diff --git a/modules/messages/types.go b/modules/messages/types.go
index 6b743c64..8d7800bd 100644
--- a/modules/messages/types.go
+++ b/modules/messages/types.go
@@ -23,7 +23,7 @@ func DefaultMessagesParser(tx *types.Tx) ([]string, error) {
 // function to remove duplicate values
 func removeDuplicates(s []string) []string {
 	bucket := make(map[string]bool)
-	var result []string
+	result := []string{}
 	for _, str := range s {
 		if _, ok := bucket[str]; !ok {
 			bucket[str] = true
@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ func removeDuplicates(s []string) []string {
 }
 
 func parseAddressesFromEvents(tx *types.Tx) []string {
-	var addresses []string
+	addresses := []string{}
 	for _, event := range tx.Events {
 		for _, attribute := range event.Attributes {
 			// Try parsing the address as a validator address