Grammar Q: Use of commas in lists

Ah. The Oxford comma. I use B but it’s a stylistic matter.

A

Grammar and punctuation is a white supremacist construct.

Literally Hitler

The Queen used the Oxford.

I use the Oxford.

The comma denotes a pause in how it should be read, so it really depends on how the writer wants it read.

I was taught is was stylistic however in law school I learned it could be massively important in contracts. I use it before "and" and "or" most of the time unless I mean something very different in a contract.

The seminal work for attorneys is A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting which did not use the Oxford comma until a group of drivers sued Oakhurst Dairy about 9 years ago and settled their case for $5,000,000. Had the drafter of the contract used an Oxford comma after the penultimate item in the list and before the word "or" the case would have been worth $0. That was a quite an expensive comma and I have always been glad my contracts prof drilled into us the importance over 20 years before Ken Adams changed the style manual for contracts.

Both are correct.

tbh if you don’t use the Oxford comma, then I don’t trust you as a human being.

I go with the Oxford comma, and I struggle why this is even an issue. If leaving out the comma regularly causes confusion, and it takes no time to add the comma, just do it for the sake of humanity and one less thing to worry/fight about.

A