Legal Writing

Winston Churchill once wrote, in a sentence made up entirely of one-syllable, English-origin words, "Short words are best and the old words when short are best of all."

Churchill's great friend and ally, Franklin D. Roosevelt, also was a master of "translating into English." A speech writer once wrote for him, "We are endeavoring to construct a more inclusive society." Roosevelt revised it to "We're going to make a country in which no one is left out."

This week, as you revise your drafts, look for ways to change longer words into shorter ones.