A recent article in the New York Times profiled Josh Reich, a software engineer and founder of Simple, a new online banking start-up. The company has joined the growing ranks of start-ups disrupting business as usual in the banking and health care industries. “Banks make money by keeping customers confused,” Mr. Reich said. In response, […]
Plain Language Blog Articles
Contracts for the modern age
Most legal contracts seem to be rooted in an ancient language, filled with words like herein, thereto and hereby. But according to a recent article for A List Apart, there’s no reason to write contracts as if we are citizens of ancient Rome. It’s time to update our legal contracts for the 21st century. This […]
Promoting Plain Language at CDC – Checklist and messaging
Our colleague, Cynthia Baur, plain language lead at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention just posted some new tools you might find useful. They can help large, complex organizations like government agencies make plain language everyday practice. We all know how easy it is for broadcast emails, memos and other notices to get lost […]
It’s the most wonderful time of the year…
But forget “the parties for hosting, marshmallows for toasting, and caroling out in the snow” because it’s time for ClearMark nominations! Once again, the Center for Plain Language will honor the best of plain language in original documents, revised documents, websites, legal language, and multimedia. We’ve streamlined the process this year to make it even easier […]
FDA celebrates Plain Writing Act
Is your peanut butter safe? Is it safe to order drugs online? The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates products that we use everyday – food, human and animal drugs, dietary supplements, medical devices, vaccines, tobacco – the list sometimes seems endless. The FDA shares information about these products every day, so it’s essential […]
Report finds mixed progress on plain language
Report finds mixed progress on plain language The first review since agencies were required to create plans for cutting the “bureaucrat-ese” from their dealings with the public found mixed results at many agencies. The Center for Plain Language, a group that advocates for clear writing in government documents, released a scorecard this week marking agency progress meeting […]