Dear Legal Writer: 

A “company” is an “it,” not a “they.”

Do you question what I say?

Here’s a primer plus a question for my friends across the pond:

***

In the U.S., and in U.S. legal English:

1: A “company” is a “collective noun.”

Other collective nouns common in legal writing are:
department
business
group
entity
Congress
organization

2: A collective noun takes a SINGULAR verb.

✅ “The company is.”
❌ “The company are.”

3: A collective noun takes a SINGULAR pronoun.

✅ “The Company is famous for its dark chocolate.”
❌ “The Company is famous for their dark chocolate.”

4: The collective-noun designation does not disappear when you are talking about one particular collective noun.

✅ ABC Co. is an “it” that “is.”
It is “its” chocolate that’s dark.

❌ ABC Co. is not a “they” that “are.”
It is NOT “their” chocolate that’s dark.

***

UK and British-English friends:

🗳️ Is the above true where you are?

—I’ve been told that in the UK, the word “team” should be referred to as a “they” that “are.”

—I also see U.K. folks on here say things like, “LinkedIn are making changes.” {Is that correct❓)

I’d love to learn more about different countries’ conventions!

Thanks,

💌 Amanda

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