Lucid language
Plain language need not mean dumbing down. Clear, well-drafted advice makes things easier for clients, raising the chance that they will call on you more frequently.The moment you become overly reliant on a thesaurus or get carried away with archaic terms is the moment you risk losing your reader. This is not to say you cannot use technical language or clarify your points, it just means thinking of your reader at all times and making sure you communicate difficult or complex topics clearly. It is all about readability, not just the vocabulary you use. That means organising the structure so that it is logical and straightforward.
October 29, 2008 at 08:22 PM
6 minute read
Many lawyers are excellent oral communicators, but find it difficult to write clearly. Robert Ashton outlines the most commonly made mistakes and suggests ways to remedy them
Plain language need not mean dumbing down. Clear, well-drafted advice makes things easier for clients, raising the chance that they will call on you more frequently.
The moment you become overly reliant on a thesaurus or get carried away with archaic terms is the moment you risk losing your reader. This is
not to say you cannot use technical language or clarify your points, it just means thinking of your reader at all times and making sure you communicate difficult or complex topics clearly. It is all about readability, not just the vocabulary you use. That means organising the structure so that it is logical and straightforward.
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