USLawEssentials Law & Language

In this special episode of the USLawEssentials Law & Language Podcast, we speak with two experts who share insights into whether an LL.M. Program is right for you. Our guests today are Professor Brian Sites and Vasudha Krishnamurthy. Professor Brian, among other things, is a nationally recognized expert on the bar examination and directs the LL.M. Program at Georgia State College of Law. Vasudha is an international attorney, admitted to practice in California, specializing in cybersecurity law, privacy, and AI. Together they share their experiences and insights into who is most likely to benefit from an LL.M. Program.

The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast continues its series of interviews with multilingual lawyers as Stephen Horowitz interviews Seongryeol ‘Ryan’ Park. This interview was recorded much earlier in 2023 and Ryan, who already has a fascinating story, just embarked on a new career as South Korea’s Assistant Secretary to the President for International Public Relations. At the time of this interview, he worked for the South Korean government as a Director in the Ministry of Unification.   Ryan, who earned an LL.M. at Georgetown Law, shares invaluable insights on South Korean politics, the Korean language, and relations with North Korea. And also – suggestions for his favorite programming on Netflix! This is a great interview for anyone interested in language acquisition and learning more about South Korea. Below are links referenced in the podcast: Steel Rain on Netflix https://www.netflix.com/title/80226234  Crash Landing On You on Netflix https://www.netflix.com/title/81159258  Library of Congress  https://www.loc.gov/research-centers/law-library-of-congress/collections/digital-collections/foreign-law/  Language Log blog post about North Korea and hard consonants https://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=57431 “Mind Your Ps and Qs!”      

Episode 59 The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast continues its series of interviews with multilingual lawyers as Stephen Horowitz interviews Tanya Primiani. Tanya is Co-Director for the WJP Rule of Law Index at the World Justice Project and manages planning and implementation of the Index team’s global, thematic, and country-specific research projects. She is fluent in Spanish, French, and Italian and earned her law degree from the University of Montreal holds a Master of Arts in International Affairs from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). Tanya’s multilingual and multicultural perspectives provide her with particularly helpful insights on the World Justice Organization’s Rule of Law index. And if you were wondering about how to translate “rule of law” in different languages you’ll definitely want to pay attention to this episode. This fascinating interview hits a number of topics and demonstrates the value that multilingual lawyers add to the practice of law around the world.

The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast continues its series of interviews with multilingual lawyers as Stephen Horowitz interviews Iaroslav Gregirchak. Mr. Gregirchak serves as the Deputy Business Ombudsman on the Business Ombudsmen Council. The Council is a specialized alternative dispute resolution (ADR) platform enabling businesses to challenge various instances of business malpractice in Ukraine. This is a fascinating interview as Mr. Gregirchak explains not only his work with the Business Ombudsmen Council but also his insights on ADR and learning legal English. Show notes info LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iaroslav-gregirchak-fciarb-7349372/  German Marshall Fund https://www.gmfus.org/marshall-memorial-fellowship  Business Ombudsman Council https://boi.org.ua/en/ Recommendations: Iaroslav Recommendations: Dealing in Virtue https://www.amazon.com/Dealing-Virtue-International-Construction-Transnational/dp/0226144232 Dealing in Virtue: International Commercial Arbitration and the Construction of a Transnational Legal Order  By Yves Dezalay and Bryant G. Garth Stephen recommendations BBC’s Ukrainecast https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0bqztzm BBC’s Putin https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand/m0015nfd  

The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast continues its series of interviews with multilingual lawyers as Stephen Horowitz interviews Professors Jonah Perlin and Eun Hee Han. This is a fascinating discussion among three professors at Georgetown University Law Centre. Jonah and Eun Hee are Legal Practice professors, meaning they teach legal writing, but they also both have significant experience working with international students in Georgetown’s JD program. Whether you are a student or instructor you will find this to be an inspiring interview. Jonah and Eun Hee have fascinating backgrounds and their dedication to their students and love for teaching make this an enlightening chat. Among other things, Eun Hee has previously been co-chair of the Legal Research & Writing Diversity Committee for the Association of American Law Schools. She is currently on the Editorial Board for the Asian Journal of Legal Education and a member of the Asian Pacific American Legal Writing Professors Collective.  Jonah is also a graduate of Georgetown Law and did his undergraduate degree at Princeton University where he majored in religious studies. He has worked as a litigator at the law firm of Williams & Connolly LLP in Washington DC and also clerked for federal appeals court Judge Robert A. Katzman of the 2nd Circuit and for Judge EllenSegal Huvelle of the US District Court for Washington, DC. And Jonah is the founder of the very successful and influential HowILawyer Podcast in which he interviews different lawyers about how they practice law.

Episode 56 The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast continues its Legal English vocabulary series as Stephen Horowitz and Daniel Edelson discuss the legal and non-legal meanings of the word produce. Fun fact: produce is a heteronym! Change its pronunciation and the meaning changes.

