Questions about the strange language of legalese.
46
votes
6answers
2k views
Why does legal English continue to remain archaic?
Perhaps this is a question for Law.SE if one exists, but I am asking here as there are other nice questions on English history.
There is some historical development account presented in Wikipedia, ...
50
votes
8answers
6k views
What's the difference between “null” and “void” in legal language?
In the legal term "null and void," what is the difference between null and void? Why not just use one of the two terms? And can either term be used without the other?
4
votes
4answers
7k views
Does 'should' imply an unquestionable command?
My question is prompted by a question on the programmers.stackexchange:
This may be a duplicate of another question here on english.stackechange, but the answers given to that question did not ...
5
votes
5answers
8k views
What is the proper usage of the phrase “due diligence”?
I have encountered the phrase "due diligence" in the business world. The usage examples I have seen (mostly emails) cannot exactly be considered grammatical canon. An internet search produces ...
21
votes
9answers
3k views
Do the words “jail” and “prison” refer to different things?
In everyday speech, the terms jail and prison are used interchangeably in many situations. However, my understanding is that, at least in the US, they actually refer to slightly different things. For ...
4
votes
1answer
485 views
What are the differences among ‘Rules’, ‘Standing Rules’, and ‘Bylaw’?
Recently I was given a document titled Standing Rules of an English speaking club of a local community, which was written in English, and asked to study the contents.
I wondered what difference ...
2
votes
2answers
279 views
Reason for Subject-Verb Inversion: Only in cases where A is B, shall the Company do X [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Sentences using: [something] + have + they
subject-auxiliary inversions not associated with questions
In the following, why does subject-verb inversion occur? Is it ...
5
votes
3answers
2k views
What's the word Copyright and `(C)' mean?
In the lines:
Copyright (C) 1994 Tom
Copyright (C) 1995, 1996 Cruise
Copyright (C) 1997, 1998 Louis
Here, what's the original meaning of "Copyright"? And why the mark "(C)"?
And, what is ...
7
votes
1answer
96 views
Non-union-affiliated shop steward
I'm looking for an English word or short phrase to convey a meaning which is similar to “union representative” or “shop steward”, except that the person in question is not (necessarily) associated ...
4
votes
4answers
187 views
Is the usage of the idiom “Move Over” in this passage clear on what side to move over to?
Consider this passage in the Georgia DDS 2010 Driver’s Manual: on page 40:
The Georgia Move-Over Law requires
drivers to move over one lane when
possible if an emergency vehicle with
...
3
votes
4answers
1k views
Your signature vs your mark
Is there a difference between your 'signature' and your 'mark'? One of the comments on this post on Bruce Schneier's blog claims there is:
This might be out of date in these days of 100% literacy ...
2
votes
3answers
475 views
How is an “assault” different from “battery” in everyday English?
In legal parlance, the word "assault" historically means an attempted battery (battery being defined as below) or an intentional frightening of another person. No contact is necessary. On the other ...
