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Background State highway departments and transportation agen- cies have a continuing need to keep abreast of operat- ing practices and legal elements of specific problems in highway law. The NCHRP Legal Research Digest and the Selected Studies in Transportation Law (SSTL) series are intended to keep departments up-to-date on laws that will affect their operations. Foreword In the legal system, transportation engineering docu- ments drafted by the transportation industry include manuals, studies, research documents, memoranda, and email. These documents are frequently used by litigants and courts as evidence bearing on the standard of care or duties for transportation agencies sued for alleged negligence in operation of transportation facilities. The documents often use language and phrases such as â hazardousâ and âhigh riskâ that have pejorative mean- ings in the legal system as opposed to more neutral and objective language. Non-neutral language can increase the potential for transportation agencies to be deter- mined to be liable for damages. This digest presents legal language style and a drafting guide. The digest also addresses how to avoid concepts and language that can have legal implications by promot- ing clear, direct, objective, and fact-based expression. This digest may be used as a practical resource for developers and reviewers of engineering documents, researchers, practitioners, and those who implement safety projects. Guidelines for Drafting Liability Neutral Transportation Engineering Documents and Communications Strategies This digest was prepared under NCHRP Project 20-06, âLegal Problems Arising Out of Highway Programs,â for which the Transportation Research Board (TRB) is the agency coordinating the research. Under Topic 24-03, Terri Parker, Parker Corporate Enterprises, Nixa, MO, prepared this digest. The opinions and conclusions expressed or implied in this digest are those of the researchers who performed the research and are not necessarily those of the Transportation Research Board; the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; or the program sponsors. The responsible program officer is Gwen Chisholm Smith. JULY 2020 NATIONAL COOPERATIVE HIGHWAY RESEARCH PROGRAM NCHRPLRD 83 LEGAL RESEARCH DIGEST