CBA Record July-August 2022

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Simple Solution for Gender in Drafting Statutes and Contracts W hat is the drafter to do as the definitions of male and female seem to be less clear and additional genders and gender preferences have emerged, with some controversy, in the public discourse? Not to mention the ambiguity as to whether “they” is meant to be singular or plural? The answer is simple, as the drafters of the original Illinois Mortgage Foreclosure Law (IMFL) (735 ILCS 5/15-1101 et seq.) from the ISBA Real Estate Law Section Council demonstrated back in 1987: Just eliminate all gender references. One of the most overlooked and underappreciated features of that statute was that it did not contain a single gender reference – not one “he,” “she,” “him,” or “her.” None. Zero. Nil. The IMFL simply referenced back to the actor, e.g., “If the mortgagor did X, then ‘the mortgagor’ …” or “shall, upon the mortgagor’s request, be delivered to ‘the mortgagor.’” (Alas, those amending the IMFL over the years, and those drafting other statutes, have not been so consistent; thus, a multitude of gender references can be found in those enactments.) That solution is clean and simple — an easy path for statutory drafters and contract drafters. No handwringing or controversy about what pronoun to use. -Jeffrey G. Liss ■ I just finished reading your article on the evolution of legal writing in the May/June 2022 issue of the CBA Record. I was struck by the quote from Matthew Butterick stating, in the article you quoted from, “Never choose Times New Roman or Arial, as those fonts are favored only by the apathetic and sloppy.” You then stated, in parentheses, quote (“Youch. Duly noted.”) I would have loved to have read some skepticism expressed in response to that hyper bolic and ridiculous statement. (Maybe “Duly noted” was tongue-in-cheek?) I have read that one of the reasons Times New Roman is so popular is because many people recall it from the textbooks and newspapers they grew up reading, so it has retained an aura of credibility. Arial is great on computer screens because it is larger and clearer than other fonts in the same type size. I have used both in perhaps 99% of the written output of my legal work for over 30 years without a single complaint. Imagine that! Many other careful and non-apathetic lawyers I know do also. -Eric Freibrun ■ C ongratulations on an exemplary issue to celebrate the anniversary of the CBARecord . Of course, I loved the cover of the initial issue. I have the poster of it in my den. We worked hard to give the Record a good start, and the early covers helped a lot. Keep up the good work. -Michael Pope ■ [editor’s note: Michael Pope was the first editor-in-chief of the CBA Record] Font Concerns Cheers to 35 Years!

Calling all CBA member artists and photographers. If you have an original work that would make a great cover for a future issue of the CBA Record, let us know! Artwork or photograph must be an original work and you must be able to provide a high-resolution image suit able for printing purposes. Submit your work for consideration to CBARecord@ chicagobar.org.

6 July/August 2022