The Book
Real cases where a single word — sometimes a single comma — decided millions of dollars.
In thirty years training legal professionals in more than fifty countries, Dena Falken has seen brilliant lawyers lose on language, not law. The law was fine. The English failed. This book collects the cases that prove it: the words that won, the words that lost, and what they teach anyone who writes words that matter.
Inside
The $2 Million Comma
A Canadian telecom contract turned on one comma — the one before the word “unless.” The regulator ruled it let either side kill the deal at any time. Rogers Communications lost roughly $2 million.
The Missing Comma Worth $10 Million
A Maine overtime law exempted “packing for shipment or distribution” — with no comma before “or.” Dairy drivers sued, and the First Circuit agreed with them: “For want of a comma, we have this case.” Up to $10 million in overtime.
And more — every chapter is a true case, a costly word, and the lesson it carries.
About the Author
Dena Falken founded Legal-Ease International in 1992 and has spent over three decades training lawyers, translators, and legal professionals in more than 50 countries in the language of the law.