I discovered on Monday at the Illinois Legislative Reference Bureau that one of the most common drafting errors is to use “forego” when “forgo” should be used. A check with Garner's Dictionary of Legal Usage confirms this.
According to Garner, “Forego means to go before. Forgo means to do without; to pass up voluntarily; waive; renounce.” (Garner’s Dictionary of Legal Usage, p. 371).
You learn something every day.
Do you use the word shall when you draft documents? If so, you may want to reconsider doing so. Bryan A. Garner, the edtior-in-chief of Black's Law Dictionary, makes a compelling case for abandoning shall and using the more precise words must, will, is, may, or the phrase is entitled to in the most recent ABA Journal.
You'll be in good company if you abandon shall; so have all four sets of the major federal rules with the exception of one rule. (Rule 56 of the Federal Rule of Civil Procedure.)