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Posted by Writing Specialist Blog
01/24/2011 at 03:14 PM
"Do you perpetrate run-on sentences?"  This question begins a great entry in the legal writing blog of Professor Wayne Schiess.  The answer to the question?  "Probably not. And it’s not a crime. But perpetrating a run-on sentence sends a message about you: You’re less than fully literate or you don’t proofread well. In this post I’ll define terms, highlight types of run-ons, and offer suggestions for fixing them." Run-on sentences are often construed to mean a wordy or overly lengthy sentence.  But a run-on is a very specific grammar error referring to a sentence...
Posted by Writing Specialist Blog
12/03/2010 at 12:53 PM
Dropped 'at' in Virginia Law Yields Acquittal in School Bus Case (click link here for full story) By Tom Jackman Washington Post Staff Writer Tuesday, November 30, 2010; 10:17 PM Virginia law on passing a stopped school bus has been clear for 40 years. Here - read it yourself: "A person is guilty of reckless driving who fails to stop, when approaching from any direction, any school bus which is stopped on any highway, private road or school driveway for the purpose of taking on or discharging children." Yes, drivers must stop a school bus which is, er, stopped. Wait. Is something missing...
Posted by Writing Specialist Blog
10/12/2010 at 12:53 PM
The former RWUSOL Dean of Students, now retired, Dennis Tonsing, has a recent post on his blog Write Right! you may want to take a look at if you think judges won't care about your writing skills as long as you have "good ideas."  Tonsing writes: "In Florida, U.S. District Judge Gregory Presnell denied a motion to dismiss without prejudice, saying that it was 'riddled with unprofessional grammatical and typographical errors that nearly render the entire motion incomprehensible.'” Yikes! Here is a link to Tonsing's blog entry:  http://www.dennistonsing.com/blogs/dennis/...