All types of writing should undergo proofreading, especially if it’s a legal document. A legal writer produces contracts, memoranda, agreements, and other written files with legal terms.
Given the massive demands for legal writing, a legal proofreader also has several duties for assessing these papers.
I created a list of your best options for legal proofreading services. These companies guarantee high-quality services, thanks to their expertise in the field of law.
Specific Types of Legal Proofreading
- e-book proofreading
- letter proofreading
- Content proofreading
- Social media post proofreading
What Not to Expect from Legal Proofreading
- Developmental editing
- Several rounds of editing
- Structural editing
- Proofreading personal documents (unless its part of your legal project)
- Blog proofreading (unless it’s part of your legal project)
What Do Legal Proofreaders Do?
A legal proofreader checks documents created by lawyers, paralegals, law students, and other professionals in the field. They correct spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors in their writing while ensuring proper formatting.
Some legal proofreaders may also provide editing services. They fix the word choice of the writer to avoid legalese. Some also improve the sentence structure so that it isn’t lengthy or too complex.
Organization and precision are essential features of legal writing. A legal proofreader should ensure these aspects are present before the lawyer presents or submits them. Other writing features that legal proofreaders look for include:
- Logical flow.
- Accuracy.
- Abbreviations.
- Faulty parallelisms.
- Sidenotes.
- Repetition.
- Powerful parties.
Legal proofreaders can work as remote freelancers or have office jobs in law firms. Some work exclusively for a law firm or a company’s legal department. Others market themselves online to attract different types of clients, whether law students, professors, or lawyers.
Compared to general proofreading services, legal proofreading involves many qualifications. Not only do you need professional knowledge and skills in English. You must also have a legal background.
Many legal proofreaders have a degree in law, political science, dispute resolution, or juridical science. Others have a degree in finance, which allows them to proofread financial statements, wills, and deeds.
A degree in English and Communication may also be relevant. It will help you edit and proofread memos, scholarly articles about law, and certificates.
Some soft skills required among legal proofreaders include communication, multitasking, and time management. Being accustomed to legal timekeeping software is also beneficial.
Where Can I Find Legal Proofreading Services?
If you’re looking for help proofreading your legal document, here are some online companies that might cater to your needs.
Reedsy
Reedsy is an online author service marketplace that provides proofreading and editing services to self-published authors. Many freelancers on the platform are notable book editors who can help with your marketing plan and publicity.
But the company also offers editorial assistance for other types of written documents. You can hire a proofreader to copy edit or line edit your work for typos, grammar errors, and punctuation mistakes.
Reedsy offers top freelance proofreading services for legal documents too. The company currently has eight professionals who specialize in legal proofreading. These editors also help with nursing, non-fiction, humanities, and business documents.
The professionals are also experts in abbreviations, acronyms, and formatting in legal documents. Their attention to detail is incomparable compared to book editors, business proofreaders, and other types of proofreaders.
Proofed.Com
Proofed.com agrees that legal writing should be more precise than other document types. Its proofreaders understand that a misplaced comma alone could ruin the entire text or cost millions.
While other platforms allow you to search for a specific legal proofreader, Proofed.com directly offers specialist legal proofreading services. The professionals have undergone extensive training and interviews to understand legal terms and styles.
This company is trusted by many paralegals, lawyers, and other legal professionals and students. Aside from correcting your basic errors and fixing the terminology, legal proofreaders will also improve your structure and readability.
Proofed.com’s legal proofreaders also ensure the tone and style of the documents are appropriate. If the paper has references, the proofreader will check the citations and bibliography.
The pricing on this website is transparent and affordable, depending on the length of your documents. They also work with 15 document formats for proofreading and editing.
Express Proofreading
Express Proofreading is an underrated professional proofreading company that offers legal proofreading. You can count on this website for your legal writing since lawyers founded it. These people know best about how to articulate and interpret legal documents.
The business believes only individuals with a legal background can perform the best legal editing and services. They understand the subject matter best and also went through comprehensive language training.
