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COMPARATIVE LEGAL LINGUISTICS

COMPARATIVE LEGAL LINGUISTICS. INTRODUCTION. Lecturer. Prof.dr.sc. Lelija Sočanac Office hours: Monday 16.30 – 17.30 h, Gundulićeva 10, Room 5 E-mail: lelijasocanac@yahoo.com lelija.socanac@pravo.hr. LITERATURE.

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COMPARATIVE LEGAL LINGUISTICS

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  1. COMPARATIVE LEGAL LINGUISTICS INTRODUCTION

  2. Lecturer • Prof.dr.sc. Lelija Sočanac • Office hours: Monday 16.30 – 17.30 h, Gundulićeva 10, Room 5 • E-mail: lelijasocanac@yahoo.com • lelija.socanac@pravo.hr

  3. LITERATURE • Mattila, Heikki E.S., Comparative Legal Linguistics .- Burlington: Ashgate, 2006

  4. ADDITIONAL READING • Bhatia, Vijay K. et al. (eds.), MultilingualandMulticulturalContextsofLegislation : anInternationalPerspective.- Peter Lang, 2003. • Bhatia et al. (eds), Legal DiscourseinMultilingualandMulticulturalContexts .- Peter Lang, 2003 • Bhatia, F (ed.), Vaguenessin Normative Texts .- Peter Lang, 2005 • Eades, Diana, Sociolinguisticsandthe legal process. Multilingualmatters, 2010. • Extra, Guus; Gorter, Durk, Multilingual Europe: Factsandpolicies. Mouton de Gruyter, 2008. • Gotti, Maurizio, Giannoni D. (eds.) New TrendsinSpecializedDiscourseAnalysis.- Peter Lang, 2006 • Kniffka, Hannes. Workinginlanguageandlaw : A German perspective. PalgraveMacmillan, 2007. • Olsson, John, ForensicLinguistics.- London: Continuum, 2008. • Olsson, John, Word Crime: Solvingcrimethroughforensiclinguistics. London : Continuum, 2009. • Shuy, Roger W. LinguisticsintheCourtroom: a practicalguide. OxfordUniversityPress, 2006. • Shuy, Roger W., Fightingoverwords: Languageand civil lawcases.OxfordUniversityPress, 2008. • Shuy, Roger W. Thelanguageofdefamationcases. OxfordUniversityPress, 2010. • Shuy, Roger W. Thelanguageofperjurycases.- OxfordUniversityPress, 2011. • Šarčević, Susan, New Approache to Legal Translation. KluwerLawInternational 2000. • Wagner, Anne; Cacciaguidi-Fahy (eds.) Legal LanguageandtheSearch for Clarity.- Peter Lang, 2006

  5. TIMETABLE WEDNESDAY 14.30-15.00 • 12 March: Introduction to Linguistics: • 19 March: Introduction to Legal Linguistics • 26 March: Functions of Legal Language • 2 April: Characteristics of Legal Language • 16 April: Legal Terminology • 23 April: The Heritage of Legal Latin • 30 April: Legal German • 7 May: Legal French • 14 May: Legal English • 21 May: Changes in Legal-linguistic Dominance in the International Arena • 28 May: Conclusions

  6. Assesment • One semester: 60 points • Attendance: 30 points (+10 for active participation) • Seminar paper: 10 points (+5 for excellence) • Presentation: 10 points (+5 for excellence) • Written exam: 15 points • Oral exam: 15 points

  7. Suggested topics • Legal languages • Legal terminology • Legal translation • Characteristicsof legal discourse • Legal linguisticsandthesearch for clarity • Languageinthecourtroom • Forensiclinguistics • Languagelegislation • Linguistic human rights • Languagepolicyandplanning: officiallanguages, minoritylanguages

  8. PREPARING YOUR PAPER • 1. Collect as much material as you can • 2. Organize your materials • 3. Structure your paper: • 1. Introduction • 2. Elaboration • 3. Conclusion • References

  9. STRUCTURE • Name • TITLE • Abstract • (A short summary of what you are going to write about) • 1. Introduction. 1.1. Definition 1.2. Historical Background/ or Theoretical Background 1.3. Methodology • 2. The main argument • 3. Conclusion • References: • Oakland, John (2000), British Civilization : an Introduction .- 4th ed .- London; New York : Routledge. • SUMMARY

  10. Quoting • “If the question is asked: ‘what is law in society?’ a • common response would be ‘to maintain order’. • Much public debate and political rhetoric links • ‘law’ and ‘order’. There are two problems with • this response. First it is extremely ambiguous. • There is no single concept of order, but rather a • variety of orders in relation to which the law may play • a role” (Partington 2006: 13) • References • Partington, Martin (2006), An Introduction to the English Legal System .- 3rd ed .- Oxford University Press.

