Legal grammar

Question

HiI'm trying to figure out the following text"c) Each front dry-weather tyre, when new, must incorporate 4 grooves which are : - arranged symmetrically about the centre of the tyre tread ; - at least 14mm wide at the contact surface and which taper uniformly to a minimum of 10mm at the lower surface ; - at least 2.5mm deep across the whole lower surface ; - 50mm (+/- 1.0mm) between centres. Furthermore, the tread width of the front tyres must not exceed 270mm. d) Each rear dry-weather tyre, ..."Specificly the text at the end of c) i.e. "Furthermore, the tread ..." in relation to the contents of c), but mostly the top sentence in i.e. "Each front dry-weather tyre, when new ..."1. Should the end sentence (Furthermore, the ...) be taken out of context with other text in c) and interpreted on it's own independently. 2. Should the end sentence be interpreted within the context of c) and all the text there. 3. Can it go both ways i.e. A mix of 1. and 2. 4. The end sentence should not be considered a part of c) (probably same as 1.) 5. Other?Thanks Siff

Usenet · Accepted Answer

[nq:1]Hi I'm trying to figure out the following text[/nq]
Try it with this map:
[nq:1]"c)[/nq]
(1.) Each front dry-weather tyre, when new, must incorporate 4 grooves which are :
(1.1.) arranged symmetrically about the centre of the tyre tread;

(AND)
(1.2.) at least 14mm wide at the contact surface and which taper uniformly to a minimum of 10mm at the lower surface;

(AND)
(1.3.) at least 2.5mm deep across the whole lower surface; - 50mm (+/- 1.0mm) between centres.
(Note that full stop after centres. It means we're moving on to a new subsection of (c), which is:)
(2.) The tread width of the front tyres must not exceed 270mm.

Now we have another full stop (after "270mm") this time marking the end of section (c) and the start of section . . .
[nq:1]d) Each rear dry-weather tyre, ..."[/nq]
It's a bit like reading equations; once you know how the symbols are used, there can only be one way to read it.
As Charles Riggs well knows (albeit much to Tony Cooper's chagrin), the semi-colons and full stops hold the key.
(By the way, your question isn't really about "legal grammar", but rather about legal punctuation and paragraph numbering.)

**
Ross Howard

Usenet · Answer

siff (Email Removed) writes:
[nq:1]I'm trying to figure out the following text "c) Each front dry-weather tyre, when new, must incorporate 4 grooves which ... sentence (Furthermore, the ...) be taken out of context with other text in c) and interpreted on it's own independently.[/nq]
Of course not. Why should anything that appears in a context be intended to be taken out of that context and interpreted on its (not it's, by the way) own. That's what context is for.
[nq:1]2. Should the end sentence be interpreted within the context of c) and all the text there.[/nq]
Certainly. That's the obvious intention. There are two sentences in part (c); one begins with "Each" and the other with "Furthermore". The first sentence has four (bulleted) predicates for the relative clause "which are:", and all the grammar is consistent with that. The second sentence has a different grammar, since it's not speaking about the grooves which are the head of the "which are" clause, but about the tread. All this is inside the subsection (c), and clearly is intended to be quantified by the same "each" throughout.
[nq:1]3. Can it go both ways i.e. A mix of 1. and 2.[/nq]
No. (2) only.
[nq:1]4. The end sentence should not be considered a part of c) (probably same as 1.)[/nq]
Equally incorrect, so yes, the same as (1).
[nq:1]5. Other?[/nq]
No. Unnecessary.

-John Lawler http://www.umich.edu/~jlawler Michigan Linguistics Dept -- "A dog is not considered good because of his barking, and a man is not considered good because of his ability to talk." -- Chuang Tzu

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]Hi I'm trying to figure out the following text "c) Each front dry-weather tyre, when new, must incorporate 4 grooves ... between centres. Furthermore, the tread width of the front tyres must not exceed 270mm. d) Each rear dry-weather tyre, ..."[/nq]
Why would it matter? The requirement beginning witn "Furthermore" isn't contrary to any of the others. It's easy to see that all the requirements under "c" up to "d" can be met. Because there's no requirement contrary to any other, just read it in such a way that all of them apply.

I suppose it's not a good example of clear writing. But the "Furthermore..." appears after "c" and before "d", so if it mattered, I'd consider it part of "c".

-- Not a lawyer,

Chris Green

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]Hi I'm trying to figure out the following text "c) Each front dry-weather tyre, when new, must incorporate 4 grooves ... relation to the contents of c), but mostly the top sentence in i.e. "Each front dry-weather tyre, when new ..."[/nq]
What is this? The British equivalent of NHTSA or DOT regulations for new tires (tyres)? Or are these the rules of some auto racing classification, such as Formula 1? In any event,
[nq:1]1. Should the end sentence (Furthermore, the ...) be taken out of context with other text in c) and interpreted on it's own independently.[/nq]
No. A statute or regulation or contract should be interpreted as a whole. Furthermore, it is assumed that every clause has meaning and there are no superfluous, useless, extra, nonsensical, don't-need-'em words in it. 8*)

But that said, I don't see any problem in interpreting part (c) as a whole, including that last sentence. What doesn't make sense about it to you?

Maximum width of entire tread is 270 mm. It has to have at least 4 (possibly more) grooves, spaced exactly 50 mm (+/-1) from each other, arranged symmetrically about the center of the tread, each groove being of the dimension stated (at least 14 mm wide at the surface, at least 10 mm wide at the base of the groove, and at least 2.5 mm deep). On a 270 mm wide tread with grooves 50 mm on center, you could theoretically fit as many as 6 such grooves (assuming having more grooves is better) or stick with just 4 grooves and have wider contact patches at the edges of the tread. Or you could go with a narrower tread, if that is better, and still have plenty of room for 4 grooves (the distance between center of the leftmost groove and center of the rightmost groove would be just 150 mm):

\_/ \_/ \_/ \_/
[nq:1] 2. Should the end sentence be interpreted within the context of c) and all the text there.[/nq]
Yes.
[nq:1]3. Can it go both ways i.e. A mix of 1. and 2.[/nq]
Huh?
[nq:1]4. The end sentence should not be considered a part of c) (probably same as 1.)[/nq]
It IS a part of (c). And it means something. And it is not superfluous since nothing else in (c) states the maximum width of the entire tread. So what exactly is your problem with it?
[nq:1]5. Other?[/nq]
Dunno; you tell me what else you might be thinking.
[nq:1]Thanks

Siff[/nq]
Anytime,

-- This posting is for discussion purposes, not professional advice. Anything you post on this Newsgroup is public information. I am not your lawyer, and you are not my client in any specific legal matter. For confidential professional advice, consult a lawyer in a private communication.

Mike Jacobs LAW OFFICE OF W. MICHAEL JACOBS 10440 Little Patuxent Pkwy #300 Columbia, MD 21044 (tel) 410-740-5685 (fax) 410-740-4300

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