The Serial, Oxford, Harvard Comma

Argument about the serial comma continues as it has for decades.

My first encounter with this controversy was in grade six. My teacher told us that there is no comma before the conjunction in a list of 3 or more items. For example, we were told, there is no comma between “C” and “and” in “A, B, C and D.”

United States Court of Appeals, First Circuit. KEVIN CONNOR, CHRISTOPHER CONNOR, JAMES ADAM COX, MICHAEL FRASER, ROBERT MCNALLY v. OAKHURST DAIRY DAIRY FARMERS OF AMERICA INC. Decided: March 13, 2017 starts with “For want of a comma, we have this case.”

The District Court concluded that, despite the absent comma, the Maine legislature unambiguously intended for the last term in the exemption’s list of activities to identify an exempt activity in its own right. We therefore reverse the grant of summary judgment.
“Specifically, Exemption F states that the protection of the overtime law does not apply to:

“The canning, processing, preserving, freezing, drying, marketing, storing, packing for shipment or distribution of …”

“Each party recognizes that, by its bare terms, Exemption F raises questions as to its scope, largely due to the fact that no comma precedes the words “or distribution.”
“We conclude, however, that Exemption F is ambiguous”
“Maine statutes invariably omit the serial comma from lists. And this practice reflects a drafting convention that is at least as old as the Maine wage and hour law”

Here are some examples with and without the serial comma. For each, reflect on the differences in meaning.

• The prime minister, a racist and a misogynist, walked into a bar.
• The prime minister, a racist, and a misogynist walked into a bar.

• I invited my friends, Sally and Lucy, to dinner.
• I invited my friends, Sally, and Lucy to dinner.

• I invited the acrobats, the queen and the prime minister to a party.
• I invited the acrobats, the queen, and the prime minister to a party.