
Visit 4LegalEnglish.com to find more podcast episodes, Legal English lessons, free resources, and courses for international lawyers and law students.   

For more about the podcast, go here. 

Have a question or topic suggestion? Send a text or voicemail through the link at the top of the show notes. I may answer it in a future episode.

Join the global 4 Legal English conversation.
The podcast now has listeners in 186 countries — and I would love to hear from you. Click Send Fan Mail at the top of the show notes to send a quick text message or voicemail. Tell me your first name, country, and question about Legal English, legal communication, or the U.S. legal system. Your question may be featured in a future episode. 

Support the show

Send us Fan Mail

On the docket today, we discuss how lawyers can prepare for and professionally open a virtual negotiation in English. We look at the Legal English vocabulary lawyers should anticipate, how to identify a client’s preferred and fallback positions, why authority and client approval matter, and how agendas, talking points, and well-organized documents can reduce confusion. We also examine useful language for opening an online negotiation, establishing its purpose, structuring the discussion, and using phrases such as “subject to client approval” and “without prejudice.” This episode is designed for international lawyers and law students who want to approach virtual negotiations more clearly and confidently.

Read the full Episode Brief:
Get the transcript, Legal English Lexicon, key vocabulary, and further explanation for this episode here.  

Free Legal English PDF:
Download 10 Common Legal English Mistakes — and How to Avoid Them here.

Learn more about 4 Legal English:
Visit 4LegalEnglish.com to find more podcast episodes, Legal English lessons, free resources, and courses for international lawyers and law students.   

For more about the podcast, go here. 

Have a question or topic suggestion? Send a text or voicemail through the link at the top of the show notes. I may answer it in a future episode.

Join the global 4 Legal English conversation.
The podcast now has listeners in 186 countries — and I would love to hear from you. Click Send Fan Mail at the top of the show notes to send a quick text message or voicemail. Tell me your first name, country, and question about Legal English, legal communication, or the U.S. legal system. Your question may be featured in a future episode. 

Join the global 4 Legal English conversation.
The podcast now has listeners in 186 countries — and I would love to hear from you. Click Send Fan Mail at the top of the show notes to send a quick text message or voicemail. Tell me your first name, country, and question about Legal English, legal communication, or the U.S. legal system. Your question may be featured in a future episode. 

Support the show

Send us Fan Mail

On the docket today, we discuss Legal English listening skills and how international lawyers and law students can better understand fast-speaking American lawyers. This episode explains why spoken legal English can feel much harder than written legal English, especially when lawyers use reduced pronunciation, connected speech, acronyms, professional phrases, and legal concepts all at the same time. We look at how to listen for structure instead of every word, recognize common legal chunks such as “flag the issue” and “get it in writing,” understand abbreviations like NDA, LOI, MOU, and TRO, and ask clarification questions in a professional way. The goal is not to understand every single word perfectly, but to catch the legal issue, the legal risk, the recommendation, the deadline, and the next step.

Read the full Episode Brief:
Get the transcript, Legal English Lexicon, key vocabulary, and further explanation for this episode here.  

Free Legal English PDF:
Download 10 Common Legal English Mistakes — and How to Avoid Them here.

Learn more about 4 Legal English:
Visit 4LegalEnglish.com to find more podcast episodes, Legal English lessons, free resources, and courses for international lawyers and law students.   

For more about the podcast, go here. 

Have a question or topic suggestion? Send a text or voicemail through the link at the top of the show notes. I may answer it in a future episode.

Join the global 4 Legal English conversation.
The podcast now has listeners in 186 countries — and I would love to hear from you. Click Send Fan Mail at the top of the show notes to send a quick text message or voicemail. Tell me your first name, country, and question about Legal English, legal communication, or the U.S. legal system. Your question may be featured in a future episode. 

Join the global 4 Legal English conversation.
The podcast now has listeners in 186 countries — and I would love to hear from you. Click Send Fan Mail at the top of the show notes to send a quick text message or voicemail. Tell me your first name, country, and question about Legal English, legal communication, or the U.S. legal system. Your question may be featured in a future episode. 

Support the show

Send us Fan Mail

 On the docket today, we discuss Legal English for criminal law and explain the difference between important terms such as suspect, defendant, charge, indictment, arraignment, conviction, acquittal, guilty plea, and verdict. These words are often used in news reports, legal dramas, textbooks, and professional discussions, but they do not mean the same thing. This episode explains how criminal law vocabulary changes at different stages of a case, why a person who has been arrested or charged should not automatically be called a criminal, and how the presumption of innocence affects careful legal communication. We also look at the difference between criminal and civil cases, how charges are formally brought, what happens at arraignment, and why being charged is very different from being convicted. 

Read the full Episode Brief:
Get the transcript, Legal English Lexicon, key vocabulary, and further explanation for this episode here.  

Free Legal English PDF:
Download 10 Common Legal English Mistakes — and How to Avoid Them here.

Learn more about 4 Legal English:
Visit 4LegalEnglish.com to find more podcast episodes, Legal English lessons, free resources, and courses for international lawyers and law students.   

For more about the podcast, go here. 

Have a question or topic suggestion? Send a text or voicemail through the link at the top of the show notes. I may answer it in a future episode.

