plain english writing handbook
TRANSCRIPT
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LAIN ENGLIH IING HANDBK 38
Plain English at a Glance
Plain English means creating a document that is
visually inviting,
logically organized, and
understandable on the first reading.
You create a plain English document by
knowing your readers, and
presenting information your readers need in an order theyll understand.
Summary of the plain English rules
Clear, concise, and understandable
short sentences whenever possible
bullet lists whenever possible
descriptive headers and sub-headers
avoid relying on glossaries and defined terms
avoid legal and highly technical business terms
Avoid:
legalistic, overly complex presentations
vague boilerplate
excerpts from legal documents
repetition
Cover and Back Pages, Summary, and Risk Factors
Use plain English principles in the organization, language, and design of documents
Substantially use:
short sentences
definite, concrete, everyday words active voice
tables and bullet lists
no legal jargon, highly technical business terms
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no multiple negatives
Design
In designing: may use pictures, logos, charts, graphs, or other design elements
encouraged to use tables, schedules, charts, and graphics for financial data
must draw graphs and charts to scale
cannot use misleading design and information
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