lawyerese
Attorney's dense prose
Lawyerese is the dense, jargon-laden language characteristic of legal documents and lawyers—full of whereases, heretofores, and party of the first parts.
The term is mildly derogatory, implying that legal writing is unnecessarily complicated or designed to obscure rather than clarify: The contract was twenty pages of impenetrable lawyerese.
Also called legalese.
Later in this document
- whereforeFor what purpose
- thereunderBelow something stated
- heretoforeUntil this point
- notwithstandingIn spite of
hereby · therein · aforementioned · party of the first part · ipso facto · prima facie · sui generis · habeas corpus
Enforceable written agreements
- briefsSnug lower undergarments
- pleadingsFormal litigation documents
- statutesFormally enacted laws
- affidavitsSworn written legal statements
depositions · subpoenas · motions · filings · clauses · provisions · disclaimers · terms and conditions
Excessively complex or twisted
- incomprehensibleImpossible to understand
- unintelligibleImpossible to understand
- opaqueImpassable to light
- byzantineDauntingly intricate and devious
labyrinthine · dense · impenetrable · tortuous · verbose · wordy · circuitous · meandering
Following strict protocol
- stiltedUnnaturally formal in expression
- pompousAffectedly grand in manner
- stiffNot easily bent
- ceremonialRelating to formal rites
archaic · antiquated · rigid · stuffy · pretentious · ornate · elaborate · flowery
hereinafter
Later in this document
- whereforeFor what purpose
- thereunderBelow something stated
- heretoforeUntil this point
notwithstanding · hereby · therein · aforementioned · party of the first part · ipso facto · prima facie · sui generis · habeas corpus · voir dire
contracts
Enforceable written agreements
affidavits · depositions · subpoenas · motions · filings · clauses · provisions · disclaimers · terms and conditions · fine print
convoluted
Excessively complex or twisted
- incomprehensibleImpossible to understand
- unintelligibleImpossible to understand
- opaqueImpassable to light
byzantine · labyrinthine · dense · impenetrable · tortuous · verbose · wordy · circuitous · meandering · long-winded
formal
Following strict protocol
ceremonial · archaic · antiquated · rigid · stuffy · pretentious · ornate · elaborate · flowery · overwrought
lawyereseplain English
Unadorned, accessible wording
plain speech · plain language · simple language · clear prose · everyday language
lawyeresecolloquial speech
Informal everyday language
informal language · casual speech · conversational English · street language · slang
lawyereselayman's terms
Non-specialist phrasing
common speech · street language · informal language · everyday speech
lawyer, laws, lawsuit, lawyers, legislator, legislate, legislative, legitimize, lawyering