REVISITING THE AMBIGUITY OF "AND" AND "OR" IN LEGAL DRAFTING

Most general works on legal drafting contain a discussion of ambiguity, and usually such discussions touch on the ambiguity associated with the words and and or. After defining ambiguity and distinguishing it from vagueness, and after considering the significance of context, this article examines the ambiguity engendered by plural nouns, a topic that is closely related to the ambiguity of and and or. The shortcomings in analyses of and and or in the literature on legal drafting are largely due to commentators having paid insufficient attention to grammatical context. And conveys conjunction, with items linked by and being considered together. Or introduces alternatives. Drafters sometimes use and/or to convey the meaning of the inclusive or. Although and expresses conjunction and or expresses disjunction, they can serve to convey the same meaning. It adds an ironic twist to analysis of ambiguity associated with and and or.