Logic and the Law - Daily Nous

“‘And’ may be read ‘or,’ and ‘or’ may be read ‘and’ if the sense requires it.”

So says paragraph (f) of Ohio Revised Code Section 1.02, which provides definitions for terms used in the rest of the Ohio legal code. The line was brought to my attention by Andrew Mills (Otterbein University).

“Or” read as “and”? No problem. That’s the inclusive “or.”

“And” read as “or”? Huh? Professor Mills asked some lawyer friends about it and reports:

First, this is a “cover your ass” clause that helps get the legislature out of sloppily drafted law.

Second, and more interestingly, it applies to uses of the “disjunctive and” (a phrase I had never heard before). An example: “Acme may sell assets and make capital expenditures” and “One is guilty of animal abuse if they whip a horse and stab a horse and kick a horse.” In other words, sometimes the laws use “and” where they mean “inclusive or”.

Professor Mills also draws our attention to Section 926.01, paragraph V of the code, which notes, “Notwithstanding section 1.02 of the Revised Code, ‘and’ shall not be read ‘or’ and ‘or’ shall not be read ‘and.'”

If you’re interested in a closer look at “and”, “or,” and the law, here’s one.

And if you’re aware of other interesting items at the intersection of law and logic, let us know about them.

source: https://dailynous.com/2022/01/24/logic-and-the-law/

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