Friday, May 30, 2025

Keyes on the Evolution of Legislative Drafting

John Mark Keyes, University of Ottawa, has posted Evolution of Legislative Drafting Style in English:

This paper reviews the evolution of legislative drafting style in English beginning in the Middle Ages in England through to modern reforms adopted by the national drafting offices of Canada, the UK, Australia and New Zealand. It concludes there is remarkable similarity in the styles adopted by these offices with the exception of some of the more debatable techniques proposed to enhance the readability of legislation.
--Dan Ernst