Join the global 4 Legal English conversation.
The podcast now has listeners in 186 countries — and I would love to hear from you. Click Send Fan Mail at the top of the show notes to send a quick text message or voicemail. Tell me your first name, country, and question about Legal English, legal communication, or the U.S. legal system. Your question may be featured in a future episode. 

Join the global 4 Legal English conversation.
The podcast now has listeners in 186 countries — and I would love to hear from you. Click Send Fan Mail at the top of the show notes to send a quick text message or voicemail. Tell me your first name, country, and question about Legal English, legal communication, or the U.S. legal system. Your question may be featured in a future episode. 

Support the show

Send us Fan Mail

On the docket today, we discuss Legal English for multinational clients and how lawyers can manage expectations across legal cultures. This episode explains why legal advice may be misunderstood when clients come from different legal systems, languages, and professional cultures. We look at how to explain legal risk clearly, why answers often depend on facts and jurisdiction, how to avoid giving false guarantees, and how to confirm understanding without embarrassing the client. We also discuss useful Legal English phrases for explaining uncertainty, delivering difficult advice, and helping international clients understand the legal issue, the practical risk, and the next step.

Read the full Episode Brief:
Get the transcript, Legal English Lexicon, key vocabulary, and further explanation for this episode here.  

Free Legal English PDF:
Download 10 Common Legal English Mistakes — and How to Avoid Them here.

Learn more about 4 Legal English:
Visit 4LegalEnglish.com to find more podcast episodes, Legal English lessons, free resources, and courses for international lawyers and law students.   

For more about the podcast, go here. 

Have a question or topic suggestion? Send a text or voicemail through the link at the top of the show notes. I may answer it in a future episode.

Join the global 4 Legal English conversation.
The podcast now has listeners in 186 countries — and I would love to hear from you. Click Send Fan Mail at the top of the show notes to send a quick text message or voicemail. Tell me your first name, country, and question about Legal English, legal communication, or the U.S. legal system. Your question may be featured in a future episode. 

Join the global 4 Legal English conversation.
The podcast now has listeners in 186 countries — and I would love to hear from you. Click Send Fan Mail at the top of the show notes to send a quick text message or voicemail. Tell me your first name, country, and question about Legal English, legal communication, or the U.S. legal system. Your question may be featured in a future episode. 

Support the show

Send us Fan Mail

On the docket today, we discuss how lawyers can explain complex legal concepts clearly to clients in English. Many lawyers understand terms like liability, damages, jurisdiction, breach of contract, negligence, settlement, and burden of proof, but struggle to explain them in simple, professional language. In this episode, we look at how to start with the client’s real question, define legal terms without sounding like a dictionary, use examples and mini-stories, explain legal risk honestly, and check understanding respectfully. This episode is especially useful for international lawyers and law students who want to improve their Legal English and communicate more clearly with clients.

Read the full Episode Brief:
Get the transcript, Legal English Lexicon, key vocabulary, and further explanation for this episode here.  

Free Legal English PDF:
Download 10 Common Legal English Mistakes — and How to Avoid Them here.

Learn more about 4 Legal English:
Visit 4LegalEnglish.com to find more podcast episodes, Legal English lessons, free resources, and courses for international lawyers and law students.   

For more about the podcast, go here. 

Have a question or topic suggestion? Send a text or voicemail through the link at the top of the show notes. I may answer it in a future episode.

Join the global 4 Legal English conversation.
The podcast now has listeners in 186 countries — and I would love to hear from you. Click Send Fan Mail at the top of the show notes to send a quick text message or voicemail. Tell me your first name, country, and question about Legal English, legal communication, or the U.S. legal system. Your question may be featured in a future episode. 

Join the global 4 Legal English conversation.
The podcast now has listeners in 186 countries — and I would love to hear from you. Click Send Fan Mail at the top of the show notes to send a quick text message or voicemail. Tell me your first name, country, and question about Legal English, legal communication, or the U.S. legal system. Your question may be featured in a future episode. 

Support the show

Send us Fan Mail

 On the docket today, we walk through how lawsuits work in the United States, step by step. This episode is designed for international lawyers and law students who want to better understand the U.S. litigation process, including complaints, answers, discovery, motions, settlement, trial, and appeal. You will learn key Legal English vocabulary, understand how American lawsuits usually move through the court system, and see why features like discovery, jury trials, and settlement play such an important role in U.S. civil litigation. 

Read the full Episode Brief:
Get the transcript, Legal English Lexicon, key vocabulary, and further explanation for this episode here.  

Free Legal English PDF:
Download 10 Common Legal English Mistakes — and How to Avoid Them here.

Learn more about 4 Legal English:
Visit 4LegalEnglish.com to find more podcast episodes, Legal English lessons, free resources, and courses for international lawyers and law students.   

For more about the podcast, go here. 

Have a question or topic suggestion? Send a text or voicemail through the link at the top of the show notes. I may answer it in a future episode.

Join the global 4 Legal English conversation.
The podcast now has listeners in 186 countries — and I would love to hear from you. Click Send Fan Mail at the top of the show notes to send a quick text message or voicemail. Tell me your first name, country, and question about Legal English, legal communication, or the U.S. legal system. Your question may be featured in a future episode. 

Support the show