Legal Letter Margins
Many pleadings require a table of sources, which is an index of all the legal sources cited in the procedural document. You can create them manually, but this is a very cumbersome approach. Although Google Docs does not currently have this feature, Word has a built-in feature to create an authority directory. Document formatting involves organizing the most readable documents for those looking for information, and for related legal documents such as legal articles, contracts, wills, trust deeds, etc., you need to know how to format them. Columns may be required for certain types of legal documents, such as a list of services or a separate presentation of undisputed facts in support of an application for summary judgment. To insert columns In Word, click the Page Setup drop-down menu. Under Page Setup, select Columns, and then specify the number of columns that you want. In Google Docs, click Format, select Columns from the drop-down menu, then select the option you want. In Word, margins are set by clicking the Page Setup drop-down menu and selecting margins. Then select Custom Margins and you can set margins for top, bottom, left, and right. In Google Docs, click File, select Page Setup, set the four margins, then click OK. All lawyers know that meeting the deadlines for filing court applications is non-negotiable. Therefore, it is also important that you have the right format for legal documents to ensure that your submission is not rejected.
This means that you need to know the basics of formatting a legal document. Paper size requirements may vary from country to country, but the United States follows American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standards. Unlike the usual paper size that most people use on a daily basis, which is 8.5 x 11 inches, legal paper is larger at 8.5 x 14 inches. The Junior Legal size is smaller at 5 x 8 inches. On the other hand, courts can have influence over which policies they accept on legal documents and which they do not. Take the Virginia Supreme Court, which has updated its list of acceptable fonts. Below, we explain how you can effectively format legal documents and include some views expressed by professionals outside the legal profession that rely on legal documents that are accurate and clear to users or non-legal readers. As Will Watters, co-founder and creative director of Western Rise, explains, “Some of the most common types of legal documents are agreements, wills, contracts, grants, and deeds. They must be right every time and absolutely. So if you`re doing business in North America, it`s generally prudent to stick to U.S.
size standards. Instead of a plain sheet of paper (size 8.5 x 11 inches), the legal size is slightly longer (8.5 x 14 inches), although there are also junior legal sizes (5 x 8 inches). You can change the default letter size from 8 1/2 inches to 11 inches on legal size paper. Click the Page Setup tab to change the paper size. Under Size, select Legal. So it`s safe to say that legal formatting is an incredibly important part of the business. Here, we discuss different areas of legal document formatting that you should be aware of. We also explore how legal document templates can save you a lot of time and effort and avoid future formatting issues. For lawyers, the exact requirements for formatting legal documents change depending on the jurisdiction for which the document is prepared, as discussed in this Clio.com article. The more words in your legal documents, the more likely it is that something is wrong. There could be a typo.
There could be factual errors. There could be something else that makes your document wrong. If you don`t keep it short, you could end up with inaccurate information. It`s important to make sure that the legal documents you create aren`t misunderstood by those who need to understand them. Usually, opt for slightly wider margins on the sides (creating a narrower text box). This facilitates the efficient reading of the document. Choose a standard serif font such as Times New Roman or Courier. Serif fonts have fewer strokes, hyphens, or brackets on the main letters. A font size of 12 points is recommended. Text that needs to be highlighted or highlighted may be bold, italic, or underlined. Keep in mind, however, that when publishing a legal manuscript, you should stick to traditional publishing practices (e.g., 8.5 x 11 inches of paper, printed or typed on a single page). Click the Page Setup tab to adjust the margins.
Under Page Setup, click Margins. Enter the amounts under Page Setup by clicking Custom Margins. Creating a separate letterhead for law firms is possible free of charge – with the right tools. Most word processors have automatic formatting for margins and spacing, but law firms can also set margins manually. Ideally, the top margin should be two inches and the bottom margin should be one inch. Most legal documents use a spacing of 1.5 or double. All this documentation must be perfect to be valid, and because it takes so long, human error is likely. Also, different documents have different legal formatting, which makes things even more difficult.