A J Park — Finalist, Best Plain English Document — Private Sector

Media Release

12 September 2008

For immediate release

A J PARK’S CLIENT CHARTER UP FOR BEST PLAIN ENGLISH DOCUMENT AWARD

A J Park’s new Client Charter was one of three finalists in the "Best Plain English Document — Private Sector" award in the 2008 WriteMark New Zealand Plain English Awards held in Wellington on 11 September 2008.

The firm’s Client Charter contains information for clients required under the Lawyers and Conveyancers Act, which came into force on 1 August 2008, as well as standard business terms of engagement.

A J Park was the only law firm in the list of finalists for a plain English award. When introducing A J Park's Client Charter, the judges said, "This document is a very positive step. It shows leadership for the profession in providing equal exchange of information. It reflects the spirit of the legislation by communicating with openness and honesty and answering anticipated questions." The judges described the Charter as "a significant long-life document".

"Since August this year, all lawyers are legally required to communicate certain information to our clients" says A J Park partner, Corinne Blumsky. We are especially proud to make the finals for the best plain English document award in the private sector and have our Client Charter recognised as a leading example for the profession" says Blumsky.

"Our Client Charter is likely to be the first written document a new client receives from A J Park and sets the tone for our future relationship," says Blumsky. "We didn’t want to alienate our clients by starting with a technical legal document so we wrote our Client Charter in plain English," she says.

"The Charter sets out who we are, what our clients can expect from us and what clients can do to get the best from our relationship" says Blumsky. "The Charter has to contain mundane business details but by focusing on the needs of our clients, we have made it an easy-to-read, relationship building document" she says.

The WriteMark awards were judged by an independent panel of experts including Former CEO of the Consumers' Institute, David Russell. This was the third annual presentation of awards recognising New Zealand business writers and organisations that are putting the plain English philosophy into practice. This year’s awards attracted a record number of entries from all over New Zealand.

A J Park won the "Plain English Champion — Best Organisation" award at the WriteMark Plain English Awards in 2006.

"A J Park set out to improve our service quality to clients through clear, concise communication nearly four years ago" says Blumsky. "Having our Client Charter recognised for another plain English award confirms A J Park’s continued commitment to improving business writing in New Zealand and using plain English for the benefit of our clients."

-Ends-

DATE: 16 September 2008

For further information, please contact:

Ana Matsis
Communications Executive
A J Park
Phone 04 474 0923 or 021 251 1351
[email protected]

Further information about A J Park is available on our website: www.ajpark.com.

A copy of A J Park’s award winning Client Charter document is also available on our website.

Read NZ Lawyer article about A J Park's finalist entry

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