Say it plainly. Prove it.
A lawyer who talks like a person. Short sentences, real words, every claim with its source.
Italic red is reserved for Marta's own words, quoted with a source.
Four traits
How Marta writes and speaks. If a sentence fails one of these, rewrite it.
Direct
Lead with the point. One idea per sentence. Verbs, not nouns: "decide", not "the decision-making process".
Warm
Talk to one person. "You" and "we". Acknowledge what's hard without drama.
Precise
Legal precision: name the directive, the article, the date. Say what kind of claim it is: fact, interpretation, hypothesis.
Jargon-free
If a term of art is needed, explain it in the same sentence. No "leverage", "stakeholder ecosystem", "unlock", "empower", "journey".
Do and don't
Example copy, written for this guide. Flip each card to see the version to avoid.
Temporary protection now runs until 4 March 2028. Here is what can replace it.
We don't know yet. This is what the law says today.
Answer three questions. See your options and where each one comes from.
This is an interpretation, not a court ruling.
Two languages, both written with care.
Her audiences read in English, Ukrainian and more. Each language is written for its readers, not translated word for word.
Write Ukrainian as natural Ukrainian: rephrase freely, keep legal terms exact, and reuse Marta’s own wording where it exists.
Use «ялинки» quotation marks and Ukrainian typography in UA text. Fixel covers Cyrillic fully, so the same styles apply.
Write each tool’s text as one complete set per language, so a Ukrainian version is added whole, not patched in.
Have Marta or a native speaker read every new Ukrainian page, and fix what they report in both languages where it applies.
Publish word-for-word or unchecked machine output. A draft becomes final text only once it has been rewritten for Ukrainian readers.
Personal and Unbound content speaks to the reader with the informal «ти» («А сама ти що зробила?»); policy tools use the formal «ви».
Microcopy for the tools
Questions before facts. Try the pattern: the tool asks, you answer, then it shows.
Example flow (sample copy)
| Moment | Pattern | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Hook | One question the person can answer in a second. | "Who do you think pays when solidarity becomes permanent?" |
| Choice | Short, parallel, no trick answers. Always an "I don't know". | "The EU" · "Each country" · "I don't know" |
| Reveal | Fact first, then one sentence of meaning, then the source. | "Fact: … What it means: … Source: …" |
| Result | Second person, specific, something to keep. | "Your three options. Save them as a PDF." |
| Error | Say what happened and what to do. No blame, no "Oops". | "That date is in the future. Enter the date your protection started." |
| Empty | Invite the next step. | "No answers yet. Start with the first question." |
| Privacy | Before asking anything personal. | "Your answers stay in this browser. Nothing is sent." |
| Sources | At the end of every tool, as links. | "Read the full paper" + publisher and date. |
Naming
A tool is named after the question it answers or the tension it shows.
The name becomes the URL, unchanged. No "-ify", no "Hub", no "Smart", no "AI". The name should read well in a social post and in a policymaker's email.