I'm convinced one reason so much law is so unreadable is that lawyers used to dictate instead of typing for themselves. When I worked at a law firm, I'd see the older guys pacing their offices holding micro-cassette recorders talking for hours at a time.

Throughout the day they'd occasionally drop a tape off in the secretary's inbox to transcribe. When the pages came back that afternoon - or the next day - they'd go through with a red pen and mark them up.

I'm sure there are people who can keep tens of pages of legalese in their heads. (Remember that court cases sometimes turn on definitions of single words, and discrepancies in wording between statutes constitute ambiguity.) But for the most part there's no way they can talk that long without going in circles and contradicting themselves.

When I type for myself I edit and reorder as I go. Not only am I more productive, the quality of my output is far higher. This is likely true for many people.

But yes, there are people who just churn out shit faster than they used to. Net win/loss? Impossible to say.