What plain-English principles apply to memos and briefs?
Some plain-English principles apply to memos and briefs. For example:

• Memos and briefs should avoid unnecessary Latin and archaic words.
• Memos and briefs should be succinct (but cannot sacrifice content).
• Memos and briefs should use headings and summaries.

But memos and briefs need not follow these plain-English guidelines:

• Plain English avoids insider jargon.
• Plain English doesn’t use traditional legal citation.
• Plain English strictly limits terms of art and always defines them in plain English.
• Plain English sometimes requires more words and sentences than traditional legal writing—to define terms of art and to explain complex subject matter.
• Plain English values brevity—sometimes even at the expense of content.
• Plain English often uses the first- and second-person pronouns you and we.
• Plain English uses contractions.
• Plain English often uses bullet lists and question-and-answer formatting.
• Plain English uses shorter-than-average sentences and paragraphs.