you want to know what the worst rule is in law?
When you write in legalese, and you want to list some things in a sentence, the last two things in that list are separated with “and” in lieu of a comma. So it’s incorrect to write, “wine, eggs, and cheese” — you have to write it, “wine, eggs and cheese.”
I say “have to” because if you don’t do it that way in law school, in sample briefs and motions, you get points knocked off.
I say this is the wost rule because when you ever try to write something normal, like a letter or a tumbl, you second-guess your natural inclination to throw a comma in front of that “and.” And that can really throw off your train of thought.
It’s grammatteral damage.
What’s also pretty bad is that nobody explains the function of that non-existent comma. I wonder if anybody even knows why that’s the rule. It’s the kind of thing that has the air of being passed down because somebody passed it down to the passer-downer.
That’s the other worst rule in law: tradition comes in with the advantage against reason. That one’s a bitch.
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UPDATE: Apparently it’s called the “serial comma” (a.k.a. the “Oxford Comma” or the “Harvard Comma”) when you put it before a conjunction. And, I was right: “There is no consensus among writers or editors on the use of the serial comma. It is closer to being standard use in American English than it is in British English.” Nobody knows for sure where it comes from, or why it’s here.
Also, there’s disagreement as to its function: “Arguments typically advanced for use of the serial comma include … that it sometimes reduces ambiguity (cited). … Arguments typically advanced for avoidance of the serial comma include … that it may introduce ambiguity (see examples below).”
The ambiguity problem is really the most important aspect of this issue, from a legal perspective. There was a case that made public attention not so long ago where a major point of judgement hinged on the existence or non-existence of a comma. In all fairness to my alma mater, preference was always placed on consistency, which was really the ultimate arbiter of whether points got knocked off. If you used the serial comma all the time, your grader might have mercy on you. But my experience was they certainly didn’t stress this — all the pressure was directed squarely on not using the serial comma; that that was “right.”
I suddenly just realized the incredible impact a comma has had on my life.
( via wikipedia )