Express Proofreading’s proofreaders ensure that your text has correct contextual spelling, grammar, and punctuations. They also check the text’s sentence structure, syntax, and writing style.
The website has an Instant Quote page that lets you upload your content and generate a price for your paper. If satisfied with the quote, you can start placing an order and checking out.
Proof-Reading-Services.Com
Are you a law student, professor, or professional? If you are, you need proof-reading-service.com for editing and proofreading services. You can seek their assistance before submitting, presenting, or publishing different kinds of legal documents.
Some files that the company can assess include briefs, contracts, pleadings, and legal letters. They also edit or proofread memos, books, practice guidance notes, and scholarly articles. Even edits for instructional materials, webinars, and Powerpoint presentations are available.
According to Proof-reading-service.com, the most common issue in legal documents is too much use of legalese. Legalese refers to formal and technical language that is hard to understand in legal papers.
The company will help you simplify contracts so as not to irritate clients. They can also tone down memos without losing their formality or in-depth message. The legal editors and proofreaders also ensure that your advocacy document is persuasive enough.
Wordy
Wordy is an online company that offers proofreading and copy editing services for authors, writers, and the academe. It claims to cut 30% off your writing time to make your presentation, homework, or publication more manageable.
One of the services they offer is legal proofreading. For Wordy, this activity is the most crucial role in the legal profession. One wrong punctuation or word can lead to a different interpretation.
Wordy’s editors and proofreaders are familiar with the legal terms and their implications. They also know how to strike the perfect balance between jargon and casual language while still sounding formal.
Let Wordy know about your preferred house style and extra requests. They will also correct your faulty grammar and poor spelling. You can also choose the turnaround time for your legal document so you can submit it on time.
Ultimate Proofreader
The Ultimate Proofreader is a UK-based website that offers proofreading services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Under their services for businesses and corporations is their legal proofreading system.
Ultimate Proofreader helps lawyers, solicitors, and law firms polish and perfect their papers. While they follow a specific checklist for all their clients, the company still makes room for custom-tailored services.
From deeds to certificates, agreements, and contracts, Ultimate Proofreader can help you. Their job is to ensure that your paper has no spelling and grammar errors. They can also correct any punctuation, style, and clarity issues on the document.
Ultimate Proofreader also has 24-hour customer support for its clients. If you’re purchasing their services for the first time, you could get a 10% discount and a free sample.
Capstone Editing Service
Capstone Editing Service will come to the rescue if you’re looking for a legal proofreader based in Australia. These specialist editors are familiar with the common issues in legal writing. They understand the particular details about structure, referencing, presentation, and terms.
The awesome thing about Capstone Editing Service is that all its employees have completed law degrees. Some have worked in the legal sector, but all have adequate written language and editing skills.
Its editors comply with different legal conventions and reference styles. Whether you’re required to use the Bluebook, Australian Guide to Legal Citation, or Chicago, Capstone can help you.
Ambiguity, imprecision, and inconsistency have no room in legal writing. Capstone Editing will save you a lot of money from potential damages due to a single mistake in the paper.
Proof Right
Proof Right is another UK-based company that offers professional proofreading services for legal documents. To assure you of their high-quality service, Proof Right’s employees have Master’s or Ph.D. qualifications and legal industry backgrounds.
The legal proofreaders do more than just correct your spelling and grammar mistakes. They also ensure proper sentence structure, syntax, and punctuation in your work. In fact, they have helped various schools, governmental departments, and businesses with their papers.
Even non-native English speakers can ask Proof Right for help with legal writing. The editors promise to make your message clear and concise according to your intent.
Proof Right also offers instant and transparent quotes. Visit the “Order” page, choose the deadline, then upload your document.
Hire a Specialized Proofreader for Legal Documents
Excellent legal writing complies with tone, form, and writing style standards when offering flawless services. Each word should fit the intended message like a glove to avoid misinterpretations.
Therefore, hiring a proofreader specializing in legal documents is vital. They will correct your terminology, sentence structure, syntax, and spelling.
I hope this list of options helped you choose the right company.