Best Practices Self-Assessment

Your information follows this best practice if it:

1. says the name of your organization
2. explains enough about your organization to gain people’s confidence — for example, it explains your organization’s purpose or legal expertise
3. includes contact information

Research shows that source information is crucial to credibility. When people know a piece of information is from a reliable source, they’re more likely to trust it.

“The Tenant Survival Guide is produced by the Tenant Resource & Advisory Centre, a non-profit organization that promotes the legal protection of tenants across British Columbia. Our TRAC Tenant Information Line is 1-800-655-1185.”

“This website is from People’s Law School, a non-profit society in British Columbia. We provide free education and information to help people effectively deal with the legal problems of daily life. Contact us at info@peopleslawschool.ca.”

See the full text of best practice #1.

Your information follows this best practice if it:

1. says the location where information applies (the “jurisdiction”)
2. makes the jurisdiction easy to see

Saying which location (or “jurisdiction”) the information applies to helps people decide if the information is relevant to them.

“This information applies to British Columbia, Canada.”

See the full text of best practice #2.

Your information follows this best practice if it:

1. (for the legal content) has been reviewed for legal accuracy
2. says you’ve done a legal review
3. provides information about the reviewer’s expertise, such as their affiliation or a short bio

Knowing that information has been reviewed by a qualified expert makes people more confident it’s accurate and reliable.

“Reviewed for legal accuracy by [name of reviewer], [affiliation of reviewer].”

“Reviewed for legal accuracy by [name of reviewer].”

“Reviewed for legal accuracy.”

See the full text of best practice #3.

Your information follows this best practice if it:

1. includes the date of the last legal review
2. makes the review date easy to see
3. explains the importance of the review date

Knowing when information was last reviewed by a qualified expert helps people assess if it’s up-to-date and reliable.

“Reviewed for legal accuracy: [month, year].”

See the full text of best practice #4.

Your information follows this best practice if it:

1. identifies the audience
2. identifies the purpose of the information
3. states your audience or purpose front-and-centre

People are more likely to engage with information — and trust it — if they see it is meant for them.

“Welcome to A Teen Guide to Parental Separation and Divorce. If your parents have recently separated or divorced (or you think they may be about to), or you have a friend in that situation, this site is for you.” — “Families Change”, from Justice Education Society

“Information for people in relationships who need protection from violence or the threat of violence.” — For Your Protection, from Legal Aid BC

“Disability Alliance BC has prepared this Help Sheet to help you complete the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction’s designation application form for the Persons with Disabilities (PWD) benefit.” — “The Persons with Disabilities (PWD) Application Help Sheet”, from Disability Alliance BC

See the full text of best practice #5.

Your information follows this best practice if it:

1. takes a user perspective
2. uses plain language techniques, such as an active voice, a conversational tone, and short sentences
3. was developed with your intended audience front of mind
4. was developed with a target reading level in mind
5. was measured for readability, such as measuring the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level
6. was developed with an eye to the many factors that affect comprehension, such as how the information is organized, tone and voice used, and the use of visuals and white space
7. was tested with your audience

Information that’s understandable is more likely to be used by your audience and have the impact you seek.

Using an active voice, a conversational tone, short sentences, and other plain language techniques.

Measuring the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level of your information with ReadablePro or WriteClearly.

See the full text of best practice #6.

Your information follows this best practice if it:

1. uses white space (that is, blank space)
2. puts important information first
3. uses lots of headings
4. uses techniques that make scanning easier, such as bolding key terms and using bulleted lists
5. uses images or other visuals
6. was designed with your intended audience front of mind
7. was tested with your audience

Good design makes information more likely to be used and easier to understand. It also increases people’s confidence the information is reliable.

Here are examples of the design best practices in action in a booklet, Your Welfare Rights: How to Apply for Welfare from Legal Aid BC, and on a website, Dial-A-Law operated by People’s Law School.

See the full text of best practice #7.

Your information follows this best practice if it:

1. includes places where people can access justice
2. includes verified contact information for each service

Many people may want one-on-one help with their problem. But they may not be able to afford private lawyers. Providing options for free assistance helps increase access to legal help.

“If you have limited means, contact Access Pro Bono for free legal advice at …”

“In the Lower Mainland and Victoria, you can get help from law students. Contact their clinics at …”

“For help making a complaint against a government body, contact the Ombudsperson office at …”

See the full text of best practice #8.