How formatting documents impacts branding, readability

Danielle DavisRoe, Esq., senior consultant at Affinity Consulting Group LLC

When was the last time you considered what font to use in a document? While document formatting is just one piece of the branding puzzle, anyone comfortable using a word processor can easily tackle it.

Font

Start the document branding journey by carefully considering the font. Generally speaking, legal documents should contain only one font, and all documents produced by a legal organization should use the same font (except as required by specific jurisdictions). Therefore, you should not take font choice lightly.

System fonts versus proprietary fonts

System fonts -- specifically those included with Windows -- are available on nearly every computer. If working from a Mac, be careful not to select fonts included only with macOS.

Proprietary fonts (those purchased from third parties) are expensive and won't display correctly on computers that don't have that font installed. For anyone frequently exchanging word processor documents with those outside the organization, proprietary fonts are not an option.

To give a system font a proprietary look, consider adjusting the spacing between letters and turning on kerning. In Microsoft Word, these settings are located on the "Advanced" tab of the font settings (right-click in the document and select "font" to open the font settings).

Serif versus sans serif

Once you have narrowed down the universe of potential fonts to the list of system fonts, select either a serif or sans serif font. Serif fonts have “feet” on the letters, such as Times New Roman and Courier New. Sans serif fonts do not have feet, like Arial and Calibri.

Traditionally, serif fonts are considered more readable because typographers design the “feet” to draw the reader’s eye rightward across a word, sentence, etc. In the same vein, sans serif fonts were used for titles, headings, and other short phrases because of their more “abrupt” design style. However, more recent studies have shown no differences in readability between serif and sans serif fonts.

Even though most lawyers use serif fonts, few courts require their use.

Whether a serif or sans serif font is the right choice depends on whether your organization's brand is more traditional or modern. Serif fonts give documents a traditional look. Sans serif fonts give a document a modern, clean look.

Monospaced versus proportionally spaced

Additionally, fonts are either monospaced or proportionally spaced. Monospaced fonts’ characters are given equal width. Proportional fonts’ characters are given the appropriate space based on the width of the character.

In Courier New (a monospaced font), for example, thin characters (such as an “i”) are given the same space as wider characters (such as an “m”). In Times New Roman (a proportionally spaced font), an “i” is given only as much space as it needs – considerably less space than an “m.”

As a result, proportional fonts are significantly easier to read. Unless required by your jurisdiction, avoid monospaced fonts.

Read the font across different mediums

Some fonts are designed with a target “platform” (i.e., paper, TV, LCD, etc.) in mind. For example, with the release of Office 2007 for Windows (and 2008 for Mac), Microsoft changed the default Word font from Times New Roman (a serif font commissioned by The Times in 1931 for use on newsprint) with Calibri (a sans serif font designed with digital reading in mind) because users are viewing documents online more than printing the document.¹

View the font on the screen and in print before deciding. When adjusting the spacing between letters, experiment with different spacing up close, far away, on the screen, and in print. When in doubt, consider whether the typical reader will print the document or read it on the screen.

Paragraphs

Once you select a font, the next step in branding is to determine how the paragraphs will look. Paragraph settings, such as line spacing, spacing between paragraphs, alignment, and indents, are all intertwined. One cannot select a single paragraph attribute in a vacuum.

Whether paragraphs are double-spaced, single-spaced, or somewhere in-between affects how the document looks and its readability. Double-spaced paragraphs are ideal for editing on paper, and single-spaced paragraphs are better for reading.

Frequently, courts require paragraphs to be double-spaced, so check with your jurisdiction on spacing requirements. On the other hand, for contracts, estate plans, and other documents not filed with the court, consider single-spacing to improve readability.

When working with double-spaced paragraphs, include a first-line indent to set each paragraph apart. Spacing between double-spaced paragraphs is unnecessary and will needlessly increase the page count.

Even when paragraphs are double-spaced, headings should be single-spaced. Very few courts, if any, require headings to be double-spaced.

Consider using 12 points of space between single-spaced paragraphs. Twelve points are the equivalent of a single blank line. This white space helps readers easily see where each paragraph begins and ends and provides a visual resting place. Especially in complex legal documents, a visual resting place is critical for improving readability. When using a blank line between each single-spaced paragraph, it is unnecessary to use a first-line indent.

Finally, consider alignment. Most legal documents are fully justified (the text spans from the left margin to the right margin). To line up the text along both margins, the word processor varies the width of the space between words from line to line. While full justification looks nice from a distance, it is more challenging to read than text that is left-aligned with even spacing between words. Carefully consider whether the appearance of the document or its readability is more important.

Cohesive formatting

No matter what formatting you choose, the most important part of branding through document formatting is creating a cohesive look for your organization. All lawyers must be on board with the decisions made for the documents to positively reflect the organization’s branding. Selecting one consistent set of formatting guidelines for the business is more important than getting the formatting just right.

Endnotes

1 In late 2023, Microsoft updated the default Word font to Apotos, also a sans serif font. www.nytimes.com/2024/02/28/technology/microsoft-word-font-aptos.