 Episode 55 The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast welcomes you to 2023 with a very special interview with multilingual lawyer Vitaliia Yurchak. Vitaliia is earned her first law degree in her home country of Ukraine. In addition, Vitaliia holds a Ph.D. Political Science and published 15 articles addressing political problems of international systems and global development. After coming to the United States, Vitaliia earned her LL.M. from St. John’s University School of law where she also studied Legal English. This interview reunites Vitaliia with her former professor and the former Director of Legal English Programs at St. John’s, Stephen Horowitz. Vitaliia shares her poignant memories of studying Legal English at St. John’s with Professor Horowitz and how she launched her law career in New York City after successfully passing the bar following her graduation from St. John’s.  Vitaliia discusses her practice in New York City, the Law Offices of Vitaliia Yurchak, which focuses on Traffic Law, Immigration Law and Family Law and which serves many clients in the Ukrainian and Russian-speaking communities. But this is a bitter-sweet episode as Vitaliia also discusses her volunteer work with Razom for Ukraine. Razom helps Ukrainian refugees and displaced persons who have come to the United States after fleeing the war in Ukraine. We hope you are as inspired as we are by Vitaliia’s story of earning a second law degree, creating a successful practice in the United States, and volunteering to help Ukrainian refugees. And just as she has formed deep connections with her former classmates and professors from St. John’s, as well as with members of her community, we hope that you also feel a sense of community and belonging as we enter the new year. Best of success to everyone and we are hopeful that we can all look forward to a peaceful and productive 2023.   

Episode 54 The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast presents the latest episode in the What’s New in the Legal News series. In today’s episode, Stephen Horowitz discusses with Daniel Edelson a recent article detailing a proposed class action lawsuit by a woman who claims she was deceived by the packaging for a Macaroni and Cheese microwavable meal. When you’re hungry and have a keen sense of justice, every second counts! And the lawsuit alleges that the company that produced the meal deceived customers by claiming that the meal would be “ready” in 3.5 minutes. You can find the article here: https://www.washingtonpost.com/food/2022/11/27/velveeta-mac-and-cheese-lawsuit/ and a similar article here: https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/28/business/florida-kraft-velveeta-mac-and-cheese-lawsuit/index.html Enjoy an episode about a very American meal and a very American lawsuit.

The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast continues its series of interviews with multilingual legal professionals as Daniel Edelson interviews translator Stephen Rifkind. Stephen is originally from the United States and lives in Israel. In addition to translating a wide range of legal documents, he teaches English at Ort Braude College of Engineering.   Fluent in English, Hebrew, French, and Russian, Stephen describes the excitement and challenge of translating documents not just from one language to another, but also the challenge of translating documents between different legal systems. You can visit Stephen’s webiste and blog here: gaguzia-translations.com (Company) tip-o-tongue.blogspot.com/ (Blog) Stephen’s love of language comes through in this interview as he shares his insights on what it means to effectively translate the language of law for different audiences. Among other things, we learn how his legal studies and sensitivity to different legal systems enable him to capture the meaning and intention of the original documents he translates. This is a fun and fascinating introduction to the world of legal translation with an expert translator.  

The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast continues its series of interviews with multilingual lawyers as Stephen Horowitz interviews Nory Dianne Miano. Dianne is a lawyer originally from the Philippines and graduated from Georgetown Law with a Masters of Laws in Taxation and a Certificate in International Taxation as well as a Certificate in Legal English. She also graduated from Georgetown’s  2-year LLM Program   Prior to studying at Georgetown she graduated from the University of the Philippines-Manila cum laude with a major in Behavioral Studies and then got her JD from the Ateneo de Manila University. Recently Dianne joined The World Bank Group as a Consultant in the International Finance Corporation’s International Tax Unit. This interview is a great resource, not just for improving your legal English, but learning about options for LL.M. students interested in studying in the United States, especially students interested in tax law.

Episode 51  The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast continues its What’s New in the Legal News Series as Stephen Horowitz and Daniel Edelson discuss a recent decision by a federal court to dismiss the lawsuit of a former Yale University professor who sued the University after she lost her faculty position.  Among other things, she alleged that her contract with the University prohibited her employer from firing her for Tweets in which she appeared to diagnose former President Trump and others with a mental illness. This episode discusses pleading standards in the US federal courts and the basis to dismiss a lawsuit with prejudice pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6).  Enjoy the episode and as always, you can share your thoughts with us at daniel at uslawessentials dot com    

Episode 50 The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast continues its Legal English vocabulary series in which our hosts discuss a word that has both a regular meaning and a legal English meaning. Today, Stephen Horowitz and Daniel Edelson discuss the word Action. What kind of action did you undertake today to improve your legal English? Start with this episode!