  11. PARAGRAPHING • A paragraph: several sentences contained in the topic (or key) sentence • The topic sentence: usually the first one, contains the main idea or topic • The other sentences support it by adding further information or examples • A paragraph should link logically with previous and following paragraphs

  12. PRESENTATION • 1. Think of your audience • 2. Structure your presentation: • a) Start by saying what you are going to talk about • b) focus on the most important points with good illustrative examples • c) sum up

  13. Presentation • 3. Check and practise the pronunciation of difficult words • 4. Pay attention to your intonation • 5. If possible, do not read (using notes is preferable to reading a full text) • 6. Use visual aids, or write on the blackboard to stress your point • 7. Don’t forget about your TIMING!!! (10 minutes)

  14. Some legal-linguistic narratives • 1. A court has to determine the meaning of chicken, a word used in a contract on chicken delivery between two parties who disagree. The plaintiff pretends that it includes young birds only while the defendant insists upon all fowls being perceived in trade as chickens (Cf. Frigaliment Importing Co. V. B.N.S. International Sales Corp. 190 F. Supp. 116 (S.D.N.Y. 1960)

  15. Some legal-linguistic narratives • 2. An accused in a common law country does not use the honorific form Your Honor when addressing the judge

  16. Some legal-linguistic narratives • 3. A legal writer introduces a chapter on the EU law in his text-book for law students with: The law relating to the European Community is now a wide ranging subject. European Community law intrudes upon, and affects, an ever increasing volume of domestic law and now represents and important source of law in the United Kingdom.

  17. Some legal-linguistic narratives • A court has to decide whether protective gear can be perceived as accessory to roller blades under U.S. Customs Regulations (Cf. Rollerblade, Inc. v. U.S. 282 F. 3d 1349; Fed. Cir. 2002)

  18. Some legal-linguistic narratives • Language use in law differs as the context of use is changing • Situations of language use: contexts in which speakers engage in legal discourses • It is decisive to establish the appropriate perspective upon the language, both in the situation of use and in the situation of reflecting upon the use; otherwise, language will not work properly • It will lead to confusion that, expressed in terms of law, means injustice

  19. Some legal-linguistic narratives • How does the judge determine the meaning of a world that belongs to ordinary language? (chicken); the scope of application of the term (accessory) • Your Honour – a pragmatic issue – based on linguistic convention of use; what are its legal implications? The legislation prohibits the parties from offending the judge, but is the omission of the honorific an offence?

  20. Preview • Languages for specific purposes v. ordinary language • Legal language v. other LSPs: history, target audience • Genres of legal language • Characteristics of legal languages • Beginnings of interest in legal language • Rise of legal linguistics • Relevance of legal linguistics for linguistics and law • Related branches of law/linguistics • Practical application

  21. Language for Specific Purposes (LSP) • refers to two areas within applied linguistics: • One focusing on the needs in education and training • One with a focus on research on language variation across a particular subject field

  22. LSP: Education and Training • LSP - approach to second or foreign language teaching and training that addresses specific needs of learners who need that language as a tool in their education, training or job. • Needs analysis – crucial for development of LSP programs • Students - encouraged to take active roles in their own learning and question what they have been taught. • "A negotiated syllabus means that the content of a particular course is a matter of discussion between teacher and students, according to the wishes and needs of the learners in conjunction with the expertise, judgement, and advice of the teacher” (Hyland 2009)

  23. LSP: Research • LSP - also refers to a branch of applied linguistics which deals with a variety of language used by members of a particular subject field, concentrating on its genres, stylistic features and terminology • This research is relevant for such areas as language education, translation and specialised dictionaries

  24. Legal Language • A functional variant of natural language, with its own domain of use and particular linguistic norms (phraseology, vocabulary, hierarchy of terms and meanings)

  25. Legal language as language for specificpurposes (LSP) • Legal language – based on ordinary language • Legal terms whose properties vary according to the branches of law • Characteristics that distinguish legal language from ordinary written language (e.g. sentence structure) • Specific legal style

