Also known as: plain language
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
Clear and accessible language that avoids unnecessary legal jargon and complex sentence structures.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Patrick Phan and Priscilla Parks executed a premarital agreement without independent counsel for Priscilla. The document contained only dense legal recitals and no explanation of the rights being waived. A court later refused to enforce the waiver provisions because the required plain English explanation was missing.
Preston Pratt and Portia Price signed a postnuptial agreement after the surviving spouse provisions became relevant. The agreement lacked any plain English description of the rights being modified. The probate court declined to uphold the waiver against the surviving spouse.
Peter Park submitted an affidavit in opposition to a motion for summary judgment. The affidavit stated the factual basis for his claims in accessible language. The court accepted the submission as creating a genuine issue of material fact.
Philip Powell filed a petition seeking visitation with his grandchildren. The supporting memorandum explained the family circumstances in accessible language. The court considered the petition on its merits without dismissing it for lack of clarity.
Precision Tools and Prosperity Investments included a choice of law provision in their contract. The clause used accessible language so that each party understood the governing law. A court later enforced the provision without finding ambiguity in the language.
Prime Logistics revised its employee handbook to describe fetal protection policies in accessible language. Female employees could readily understand the restrictions and their rights. The revised language helped the company defend the policy against disparate impact claims.
Uniform acts require an explanation in plain language of the rights being waived when a party lacks independent legal representation. The absence of such an explanation prevents enforcement of the waiver.
Supporting sources
…that the judge thought it was in the child’s best interest. The Washington Supreme Court’s decision is consistent with the plain language of the statute. The statute contains no requirement that a court must find that a parent is unfit before ordering visitation. Nor does the statute require a showing of harm or potential…