LEGAL JARGON
Take your audience into consideration when corresponding with your clients
Abbie Nordhagen Cziok
When writing any kind of communication to clients, be thoughtful, kind, and consider the client’s needs.
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MONTANALAWYER
ate one night, writing a holiday card, I absent-mindedly closed with “Respectfully.” The card was going to my grandpa. I felt like an internet meme, a caricature of a lawyer. In spending so many hours writing memos for my bosses and drafting motions for court, I had not kept in mind who my audience was for these cards: college friends, my neighbor with the cute dog, and my 93-year-old grandpa. And because it was late, my mind started to wander, wondering if I only used one style of legal writing for everything I write, regardless of whether a document was addressed to a learned judge or a less legally sophisticated client. I confirmed that that was indeed what I had been doing, which was particularly problematic because I had recently drafted several client letters. So I turned back to my favorite legal writing book “Thinking Like a Writer,” by Stephen V. Armstrong and Timothy P. Terrell. Their general principle for writing any kind of communication to clients is simple, and one we could all stand to remember this time of year. Their advice is essentially to be thoughtful, kind, and consider the client’s needs. This principle can be applied in three ways. First, avoid excess jargon, particularly with less legally sophisticated clients, and write in a way the client will actually understand. We can only talk so much about the “reasonable man” before a client will want to put some coal in our stockings. I am also convinced that cutting contractions from all client letters like many of us do in legal documents is why people think we sound like robots—I mean, “I’m also convinced” is just fine. Second, it’s important to think from the client’s perspective of what they know about the case and to be honest about the
time a client is willing to spend to absorb that information. Yes, we are submerged in cases all the time, but the client may need to be reminded of when the last time you talked to them was, why you had drafted this letter (that they will have to pay for), and remind them up front how actually reading the letter is to their benefit. Also, I don’t want to read a 20page memo, so why would a client? Third, we must be in tune with clients enough to recognize their implicit concerns as well as their explicit ones. A family law client may ask about the terms of the parenting agreement, but maybe what they really need is reassurance. A letter that spells out the details, and also promises a follow-up phone call, might be what is needed. I know I could benefit from treating my clients with a little more attention, thinking of what kind of support they need, rather than just thinking of myself as an information dispenser. I also will plan to treat my grandpa with a bit more warmth, even if I do also respect him (he knows, I can skip that salutation). Warmly, Abbie Abbie Nordhagen Cziok is an associate with Browning, Kaleczyc, Berry & Hoven in the Helena office. She likes rock climbing, skiing, and one space after a period.
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