Re: Plain Sartarite/English

From: Rob <robert_m_davis_at_...>
Date: Thu, 24 Mar 2005 22:11:02 -0000

• In HeroQuest-RPG_at_yahoogroups.com, "Jane Williams" <janewilliams20_at_y...> wrote:
  > > >Now what we need is something like the "plain English"
  > > campaign we've
  > > >taken for granted for years over here, so that legal documents
  make
  > > >sense in the first place.
  >
  > > Unfortunately, 'plain English' in a legal sense would lead to
  > > even more trouble as 'plain English' is/can be ambiguous as
  > > to meaning and intent.
  >
  > Sounds like you haven't had to deal with any recently written
  > British
  > legal documents. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised - I know
  > I was.
  

Rob with his contract law student hat on.

With respect Jane, buying and selling houses is incredibly standardised and dealt with almost exclusively by trained conveyancers.

The plain English is a problem in contract law. Legal language is just that; a language. During the early 90's there were a couple of groundbreaking reports on the construction industry in the UK.

The New Engineering Contract (NEC) was written in '94 and in plain english. It has been found that this approach has not been a resounding success, and by and large Contract Law professionals operate these forms anyway, so may as well stick with robust legal terms with hundreds of years of litigation behind them.

> You know, we can drag that vaguely back to Glorantha.... (shock,
> horror!)
>
> No, written documents won't be all that common. But deliberately
> complicated speeches and oaths? Designed so as to be impressive by
their
> incomprehensibility? I'm sure LM types would do it. And I can see
some
> Humakti being very, very careful about the *exact* wording of any
> promise they made (and others thinking they're a bunch of wimps!)

Actually, the interperatation (mis-) of words is a very good story vehicle.

I'll go back to sleep now.

Regards
Rob