UNIVERSITY OF THE CORDILLERAS

COLLEGE OF LAW

Legal English I
CLARITY
There is nothing as mysterious as something clearly seen. (Robert Frost)
The price of clarity, of course, is that the clearer the document, the more obvious
its substantive deficiencies. For the lazy or dull, this price may be too high. (Reed
Dickerson, Professor of Law, Indiana University)

I. CLARITY
Clarity in writing results when the writer is able to express exactly (and unambiguously)
what he wants to be reflected in his work. The last thing a writer would want is to confuse
his readers. On one level, clear writing involves clarity of expression and sentence
structure. On another deeper level, clarity results to clearness of ones logic and
arguments.
Clear expression happens when what one thinks is reflected on that which one has written.
To check if this has happened, the writer must re-read his work and look at it from the point
of view of the ordinary reader. The writer must check for ambiguities, that is, if some terms
may have more than one meaning. Generally, what is unclear for the writer is likewise
unclear for the reader.

II. USE FAMILIAR AND CONCRETE WORDS

Plain meaning is a by-product of the use of definite and concrete language. This makes
for vivid writing, one which can be easily grasped as it is picturesque. Preference for
abstract words makes one prose indefinite and vague.
Abstract:
Concrete:

She sustained bereavement of her paternal relative.

Her father died.

Abstract:

Her counsel failed to come because of the onset of

inclement weather.
Her counsel could not come due to the storm.

Concrete:
Abstract:
Concrete:
Abstract:
Concrete:

You need agricultural implements to do the job of planting

trees.
You need a spade to plant trees.
He rendered a negative response on the subject of my
solicitations.
He denied my request.

III. AVOID WIDE GAPS BETWEEN SUBJECT, VERB, AND OBJECT

A. GAPS
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A sentence normally consists of a subject and a verb, with the object (if any) following the
verb (e.g. The lawyer shouted at the witness.) If these three are placed in order and near
one another, the sentence becomes easily understandable. Putting modifiers between the
subject and verb, or between the verb and its object makes for tedious writing.
With gap between subject and verb:

The plaintiff, disgusted at how long it took for the

court to decide such simple ejectment case, filed
a motion for early resolution.

Improved:

The plaintiff filed a motion for early resolution.

He was disgusted at the courts delay in resolving
his simple ejectment case.

B. MODIFYING THE MODIFIERS

Avoid nested modifiers which modify the modifiers. When this happens, take away the
nest of modifiers and make a separate sentence.
With Nested Modifier:

Antonio Doro, who was defendants uncle, and among those

defrauded by him, filed before the court closed for Christmas
vacation a Motion to Intervene.

Improved:

Defendants uncle, Antonio Doro, filed a Motion to Intervene

before the court closed for Christmas vacation. He was among
those defrauded by defendant.

With Nested Modifier:

Maria, who at the time was carrying a bundle of newly-rinsed

clothes some of which belong to plaintiffs son, while trying to
escape through the back gate, was caught by the plaintiff there.

Improved:

Maria was caught by the plaintiff at the back gate as she tried to
escape. She carried a bundle of newly-rinsed clothes, some of
which belonged to the plaintiffs son. (passive), or
The plaintiff caught Maria at the back gate as she tried to escape.
She carried a bundle of newly-rinsed clothes, some of which
belonged to plaintiffs son. (active)

IV. AVOID MISPLACED OR DANGLING MODIFIERS

A. RULES IN REVISING DANGLING MODIFIERS
1.

Place single-word modifiers near the word or phrases that they modify, especially if
the modifier tends to describe the wrong word.
Poor:
Better:

He almost ate all the desserts in the party.

He ate almost all the desserts in the party.

Poor:
Better:

The judge could understand the Ilocano spoken by the witnesses easily.
The judge could easily understand the Ilocano spoken by the witnesses.

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2.

Likewise, place the modifying phrase or clause closest to the word it modifies.
Misplacing these modifiers next to the wrong word often accidentally changes the
meaning of the sentence.
Poor:
Better:

3.

