More on interpretation

From a few weeks ago, "Formal Logic in Law School?" by Sarah Lawsky (George Washington) on The Conglomerate blog:

... Imagine, for example, teaching the Tax Court case of O'Donnabhain v. Commissioner, 134 T.C. No. 4 (2010), which includes a debate about how formal logic should apply to the law. The case holds that medical expenses incurred for a sex-change operation are deductible. ... One issue is whether a sex-change operation is cosmetic surgery: Section 213 of the Tax Code permits taxpayers to deduct medical expenses above a certain amount, but explicitly forbids deductions for cosmetic surgery, which it defines as "any procedure which is directed at improving the patient's appearance and does not meaningfully promote the proper function of the body or prevent or treat illness or disease."

Judge Foley, dissenting and concurring, argues that a sex-change operation is cosmetic surgery even if it treats disease, because it does not also meaningfully promote the proper function of the body. That is, he argues that a procedure that is directed at improving a patient's appearance is cosmetic surgery unless it meaningfully promotes the proper function of the body and prevents or treats illness or disease.

In a concurring opinion, Judge Halpern explicitly invokes formal logic to explain why Judge Foley's interpretation "conflict[s]" with "the rules of logic and grammar." ...

See Prof. Lawsky's post for more. EMM