Most of the law schools and bar associations have for some time now strongly urged us lawyers to quit using "legalese" and use plain, understandable language instead. One of the barriers to doing so is that law is often based on precedent, and if some court approved some language about a particular subject, a lawyer could be taking a risk in using "new and improved" language that hasn't been approved. As the old chestnut goes, better be safe than sorry (e.g., risking malpractice). Additionally, once we've researched and drafted a document for one client, it saves time (and therefore a second client's money) to use as much of the previous language as feasible. There isn't much of an incentive to switch from tried and true legalese because some client has to pay for that time and effort. When one drafts something entirely new though, that's the time to do it right.