Discussion Groups / English Usage / November 2006

Current BrE usage is rather messier er I mean more flexible than that,
with "section", "clause" and "article" being in practice pretty much
interchangeable. However, in certain circumstances, one is preferred
over the other by convention -- although not in a nesting way, by
which I mean that articles are not necessarily larger chunks of text
than articles or clauses. For example, laws, rules and regulations
tend to be divided into "sections" (usually subdividided into
"subsections" and grouped, if at all, into "parts"), although
constitutions, treaties, conventions, orders, decrees, directives and
protocols often do have "articles" (as do -- logically enough --
articles of association), which may be grouped into "parts" or perhaps
"chapters". Many contracts, however, refer only to "clauses" and have
done with it.

See? Like I said -- it's messy. That said, if you're in doubt (for
example, when translating), you're unlikely to be criticised if you
follow the "part/section/subsection" format. (At least that's what
I've been doing for the last ten years and I've never been called to
task for it!)

As for your question about paragraphs, they're not really any more
valid in legal documents than "sentences" or "phrases" are as official
divisions of the text. So, to avoid confusion, it's a good idea to
number them ordinally rather than cardinally when using them to
delimit a piece of text -- as in "under the provisions set out in the
third paragraph of subsection 8.4(f) herein...".

I had some fat US laws in mind, and the US Code in particular.
Title IX, for example, is part of TITLE 20 USC[1]. It labels only
sections 1681-1688 in the excerpt below, but it does mention
"subsection (a)". Everything else is a numbered or lettered
paragraph that has to be referred to as, for example, Title 20 USC
Sect. 168 (a)(7)(B)(ii). I think that laws and constitutions as
well as complex contracts in the US generally number and/or letter
all their paragraphs just to avoid the easily avoidable problem of
having to mention a paragraph within a paragraph. In the contracts
that I've written for my schools and for my wife's companies, I
numbered and lettered everything just so there wouldn't be any
referencing problems.

[1] http://www.dol.gov/oasam/regs/statutes/titleix.htm

Title IX, Education Amendments of 1972

(Title 20 U.S.C. Sections 1681-1688)

-- Privacy and Security Statement --
-- DISCLAIMER --

Section 1681. Sex

(a) Prohibition against discrimination; exceptions. No person in
the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from
participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to
discrimination under any education program or activity receiving
Federal financial assistance, except that:

(1) Classes of educational institutions subject to prohibition

in regard to admissions to educational institutions, this section
shall apply only to institutions of vocational education,
professional education, and graduate higher education, and to
public institutions of undergraduate higher education;

(2) Educational institutions commencing planned change in
admissions

in regard to admissions to educational institutions, this section
shall not apply (A) for one year from June 23, 1972, nor for six
years after June 23, 1972, in the case of an educational
institution which has begun the process of changing from being an
institution which admits only students of one sex to being an
institution which admits students of both sexes, but only if it is
carrying out a plan for such a change which is approved by the
Secretary of Education or (B) for seven years from the date an
educational institution begins the process of changing from being
an institution which admists only students of one sex to being an
institution which admits students of both sexes, but only if it is
carrying out a plan for such a change which is approved by the
Secretary of Education, whichever is the later;

(3) Educational institutions of religious organizations with
contrary religious tenets

this section shall not apply to any educational institution which
is controlled by a religious organization if the application of
this subsection would not be consistent with the religious tenents
of such organization;

(4) Educational institutions training individuals for military
services or merchant marine

this section shall not apply to an educational institution whose
primary purpose is the training of individuals for the military
services of the United States, or the merchant marine;

(5) Public educational institutions with traditional and continuing
admissions policy

in regard to admissions this section shall not apply to any public
institution of undergraduate higher education which is an
institution that traditionally and continually from its
establishment has had a policy of admitting only students of one
sex;

(6) Social fraternities or sororities; voluntary youth service
organizations

this section shall not apply to membership practices --

(A) of a social fraternity or social sorority which is exempt from
taxation under section 501(a) of Title 26, the active membership of
which consists primarily of students in attendance at an
institution of higher education, or

(B) of the Young Men's Christian Association, Young Women's
Christian Association; Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, Camp Fire Girls,
and voluntary youth service organizations which are so exempt, the
membership of which has traditionally been limited to persons of
one sex and principally to persons of less than nineteen years of
age;

(7) Boy or Girl conferences

this section shall not apply to--

(A) any program or activity of the American Legion undertaken in
connection with the organization or operation of any Boys State
conference, Boys Nation conference, Girls State conference, or
Girls Nation conference; or

(B) any program or activity of any secondary school or educational
institution specifically for--

(i) the promotion of any Boys State conference, Boys Nation
conference, Girls State conference, or Girls Nation conference; or

(ii) the selection of students to attend any such conference;

(8) Father-son or mother-daughter activities at educational
institutions

this section shall not preclude father-son or mother-daughter
activities at an educational institution, but if such activities
are provided for students of one sex, opportunities for reasonably
comparable activities shall be provided for students of the other
sex; and

(9) Institutions of higher education scholarship awards in
"beauty" pageants

this section shall not apply with respect to any scholarship or
other financial assistance awarded by an institution of higher
education to any individual because such individual has received
such award in any pageant in which the attainment of such award is
based upon a combination of factors related to the personal
appearance, poise, and talent of such individual and in which
participation is limited to individuals of one sex only, so long as
such pageant is in compliance with other nondiscrimination
provisions of Federal law.

(b) Preferential or disparate treatment because of imbalance in
participation or receipt of Federal benefits; statistical evidence
of imbalance.

