There are many issues that can arise when it comes to being the person who has to deliver bad messages or news to a colleague within a business environment. It can get even more awkward when we don't use the proper language or explain the message in the right context. Careless language is one of the many reasons and causes that can arise and can create a legal problem within a business environment. What do I mean by careless messages you may ask? Well careless messages basically means not caring about the way in which you as an individual drafts up messages for others, that can be easily misinterpreted.  If you ever catch your self being “The barrier of bad news” here are some tips that I found that could be helpful and insightful when delivering bad messages:

Tips

1. Being clear and concise in order to not require additional clarification
2. Helping the receiver of the bad news understand and accept the news. (so give further explanation)
3. Keep in mind trust and respect for your colleagues, the receiver and the organization)
4. Try to avoid liability or erroneous admission of guilt
5. Maintain the relationship with the colleague
6. Reduce anxiety
7. At the end of the day you want to be able to achieve the designated business outcomes.

Example

This is an example of what a careless language would look like.

"A factory worker was injured while working and his lawyer got company documents and discovered a letter that was sent to a group about a factory tour. It said "although we are honoured at your interest on our company, we cannot give your group a tour of the plant operations as it would be too noisy and dangerous". This harmless letter was used in court to prove that there were dangerous working conditions in the factory and that resulted in the employee getting hurt."

Although this letter purposely state that the factory is a unsafe place to work. however the manner in which it was written, it was interpreted in an entirely different way and used in court as evidence.

Video

For more information here is a video that talks about how to  deliver bad news:

What do I think?
In my opinion I believe that when it comes to communicating bad messages to your colleagues you should always be direct and specific, with the way in which you present the information.
You should use simple concise words that won’t easily be misunderstood by the receiver. It is also important that if you are sending the bad news in the form of a legal document that you make sure that all the documents are checked twice with caution before submission. But more importantly I believe that it is always better to deliver bad news in person that way you have an idea and can see how the individual is going to react, and further more you are there to explain and clarify if the individual has any questions.

References

Scudder, V. (n.d.). Careless Word Choice: When the CEO Has Foot-in-Mouth Disease.

http://www.prsa.org/Intelligence/TheStrategist/Articles/view/10610/1092/Careless_Word_Choice_When_the_CEO_Has_Foot_in_Mout#.VsuLiI-cH4g

Gill, K. (n.d.). Three cause of legal problems in bad news messages.
http://legalproblemsnewsmsgs.blogspot.ca/2012/03/careless-language.html