Three television sets were reported stolen by the Dalakit City Police
yesterday.
The Dalakit City Police reported that three television sets were stolen
yesterday.

By categorically naming the doer, a dangling modifier can be eliminated.

Poor:
Better:

Having finished washing the dishes, the door was closed.

Having finished washing the dishes, Martha closed the door.

V. AVOID THE AMBIGUOUS PRONOUN REFERENCE

A. CONCEPT
Careless use of pronouns can result in ambiguity problems. This occurs when the writer
allows multiple antecedents as possible references to a single pronoun. Pronouns, when
not placed properly, can point to the wrong noun changing the meaning of the sentence.

B. HOW TO AVOID AMBIGUOUS PRONOUN REFERENCE

1.

To avoid confusion, one must rephrase the sentence to clearly identify the
antecedent.
Poor:
Better:

2.

Roberts father will use his car for the picnic.

(not clearly stated whose car will be used)
Roberts father will use Roberts car for the picnic.
(if referring to Robert, or)
Roberts father will use the latters car for the picnic.
(referring to the father)

Demonstrative pronouns such as this, that, these, those, them should only be used
when the antecedent is definitely established.
Poor:
Better:

Your skills will surely benefit your friends. Be sure to use them.
Your skills will surely benefit your friends. Be sure to use these skills.

VI. PUNCTUATIONS MUST AVOID, NOT CAUSE AMBIGUITY

Punctuations are marks in written communication used to help the reader better
understand the material. One such use is to avoid ambiguity. Reckless use of
punctuations can have absurd results.
The serial comma, which is used before the conjunction and or or in a list of three or
more items, is a case in point, example:
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The writer gratefully acknowledges the invaluable help of his co-teachers in the
State University, the Honorable Governor and the President of the Republic of the
Philippines.
Without the serial comma, the Governor and the President become co-teachers of
the author in the statement above.
On the other hand, reckless use of the serial comma also results in ambiguity, example:
The writer gratefully acknowledges the invaluable help of his mother, the
Honorable Provincial Governor Vilma Santos, and the President of the
Philippines.
Here the author unwittingly made it appear that the lady Governor is his mother
when such is not the case.
The sentence has to be rephrased to avoid listing the items in an ambiguous
manner. For example, after mother, put the conjunction as well as.

VII. RULES IN CLEAR WRITING

1. Be clear on your point.
Good legal writing, as in all good communication for that matter, requires that the author
must have a point and is clear about it. Writers who are not sure what they want to say
cannot be understood. Their work appears to ramble, with the reader not knowing where
the writer is headed.
There are 3 ways to know when one is unsure of his point: a) by over-describing the
background to what one wants to say; b) by being unsure whether one is for or against a
certain topic; and, c) having too many points within one work.

2. Make sure your point is communicated at once.

As important as having a point is to go direct to the point in ones paper. There is no use
having a long introduction and then stating ones point near the end. By this time, the
reader is either tired or puzzled not knowing where the material is headed.

3. Have a structure. This is where you put your data, analysis and argument.
The introduction, for example, must already contain a summary or abstract of your work.
The background must only be short overview of the problem or legal concepts to be
discussed. Extending an explanation of the background will tire the reader, and will give
an impression that the background is already the main concept discussed by the paper.
The facts of a particular case under study must only cite relevant details. Putting in more
will make the reading tedious. The analysis will discuss the writers arguments. Here, the
writer will cite facts and evidence supporting his position. He may also cite
counterevidence against his position, and discuss how these points will fall short of the
writers arguments. If the analysis covers many areas that may be broken into sub-parts,
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and each part is discussed separately, the paper must end with a short conclusion which is
a summary of the main analysis presented.

4. Observe grammatical rules.

This cannot be overemphasized. Non-observance on the rules on grammar subjects the
writer to many accusations: from being sloppy to lazy to being uneducated, and worse,
someone who writes non-sensically.

5. Be precise.
Know the exact meaning of the term. If the term is scientific or legal, and has a technical
meaning, know both its technical and ordinary meaning. Never use a term because it
sounds right, particularly when you are not sure of its definition. To be sure, consult the
dictionary. #

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