by Jeff J. Keiser, JD, January 2021
We’ve all heard and seen legal language in movies and on TV. We’ve all heard that prosecutor trying to save the young and beautiful heroine through loud “Objections!” being made in a number of flamboyant ways. One of the things I learned in law school is just how inaccurate these films and shows are, especially when it comes to the language lawyer’s use. Some may have you thinking that lawyers speak Latin more than anything else, and everything must be contentious. Hollywood’s ignorance to legal procedural rules is almost forgivable, but their use of antiquated and clunky language rarely wins the case.
In reality, there are a number of legal jargon words that are hard to avoid. In my research, I’ve seen words like case, matter, or fact described as legal jargon, and it’s hard to imagine any way to work in a law firm if you omitted these words from your vocabulary. But there are other elements of legal jargon that should be avoided, or at least limited. On the other hand, ancient language like “heretofore” and “wherein” (and all those similar sounding words) should be avoided at all costs. Just because they were used historically does not mean we should be using them now…at all.
Sure, we love our Latin phrases, and we should use them sometimes ut opus. But we can’t expect our audience to know the deeper subtleties of a dead language. The best rule to follow here is to only use the Latin if the phrase has acquired a special legal meaning that is difficult to express in English. For example, the concept of caveat emptor can be explained in English, but it would take far more than two words.
One way to cut some of your legal jargon out of your document is to replace phrases with a single word. I’ve taught English to lawyers for years now, and the one thing I see more than any other is the complex use of the conditional. We use ‘if…then’ constructions in just about every document we write. ‘If you will do this, I will do that.’ In essence, this is the very basis of a contract, right? If this is what you mean, then just use the word ‘if.’ Skip constructions using antiquated and unhelpful phrases like “in cases in which,” “upon the condition that,” or “in the event that.” The word ‘if’ will make your writing clearer, and that’s really the goal.
As lawyers we are often required to take complex things and explain them so that the contracts we make are what we want…and enforceable. Keeping the legal jargon out of your writing may make you sound less like a TV or movie lawyer, but it will make your writing make more sense and be more enforceable. And truly, isn’t that the goal here?