Episode 49 The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast continues its series of interviews with multilingual lawyers as Stephen Horowitz interviews Professor  Paula Arturo-Klammer.  Paula is a legal English Lecturer & Research Fellow at the Georgetown Center for Legal English. Currently earning her Ph.D. in Law from Universidad de Palermo in Argentina, Paula is an experienced lawyer and translator and is bilingual in Spanish and English. She speaks a few other languages, too,  including French and Brazilian Portuguese (but she’s modest and says she’s not proficient yet). This is a really cool interview with a fascinating guest. Paula’s bilingual background and her work as a translator enable her to provide insights on the special challenges of translating legal English, especially when dealing with false cognates, different writing styles, and very different legal systems. And hey – – do you think Spanish people speak faster or slower than most English speakers? Not sure? Got a hunch? You’ll find out. Paula also discusses her doctoral dissertation so you’re going to learn a lot from this podcast. Enjoy and let us know what you liked most about this episode.  

  Episode 48 The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast continues its new series on analogies. In this series, your hosts, Stephen Horowitz and Daniel Edelson, don’t actually talk about law and legal English vocabulary. Instead, they discuss how international students & attorneys can improve their legal English vocabulary and analytical skills by practicing and explaining analogies.   Today’s episode features an analogy from the SAT exam, a standardized test high school students typically take as part of their college applications.  Baiting hook : Fishing :: ____:hunting (Baiting a hook is to Fishing as something is to Hunting) and the answer choices are: Loading gun Firing gun Stalking gun Aiming gun Let us know whether practicing with analogies helps your study of legal English!

Episode 47 The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast continues its Legal English Vocabulary series as your hosts, Stephen Horowitz and Daniel Edelson, discuss the word “consortium”. As with other words in the Legal English Vocabulary series, consortium has both a legal English meaning and a more general meaning. Please connect with USLawEssentials on LinkedIn and Facebook.  

Episode 46 The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast presents its 46th episode with a brand new series on analogies. This episode is a bit different from other episodes because your hosts, Stephen Horowitz and Daniel Edelson, don’t actually talk about law and legal English vocabulary. Instead, they discuss how international students & attorneys can improve their legal English vocabulary and analytical skills by practicing and explaining analogies.   Today’s episode features two analogies taken from the SAT exam, a standardized test high school students typically take as part of their college applications.  1. Car : Road :: Train:____ (Car is to Road as Train is to…) Track Vehicle Fast Wheel  2.Arrival : Departure ::  ____ : Death (Arrival is to Departure as “Something” is to Death) Life Person Birth Train What do you think? Easy? Tricky? Can you explain your answers in English?

Episode 45 The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast continues its series of interviews with multilingual lawyers as Stephen Horowitz interviews immigration attorney Nick Harling. Nick speaks Japanese and lived for several years in Japan teaching English with the JET Program. In Japan, Nick gained first-hand experience of what it is like to work overseas and to experience the pressures of navigating another country’s immigration law system. Among other things, Nick discusses his experiences working at the Department of Justice and his current work advocating for applicants whose applications were arbitrarily denied or unreasonably delayed. This interview will not only enhance your legal English vocabulary but also provides great insights on the skills and talents attorneys must develop to excel in the challenging field of immigration law. Nick’s LinkedIn profile is here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicholas-harling-2a4130b3 and his law firm bio is here: https://www.garfinkelimmigration.com/teams/nick-harling/      

Episode 44 The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast continues with a brand new series on legal English vocabulary. In this series your hosts Stephen Horowitz and Daniel Edelson discuss vocabulary words that have both a legal English definition and meanings not associated with legal English. Today’s vocabulary word is: ImpeachPlease connect with USLawEssentials on LinkedIn and Facebook.

Episode 43 The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast continues its series of interviews with multilingual lawyers as Stephen Horowitz interviews Ellis Duncan, Director of the Graduate Tax Program at the Georgetown University Law Center. Eliis is modest about his multilingual abilities but he can also speak tax – – which everyone knows is a language all its own.  This is an enormously informative interview as Ellis discusses his own career in tax law, Georgetown’s tax law offerings, what makes tax law so interesting, and opportunities for LL.M. students pursuing a career in tax. In addition, for international students and attorneys eager to improve their legal English, this interview offers rich vocabulary as part of an interesting, easy-to-follow discussion of a specialized area of law. Plus we get a tax lawyer joke!  You can find Ellis on LinkedIn here. Join the USLawEssentials Facebook Group here. And connect with USLawEssentials on LinkedIn here.    

Episode 42 Intrigue! Betrayal! A friendship on the line! The USLawEssentials Law & Language podcast continues its Law Exam Essentials series as Stephen Horowitz & Daniel A. Edelson discuss promissory estoppel. The doctrine of promissory estoppel provides that a promise, unsupported by consideration, may still be enforceable where a party reasonably relies on the promise to its detriment.  So will Stephen have to reimburse Daniel? Will Daniel ever trust Stephen again?  This episode will answer these important questions and will also help you understand an important contract law principle frequently tested on exams. Also,  the episode will introduce you to helpful legal English vocabulary, including “detrimental reliance.” Watch a video on promissory estoppel below: