The legal industry is moving toward plain language. The US PLAIN Writing Act (2010) and the EU Consumer Rights Directive both push for Grade 8-12 readability in consumer-facing legal text. Anything above Grade 14 fails plain-language audits.
Aim for Grade 8-12 on Flesch-Kincaid. Plain-language standards (US PLAIN Writing Act, UK Plain Language Commission) target Grade 8-10. Consumer-facing legal text above Grade 14 fails plain-language audits and risks regulatory pushback in jurisdictions with consumer-protection rules.
Three reasons: (1) regulatory — consumer-protection rules in many jurisdictions require plain language; (2) enforceability — courts have rejected ambiguous unconscionable clauses; (3) trust — users who understand a contract are less likely to dispute it later.
Yes — and you should. AI legal drafts tend to score Grade 16+ because they mimic the worst habits of legalese (long compound sentences, archaic vocabulary). Run a readability check before sending to clients or counsel.
The Coleman-Liau Index is often cited in legal-readability literature because it relies on character counts rather than syllable counts (more reliable for legal jargon). The SMOG Index is the second-most-cited. Both are computed by this tool.
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