English Grammar, Punctuation, Spelling, and Vocabulary
English Grammar, Punctuation, Spelling, and Vocabulary
This domain tests control of standard written English in verbatim transcripts: punctuation that clarifies rather than rewrites, capitalization, number style, apostrophes, quotation marks, and commonly confused legal words. The goal is to preserve the speaker's words while making the record readable and defensible.
Core rules
- Punctuate by grammatical structure and intended meaning, not by every pause. A pause can signal a comma, dash, or nothing; read the full sentence before deciding.
- Use quotation marks for exact quoted matter and for testimony reproduced in a question. Do not use them to distance yourself from a witness's word choice.
- Form possessives correctly: singular plaintiff's, plural plaintiffs', plural plaintiffs. Watch its/it's, whose/who's, and counsel/council.
- Spell legal terms consistently: judgment, affidavit, voir dire, sequestration, arraignment, deposition, subpoena, and Iowa District Court.
- Use numerals for dates, times, money, and measurements when the transcript style requires; spell out numbers at the start of a sentence unless the number is a year.
- Avoid altering grammar in verbatim testimony; use [sic] only when an error is in the original and clarity requires it.
Worked example
Spoken: The witness said I seen the defendant leave. The transcript reads: The witness said, 'I seen the defendant leave.' Reasoning: the comma introduces the quotation; the quotation marks preserve the witness's exact nonstandard verb; no [sic] is needed because the error is obvious and adding it may appear editorial. If the speaker says the plaintiff's exhibits were admitted, the apostrophe marks singular possession; plaintiffs' would mean multiple plaintiffs.
Traps
- Adding commas at every breath and changing meaning.
- Writing judgement for judgment or council for counsel.
- Using quote marks around a paraphrase.
- Overusing [sic] as commentary.