The $2.13 million comma!

[itsjustaname]

This is my kind of news: Stray comma may cost Canadian firm $2.13 million.

See? Told you punctuation was important! *grin*

Comments

[poggs]

Excellent!

Could you now find a story about somebody being hideously maimed after using apostrophe's in the wrong place?

[wechsler]

I'm sure that one can be arranged.

[cookwitch]

Send itsjustaname out into any London market, armed with An Implement, and also send a reporter along. You'll get your story.

[kelemvor]

Something similar happened to an old employer. He bought another business, with an escape clause allowing the sale price to be varied by him if a certain contract was lost, but his accountant worded it so loosely that the original owners were able to ignore it.

[silenttex]

Surely that's more a case of someone not reading the contract before signing? The meaning is both obvious and unequivocal with that comma in place.

[ciphergoth]

It's not that clear to me.

This sort of thing just shouldn't be written in English - a formal language for contracts would sort this sort of thing out. Failing that, they should have used two sentences:

The agreement shall continue in force for a period of five years from the date it is made. Thereafter it shall continue for successive five year terms, unless and until terminated by one year prior notice in writing by either party.

[trampledamage]

Exactly - the moral of this story is: Never combine sentences if the meaning could be confusing - especially in a contract worth that much money!

[itsjustaname]

True. If the people reading the contract had respected the awesome power of the comma, they probably would have noticed this. Fools! *grin*

[trampledamage]

All of Rogers's lawyers need to be fired.