Nothing contained in subsection (a) of this section shall be
interpreted to require any educational institution to grant
preferential or disparate treatment to the members of one sex on
account of an imbalance which may exist with respect to the total
number or percentage of persons of that sex participating in or
receiving the benefits of any federally supported program or
activity, in comparison with the total number or percentage of
persons of that sex in any community, State, section, or other
area: Provided, that this subsection shall not be construed to
prevent the consideration in any hearing or proceeding under this
chapter of statistical evidence tending to show that such an
imbalance exists with respect to the participation in, or receipt
of the benefits of, any such program or activity by the members of
one sex.

(c) Educational institution defined.

For the purposes of this chapter an educational institution means
any public or private preschool, elementary, or secondary school,
or any institution of vocational, professional, or higher
education, except that in the case of an educational institution
composed of more than one school, college, or department which are
administratively separate units, such term means each such school,
college or department.

Section 1682. Federal administrative enforcement; report to
Congressional committees

Each Federal department and agency which is empowered to extend
Federal financial assistance to any education program or activity,
by way of grant, loan, or contract other than a contract of
insurance or guaranty, is authorized and directed to effectuate the
provisions of section 1681 of this title with respect to such
program or activity by issuing rules, regulations, or orders of
general applicability which shall be consistent with achievement of
the objectives of the statute authorizing the financial assistance
in connection with which the action is taken. No such rule,
regulation, or order shall become effective unless and until
approved by the President. Compliance with any requirement adopted
pursuant to this section may be effected (l) by the termination of
or refusal to grant or to continue assistance under such program or
activity to any recipient as to whom there has been an express
finding on the record, after opportunity for hearing, of a failure
to comply with such requirement, but such termination or refusal
shall be limited to the particular political entity, or part
thereof, or other recipient as to whom such a finding has been
made, and shall be limited in its effect to the particular program,
or part thereof, in which such noncompliance has been so found, or
(2) by any other means authorized by law: Provided, however, that
no such action shall be taken until the department or agency
concerned has advised the appropriate person or persons of the
failure to comply with the requirement and has determined that
compliance cannot be secured by voluntary means. In the case of any
action terminating, or refusing to grant or continue, assistance
because of failure to comply with a requirement imposed pursuant to
this section, the head of the Federal department or agency shall
file with the committees of the House and Senate having legislative
jurisdiction over the program or activity involved a full written
report of the circumstances and the grounds for such action. No
such action shall become effective until thirty days have elapsed
after the filing of such report.

Section 1683. Judicial Review

Any department or agency action taken pursuant to section 1682 of
this title shall be subject to such judicial review as may
otherwise be provided by law for similar action taken by such
department or agency on other grounds. In the case of action, not
otherwise subject to judicial review, terminating or refusing to
grant or to continue financial assistance upon a finding of failure
to comply with any requirement imposed pursuant to section 1682 of
this title, any person aggrieved (including any State or political
subdivision thereof and any agency of either) may obtain judicial
review of such action in accordance with chapter 7 of title 5,
United States Code, and such action shall not be deemed committed
to unreviewable agency discretion within the meaning of section 701
of that title.

Section 1684. Blindness or visual impairment; prohibition against
discrimination

No person in the United States shall, on the ground of blindness or
severely impaired vision, be denied admission in any course of
study by a recipient of Federal financial assistance for any
education program or activity; but nothing herein shall be
construed to require any such institution to provide any special
services to such person because of his blindness or visual
impairment.

Section 1685. Authority under other laws unaffected

Nothing in this chaper shall add to or detract from any existing
authority with respect to any program or activity under which
Federal financial assistance is extended by way of a contract of
insurance or guaranty.

Section 1686. Interpretation with respect to living facilities

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this chapter,
nothing contained herein shall be construed to prohibit any
educational institution receiving funds under this Act, from
maintaining separate living facilities for the different sexes.

Section 1687. Interpretation of "program or activity"

For the purposes of this title, the term "program or activity" and
"program" mean all of the operations of --

(l)(A) a department, agency, special purpose district, or other
instrumentality of a State or of a local government; or

(B) the entity of such State or local government that distributed
such assistance and each such department or agency (and each other
State or local government entity) to which the assistance is
extended, in the case of assistance to a State or local government;

(2)(A) a college, university, or other postsecondary institution,
or a public system of higher education; or

(B) a local educational agency (as defined in section2854(a)(10) of
this title, system of vocational education, or other school system;

(3)(A) an entire corporation, partnership, or other private
organization, or an entire sole proprietorship --

(i) if assistance is extended to such corporation, partnership,
private organization, or sole proprietorship as a whole; or

(ii) which is principally engaged in the business of providing
education, health care, housing, social services, or parks and
recreation; or

(B) the entire plant or other comparable, geographically separate
facility to which Federal financial assistance is extended, in the
case of any other corporation, partnership, private organization,
or sole proprietorship; or

(4) any other entity which is established by two or more of the
entities described in paragraph (l), (2) or (3);

any part of which is extended Federal financial assistance, except
that such term does not include any operation of an entity which is
controlled by a religious organization if the application of
section 1681 if this title to such operation would not be
consistent with the religious tenets of such organization.

Section 1688. Neutrality with respect to abortion

Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to require or prohibit
any person, or public or private entity, to provide or pay for any
benefit or service, including the use of facilities, related to an
abortion. Nothing in this section shall be construed to permit a
penalty to be imposed on any person or individual because such
person or individual is seeking or has received any benefit or
service related to a legal abortion.