chevron-down Created with Sketch Beta.

ARTICLE

Speaking Simply – Making Competition Law More Accessible

Anna Belgiorno-Nettis, Noelia Vasquez, and Jiayin Zhou

Speaking Simply – Making Competition Law More Accessible
kasto80 via Getty Images

1. Introduction

In May, the Section made the “Speaking Simply – Making Competition Law More Accessible” webinar publicly accessible. To celebrate this, Section Law Student Ambassadors Jiayin Zhou and Noelia Vasquez, and moderator Anna Belgiorno-Nettis reflect on its message: clear language strengthens competition law.

The webinar’s speakers included government enforcers, in-house counsel, and private-practice lawyers. They explored how making competition law easier to understand makes it stronger.

When we remove jargon and use plain words, more people understand the law. This helps people follow the rules and trust the system The panel shared examples from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), the Canadian Competition Bureau (CCB), the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), state enforcement, academia, leading businesses and law firms.

2. Plain Language is a Compliance Tool

Ellen Creighton of the CCB said that people follow rules they can understand. When agencies use simple words, businesses know what they must do. Consumers know their rights. Lawmakers can check policies more easily. Clear writing helps people follow the law. It is simple and effective.

3. Increasing Engagement and Retention

Plain language doesn’t only improve compliance. It also helps people stay engaged. Dick Rinkema of Microsoft shared an example from training at work. The first training slides were long and full of text. Employees stopped paying attention quickly.

So he made the slides shorter and focused on one idea per slide. People paid more attention and remembered more. This shows how simple communication works in many settings.

4. Trust and Inclusion

Simple language can help build trust. Florida’s Antitrust Assistant Attorney General Nicole Sarrine said how when lawyers use simple words, they sound more confident. Their message is easier to believe. People also feel more welcome to join the conversation, given they can understand the words.

Sarrine traced her own plain‑language journey to a desire to make antitrust coursework clear to all students who learn it. As an antitrust instructor, she taught an open‑source textbook designed for lay readers. It is accessible and easily understood. Her mantra is: the burden is on the speaker, not the listener.

Andrea Rivers of Baker McKenzie also said plain language increases inclusion. Rivers talked about how legal jargon often turns people away—especially students, junior lawyers, and clients. Simple language helps more people participate. Clear words make the field more open and diverse.

5. Research and Policy Momentum

Research supports these ideas. Studies show that simple communication can boost public understanding, raise civic involvement, and even help with elections. One study found that U.S. presidential candidates who used simpler words were better at connecting with voters.

So it is unsurprising that agencies are working to improve clarity. The DOJ started the “Access to Antitrust Justice” program to make its documents easier to read. In its most recent Plain Writing Act Compliance Report, the DOJ affirmed its ongoing efforts to revise internal and public-facing documents into clearer, more accessible formats.

The CFPB also uses plain language in its outreach. Its “Ask CFPB” tool gives answers in simple terms. The CCB’s Transparency Bulletin also shows how it is making public documents easier to read.

6. From Niche to Mainstream: Competition Law in Transition

Antitrust law is now a mainstream topic. People talk about it because of high grocery prices, digital platform cases, and calls for stronger rules. Polls show that most people support giving small businesses and consumers ways to fight unfair practices.

New polling by Lake Research Partners for American Antitrust Institute shows 78 percent of voters favor letting small businesses and consumers sue when firms behave anti‑competitively. A YouGov survey echoes those results: 67 percent think market dominance is harmful.

Clients now know more before meeting their lawyers. They read about competition law in the news, agency updates, and many public resources. As Rivers said, because materials are much more digestible now, clients no longer “start at zero.” This means clients and lawyers can work together better. They can focus on details, not just basic ideas.

But, as Creighton warned, increasing public interest does not mean understanding. Lawyers must help people turn curiosity into real knowledge. That takes one‑sentence ideas, short words, relatable metaphors, and less law‑review prose.

That is difficult. Many lawyers think that being complex means being intelligent. As Creighton said, “it takes courage to speak simply.”

7. Adapting Messages for Global Audiences

Rinkema, whose practice spans four continents, agreed. For global companies, clear language must work in many places. Ideas like “consumer welfare” or “rule of reason” do not translate cleanly into cultures and languages that value cooperation over confrontation.

Rinkema said to focus on universal ideas like fairness, choice, and new ideas. Use examples that fit local customs. Short sentences and simple comparisons work better than complex economic words.

8. Tips for Writing Simply

The panel shared some tips:

  • Creighton recommended using tools like the Flesch Reading Ease or Kincaid Grade Level to check if your writing is easy to read.
  • These tools give a score based on how long the sentences are and how hard the words are. Writing gets easier to read when you use short sentences and simple words.
  • Write short sentences. Use active verbs and common words.
  • This does not mean compromising on accuracy. Rivers noted that lawyers can still be accurate while using plain language.
  • Rinkema said try explaining your ideas to a child. If someone who is not an expert can understand, most people will too.
  • Creighton reinforced that you do not have to leave out important details. It means sharing complex ideas in a way people can follow.
  • She shared an example from Canada. Her CCB team rewrote a legal bulletin to lower its reading level from grade 17 to grade 9. They removed none of the key points. The meaning stayed the same. But now, more people could understand it.

As Sarrine said, writing simply takes practice and humility. But it is worth the effort. It helps more people understand and trust the law.

9. Conclusion: Clarity as an Enforcement Tool

The panel’s message is clear: plain language is not only about style. It is a tool to better enforce, and comply with, competition law.

We are in an era when competition headlines draw clicks. Clarity may be the field’s most powerful enforcement tool. Simple words help people spot unfair practices. They help businesses understand compliance. They make markets fairer for all.

So, for us antitrust practitioners to do better work and reach more people: plain language is essential.

This recap provided by the Early Career Task Force.

    Authors