Replace Nested Conditional with Guard Clauses

A method has conditional behavior that does not make clear what the normal path of execution is

Use Guard Clauses for all the special cases

double getPayAmount() {
	double result;
	if (_isDead) result = deadAmount();
	else {
		if (_isSeparated) result = separatedAmount();
		else {
			if (_isRetired) result = retiredAmount();
			else result = normalPayAmount();
		};
	}
return result;
};	

double getPayAmount() {
	if (_isDead) return deadAmount();
	if (_isSeparated) return separatedAmount();
	if (_isRetired) return retiredAmount();
	return normalPayAmount();
};	

For more inforamtion see page 250 of Refactoring

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