English Grammar, Punctuation, and Spelling
What this domain tests
This domain tests control of standard written English as applied to transcript-style prose: agreement, pronoun case, restrictive and nonrestrictive elements, and the punctuation conventions that carry meaning in a legal record.
Core rules
- Subject-verb agreement: ignore intervening phrases. “The list of exhibits is long,” not “are.”
- Pronoun case after prepositions and in comparisons: “between you and me,” “than I.”
- Who/whom: substitute he/him. “Whom did you call?” (him).
- Restrictive clauses take no comma; nonrestrictive clauses take two.
- Hyphenate compound modifiers before a noun (“a 30-day extension”) but not after (“the extension lasted 30 days”).
Worked example
“The witness who was sworn testified” identifies which witness - restrictive, no commas. “The witness, who was sworn, testified” adds a side note about a witness already identified - nonrestrictive, two commas. The difference is not cosmetic: in the first, the clause is essential to identify the person; in the second, it is additional information. Reporters preserve the speaker’s structure, so punctuation follows meaning rather than personal preference.
Punctuation in transcripts
- Use the serial comma when it prevents ambiguity in lists of parties or exhibits.
- Capitalize “Court” when it names the judge, and “Your Honor” in direct address.
- Use quotation marks for read-back testimony and quoted documents, placing the exhibit reference outside the quote.
Traps
- Comma splices in narrative parentheticals.
- Its/it’s, their/there, principal/principle.
- Over-hyphenating, or hyphenating the verb (“follow up” versus “follow-up”).
- Repunctuating a quoted statute in a way that shifts its meaning.