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hemocyanin writes:

A company that refused to pay its delivery drivers overtime for years has lost its bid to be a cheapskate, to the tune of $10,000,000. The 1st US Circuit Court of Appeals (decision-pdf) interpreted an exception to OT laws with special care to a meaningful but missing comma. Specifically, the phrase existing in the statute is:
"..., packing for shipment or distribution of:"

The company wanted the phrase to be interpreted as:
"..., packing for shipment, or distribution of:"

Without the comma, the activity excluded from coverage is "packing". With the comma present, it would have excluded packing or distribution.

The law as it exists in all its commaless glory:

The canning, processing, preserving, freezing, drying, marketing, storing, packing for shipment or distribution of:

(1) Agricultural produce;

(2) Meat and fish products; and

(3) Perishable foods.

Original Submission