English Grammar and Usage
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2nd Circuit, English Grammar and Usage, Reader Polls, Rudeness
A Random Friday Poll: F.3d and the D-Word
Today is Friday, when we present for your consideration quirky queries about style, grammar, and usage. E.g., how to pronounce “substantive”; is a marked-up document a “blackline,” or a “redline”; and do you prefer “pleaded” or “pled” in legal writing. This latest poll may seem a little edgy (especially since today is Good Friday). But […] -
English Grammar and Usage, Law Professors, Weirdness
Frivolous Friday Pronunciation Dispute
Is it SUBstantive or subSTANtive? Our dictionary tells us to emphasize the first syllable. A lovely Canadian professor at our law school emphasizes the second syllable, and although our affection for him is great, every time he says “subSTANtive” we take away ten points on our completely subjective professor-grading scale. How about THAT, professor? Students […] - Sponsored
Profit Powerhouse: Elevating Law Firm Financial Performance
In this CLE-eligible webinar on April 10th, we’ll explore the most common accounting pitfalls and how to avoid them for your firm. -
English Grammar and Usage, Reader Polls
A Random Friday Poll: 'Redline' or 'Blackline'?
On Fridays, we like to poll our readership on random subjects. Often these reader polls relate to matters of style and usage. Past polls have covered such important topics as favorite email sign-offs and whether to use “pleaded” or “pled” in legal writing. Here’s today’s topic. It’s about what to call a version of a […]
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English Grammar and Usage
Here's an article about the semicolon; please discuss.
Many ATL readers have a weakness for obscure debates about punctuation, grammar, usage, and style. See, e.g., here, here, and here. It makes sense; after all, lawyers are paid to worry about such things as proper comma placement. So we weren’t surprised when several of you drew our attention to this interesting New York Times […] -
English Grammar and Usage, Reader Polls
A Random Friday Poll: Your Favorite Email Sign-Off?
Today is Friday, and you know what that means at ATL: randomness and triviality! Not that this site doesn’t already wallow in randomness and triviality, of course. But on Fridays, we go the extra mile. In a prior random Friday poll, we asked for your views on “pleaded” versus “pled” (and “pled” won; results here). […] -
English Grammar and Usage, Reader Polls, Weirdness
A Random Friday Poll: 'Pleaded' or 'Pled'?
Today is Friday, when we entertain offbeat reader requests. Like this one: I’ve billed a couple of hours this week arguing with different partners about whether “pled” or “pleaded” is the preferred past tense form of “plead.” Can I get a poll? I wonder what Biglaw associates and old-school partners have to say about it. […] -
English Grammar and Usage, Guns / Firearms, Reader Polls, Violence
On Pistols and Punctuation (Plus a Poll)
Yesterday’s New York Times contains an interesting op-ed about how to read the Second Amendment. Adam Freedman — author of The Party of the First Part: The Curious World of Legalese, a potential stocking stuffer for the lawyer in your life — parses the use of commas in the amendment. He concludes: [At the time […] -
Antonin Scalia, Biglaw, Celebrities, Dewey Ballantine, English Grammar and Usage, Gay Marriage, Hair, Janice Rogers Brown, Law Firm Mergers, Money, Paralegals, Reader Polls, Ted Olson, Weddings, Week in Review
ATL Week in Review: October 23-27
* Gay marriages legally-cognizable-relationships-that-will-probably-get-called-civil-unions are coming to New Jersey. * Superstar lawyer Ted Olson, who is not gay, got married — to a lovely lady named Lady. And ATL has the exclusive photos to prove it. * Law firms are tying the knot too. The latest to head for the altar: Dewey Ballantine and Orrick. […] - Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use. -
Canada, English Grammar and Usage, Money, Screw-Ups
Comma Comma Comma Comma Comma Chameleon
The lawyers among you should know: Little things matter a lot. Earlier this month, we told you about the missing “L” that cost a county $40,000. But $40K is chump change compared to the million dollars that turns upon an allegedly misplaced comma: [A] dispute between Rogers Communications of Toronto, Canada’s largest cable television provider, […] -
Ann Althouse, Antonin Scalia, Blog Wars, Blogging, English Grammar and Usage, Howard Bashman
"[E]verything That Is Stupid Is Not Unconstitutional.''
Ann Althouse raises a potential quibble with the above quip, made by Justice Antonin Scalia in a public appearance this past weekend. She writes: It would be better to say “not everything that is stupid is unconstitutional.” “Everything that is stupid is not unconstitutional” can be read to mean that every stupid thing is constitutional, […] -
Anna Nicole Smith, Asha Rangappa, Celebrities, Contests, English Grammar and Usage, Hotties, John Gotti, Kids, Nathan Hecht, Reader Polls, SCOTUS, Supreme Court, Week in Review, Wesley Snipes
ATL Week in Review: October 16-20
* This week we crowned America’s hottest law school deans: Evan Caminker, of Michigan, and Asha Rangappa, of Yale. When contacted by ATL, both of them issued gracious statements. * So there’s no contest for you to vote in over the weekend. But please participate in our informal reader poll, seeking to ascertain your Favorite […] -
Antonin Scalia, Boring Stuff, English Grammar and Usage, Supreme Court
The "S" Clash: Scalia's Position Explained
Here’s a brief update to our post from yesterday, concerning the divergence among Supreme Court justices over whether to include a second “s” at the end of the possessive form of a proper noun already ending in “s.” E.g., Kansas’ or Kansas’s. Justice Thomas says no (“Kansas'”), while Justice Souter says yes (“Kansas’s”). We’re with […] -
Boring Stuff, English Grammar and Usage, Supreme Court
Read This Only If You're a Grammar Nerd
Okay, we’re nerds. We love this kind of stuff — even if some of you might find it soporific. From a delightful piece by Jonathan Starble in the Legal Times: As one of its final acts last term, the U.S. Supreme Court issued Kansas v. Marsh, a case involving the constitutionality of a state death-penalty […]
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