Eleanor Cornelius

An appraisal of plain language in the South African banking sector

The Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 (CPA) came into full force in April 2011. An important corollary of this Act, and the National Credit Act 34 of 2005, is the obligation that consumer documents must be in plain language. It has long been debated whether it is possible to make legal documents available in plain language for lay consumption. The aim of this study is to investigate the successes and failures of the plain language project five years after the CPA became operational. This study relies on data collected through focus group interviews with bank employees in both language units and legal divisions. Findings indicate that, in general, both legal and language practitioners concur that legal documents can be simplified under certain conditions, although consensus has not been reached about the degree of simplification and the types of legal documents that can be simplified. Interviewees experience difficulty with the vagueness of the plain language obligation. Findings also show that legal practitioners are concerned about prejudicing the legal status of documents and are reluctant to deviate from traditional styles of drafting. According to the language practitioners interviewed, legal practitioners use this as an excuse to avoid plain language, and lack of clear enforcement measures for non-compliance results in window-dressing and paying lip service to the intent of the plain language obligation. Findings also reveal that the location of the language services unit in the institution has a marked effect on the successful implementation of plain language in the banking sector. Banks prefer a combination of approaches to plain language, but no testing is done on real consumers. Among others, poor coordination, outsourcing, lack of (ongoing) training, limited use of indigenous languages and the absence of dedicated plain language style guides impact success. Based on the findings of this study, a model for plain language in the financial services and other industries is proposed.

Defining ‘plain language’ in contemporary South Africa

Defining the concept ‘plain language’ has been hugely problematic since the origins of the so-called Plain Language Movement in the 1970s in the United States and elsewhere in the world. Definitions of ‘plain language’ abound, yet James (2008: 6) warns, in relation to plain language practitioners, that “we can’t yet call ourselves a coherent field, let alone a profession, while we offer such varying definitions of what we do”. Contemporary international definitions of ‘plain language’ are of three types: numerical (or formula-based), elements-focused, or outcomes-focused (Cheek 2010). In South Africa, protective legislation gave rise to a local definition of ‘plain language’ which was widely acclaimed for its comprehensiveness and practicality. From a textlinguistic angle, this article ruminates on the nature of the definition of ‘plain language’ in the National Credit Act (2005) and the Consumer Protection Act (2008), and critically appraises the value of the definition as a sharp and reliable conceptual tool for use by plain language practitioners – as applied linguists – in the absence of norms, standards or guidelines for the use of plain language in the consumer industry in contemporary South Africa.

Plain language as alternative textualisation

Abstract Plain language is a form of intra-lingual translation, a process during which particular interventions are brought to bear on a complex text, such as an act, in order to fit the linguistic competence of a particular target audience (Bhatia, 1983; 1993). In this way, complicated content is unlocked and meaning mediated. The aim is to cut down on the cognitive processing difficulties experienced by the reader. Careful consideration must therefore be given to the linguistic features used in this alternative text. In South Africa, plain language received its first exposure during the 1990s, in a particular political context in which a human rights culture took centre stage. It is important, in a democracy, to inform ordinary citizens of their basic rights, and to do so in understandable language. In this study, a lexico-grammatical analysis is undertaken of a booklet, Equality for All, which is based on an act of parliament. Following a text-based approach, the linguistic features are measured against the principles of plain language, specifically focusing on the grammatical constructions and lexical items that have been proven to obscure meaning and impede understanding. The principal aim of this article is to assess whether the language employed in this simplified text is accessible to non-mother tongue speakers with no formal training in, and limited knowledge of, the law.