Drafting

Now you have your drafting outline you have everything you need to commence drafting.

We want your drafting to be picked up and used again and again by other lawyers, their clients and businesses, so we suggest that you make use of the resources available to you, think about commercial practicality and reference sources diligently to avoid any appearance of plagiarism. 

Most of the drafting is done following participants’ attendance at our thematic structured events series. However you can use TCLP resources and processes independently of the events to develop your own drafting.

You will need:

How you do it:

There are four steps to our drafting process.

1. Refine your drafting outline

As an individual or as part of a team, refine your drafting outline from the developing ideas for clauses stage by:

  • incorporating the feedback from column 3 of the feedback document;
  • sticking as closely as possible to word limits (think ‘elevator pitch’, not ‘essay’);
  • checking that you have answered the italicised questions for each section;
  • amending parts that didn’t get covered in drafting (identify these in ‘notes for users’ as areas for potential development); and
  • reflecting developments that emerged during the drafting process.

Your refined Drafting Outline will be published with your clause/law to provide the context for future drafting and help others learn. Therefore, please ensure that you have fully researched the drafting outline, referenced any sources and evidenced any assertions made, using footnotes.

2. Draft the clause

As an individual or as part of a team, draft the clause described in your drafting outline by typing directly into your copy of the final drafting submission document mentioned above. Be sure to:

  • Follow the TCLP house style guide; and 
  • Reference the Glossary for relevant definitions (expanding on Glossary definitions or using alternatives if necessary to fit your drafting).

3. Gather feedback on your drafting

Circulate the clause to colleagues and stakeholders for feedback. Where relevant, further refine your drafting based on these discussions.

4. Submit your drafting

Please submit your completed final drafting submission document and drafting outline by email to contact@chancerylaneproject.org