Nominalisation — Legal Register

Article excerpt · target grammar marked

Legal drafters convert human actions into abstract objects: "the tribunal determined" becomes "the tribunal's determination"; "the state failed to protect" becomes "the state's failure to provide adequate protection.

Grammar Reference · Nominalisation — Legal Register

Verb → Noun

The court determined liability. → The court's determination of liability. — agent recedes into possessive

Adjective → Noun

Accountable conduct → a culture of accountability. — abstract concept replaces descriptive quality

Nominalisation +

The implementation of protective measures by the tribunal. — long noun phrase; no human subject visible

Common error

The deciding of the court... ✗ → The court's decision... ✓ — gerund ≠ formal nominal here

01Exercise 1 — Form · Write the Correct Form

Nominalisation — Legal Register

1.The of the suspect took place without the presence of legal counsel.

2.The court's of the case rested on a narrow reading of the founding treaty.

3.Evidence of in the scheme was presented on the second day of the hearing.

4.The of the regulation across forty member states proved far more complex than anticipated.

5.The defence submitted that the claim of protected the minister from civil proceedings.

6.Critics argued that the of the report obscured who had authorised the original decision.

02Exercise 2 — Transform

rewrite with the new structure

1.The board decided to withhold the information from shareholders.

2.The commission failed to regulate the sector effectively.

3.The court determined that the contract was void.

4.Officials were accountable for the misuse of public funds.

03Exercise 3 — About You

in your notebook

Personalise: complete five sentences about yourself using the target grammar.

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