Law Commons^™

The Public Speaks: An Empirical Study Of Legal Communication, Christopher R. Trudeau

Christopher R Trudeau

Most attorneys agree that writers need to tailor their writing to a particular audience. This just makes sense. So it is not a stretch to argue that to convey a clear message to a client, attorneys should use plain language. But there is little empirical data supporting the public’s preference for plain language. Rather, most sources largely rely on anecdotal evidence to prove this point. Therefore, in 2011, I conducted a study to help measure many of the following unanswered questions: to what degree does the public prefer plain language over traditional legal language? How do people react when they …