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We can clean up our legal
vocabulary by banning legalisms. Not just some,
but all. You should never use the following
words or phrases:
Pursuant to. It's an
affectation. Under R.C. 4511.19 makes
more sense than pursuant to R.C. 4511.19.
And it's shorter.
Such. As in such
motion. That is a demonstrative adjective -
whatever that is. What's wrong with the
motion?
Provided that. We
banned it a few columns ago, but it never hurts
to remind people.
However. Never start a
sentence with however. Use but and
your writing will be crisper and clearer.
Hereinafter, aforesaid,
and all their relatives. Never. Not ever.
This is legalese at its worst.
Clear. As in it is
clear that. Or even worse, crystal clear.
Lawyers' use of clear almost always
signals what is least clear - what is most in
contention. If something is clear, then there is
no need to say it's clear. The same is
true for clearly.
In order to. The in
order gives us nothing that to alone
doesn't. The same is true with:
By means of. The means
of gives us nothing. Just a two-letter by
is fine.
Infra. That means you
are going to tell us something later. If it's
relevant now, write it now. The same is true for
supra - it is banned in all but citational
footnotes.
Evidence That Short Is
Better
We all know that people don't
read long quotations. We now have evidence that
this truism applies to judges
also. In an excellent article in the excitingly
named Journal of Appellate Practice and
Process, Massachusetts lawyer David Lewis
confirms our long-held suspicion - judges
tend to skip block quotes. He surveyed state and
federal judges
in New York and New England. A large number
replied to his rather long survey - 56 percent
of judges in New
England and 39 percent of those in New York.
Though only about 36 percent
of judges agreed
or strongly agreed that they often skipped block
quotes, that's a large number, especially
considering that judges
might not want to admit to skipping any part of
a brief. In an answer to a more revealing
question, 60 percent said they preferred short
quotations or paraphrased text to long blocked
quotes. That is all the evidence we need.
Readability
In each column, I list the
two major readability statistics - remember that
you can program Word to tell you these and more.
Statistics for this column: 9.2 words per
sentence, 4 percent passive voice. (Remember the
1818 Rule - no more than an average of 18 words
per sentence and 18 percent passive-voice
sentences.)
Shameless Plug Time
The third edition of The
Legal Writer: 40 Rules for the Art of Legal
Writing has just come off the press. The
first two editions sold out quickly. The new one
is expanded - it even has more cartoons.
Ordering information is on page 6.
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