Many legal documents are hard work for clients, colleagues, and sometimes even for lawyers themselves. Yet, we continue to work with long texts full of jargon, as if that is the only way to provide legal clarity. While the real question is: does your message actually land?

In a conversation with Maurits Fornier, founder of Patroon Legal Design, we explored how you, as a lawyer, can make more impact by structuring information differently. Not by dumbing things down or cutting legal nuances, but by communicating them clearly. Think of visual summaries, decision trees, or multi-layered documents that instantly make the situation clear, and only dive deeper afterward.

What is legal design, exactly?

Legal design is a way of thinking about legal communication. How do you present complex information so that the reader—whether a client, colleague, or judge—understands, trusts, and can use it?
The answer lies in combining content-wise sharpness with structure, empathy, and when useful: visuals.

“It's not about cutting the nuance, but about making that nuance land in a different way,” Fornier explains.

What you can do as a lawyer today

You don't need to be a graphic designer to get started with legal design. In fact: the first step is simple.
With every document, contract, or advice, take a moment to ask: who is this for?
That single shift in mindset helps you organize your content smarter, estimate prior knowledge, and avoid clutter. And that doesn't just make your work more understandable, but often far more persuasive.

The full episode can be heard on Spotify.

At Lawyerlinq, we believe in legal clarity that is sound—in content, and in communication. Would you like to discover how legal design can strengthen your work as a legal department or law firm? We are ready to think along with you.