  26. Legal language as a “technolect” • - a languageusedbyaspecialistprofesion (lawyers) • Inthecourtsandinthegovernment – professionals who are notlawyers (jurymembers, layjudges, administrators) • Ordinarycitizens (will) • Target ofmessagestransmittedin legal language: wholepopulation, certainlayersofthepopulation, or a numberofparticularcitizens • Lawrequirescomplianceof all people; court judgmentrelates to thepartiesinvolvedinthecase • Legal language – notan instrument aimedsolely at internalcommunicationwithinthe legal profession

  27. Legal language • Governs all areas of social life • Through intertextuality, can be combined with language from any domain • Very old, which is not the case with other LSPs • It has shaped the ordinary language of various countries in a significant way

  28. Legal language • The population may use another language than that forming the basis of the legal language • Middle Ages: Latin • Today: legal language of African countries – English or French; local languages spoken in everyday communication • In Finland: legal language until 19th c. - Swedish

  29. Genres of legal language • Language of lawyers: legal authors, legislators, judges, administrators, advocates • Continental Europe: notarial language: private-law documents drawn up for hundreds of years by notaries

  30. Genres of legal language • Language of statutes • Language of judgments • Language of legal doctrine • Language used by lawyers in professional discussions and pleadings • Language used by lay persons in legal contexts • Language used in administration

  31. Language of legal authors • Greater freedom than other sub-genres • Scholarly vocabulary (e.g. Latin terms and sayings)

  32. Courtroom language: • especially formal, often archaic • Categoric character : judges use unreserved declarations and peremptory orders • France: courtroom language is laconic when it comes to reasoning of judges; detailed argumentation, abundance of rhetoric, typifies the language of counsel • Judgments: in former times: highly complex sentence construction; in some countries, that remains the case today

  33. Classifications of legal terms • Sub-genres on the basis of branches of law • Specialist terminology of each branch • A part of legal terminology: universal, but: • Criminal law – terms that are almost never used in the texts on the law of property or constitutional law • In some branches of law legal terminology mixed with non-legal technical terminology, e.g. psychiatric terminology in criminal law, accountancy in tax law, etc.

  34. Legal Jargon • Style of legal language: a spectrum that extends from the solemn cast of the Constitution to everyday legal texts • All professions develop their own jargon, which strenghtens internal relationships and coherence of the group • Part of legal jargon – common to all sub-groups of lawyers • Some expressions - only used by a single sub-group of lawyers, or even within a particular court or department (ministry, supreme court)

  35. Legal Jargon • Abbreviations, notably in internal court documents • Replacing explanations as to legal institutes by the numbers of articles – a particular type of abbreviation

  36. Counter-language of the Criminal Fraternity • The language of offenders – a counter-language of legal language, notably criminal law • The heart of this: prison slang • Functions: strenghtens relationships of groups of prisoners in relation to prison officers and the jsutice system; a secret code, rapidly changing and largely uniknown to prison officers; frequency of synonyms (in Finnish prison slang:70 expressions to describe a police officer, 30 to describe imprisonment)

  37. Beginnings of interest in legal language • Law – bound to language • In some contexts, linguistic aspect of law dominates: legal translation, legal lexicography, legal rhetoric

  38. Legal translation • 1st legal translated text that has survived: the peace treaty between the Egyptians and the Hittites dating from 1271 BC, followed by innumerable translations • Corpus iuris civilis – first translated into Greek, than into many other languages • In medieval times, legal translation focused on Latin: texts were translated from different vernaculars into Latin and from Latin into various vernaculars

  39. Legal research • Ancient Greece and Rome created a conceptual system of law which requires clarifying connections between legal concepts • Defining terms expressing concepts • This has led to compiling legal lexicons • 1st legal lexicon: Gaius Aelius Gallus, De verborum quae ad jus pertinent significatione (‘on the meaning of words referring to the law’), 1st c. BC • Tradition of legal lexicography: carried on in Byzantium and in Western Europe

  40. Legal lexicography • In Western Europe – medieval legal dictionaries first published in Latin, later in new national languages • 1st bilingual lexicons of legal language – compiled in Byzantium (Latin-Greek lexicons) • The lexicons became necessary when Greek was beginning to replace Latin in legal affairs, and Byzantine jurists’ grasp on Latin was on the wane • Lexicons- partly encyclopaedic dictionaries, partly dictionaries of definitions

  41. Legal lexicography • Later, an analogous need arose in Western Europe as to links between Latin and new national languages • As West European lawyers’ grasp of Latin weakened, dictionaries of legal Latin assumed growing importance • When Latin was replaced by modern languages, the need arose to compile legal dictionaries between various European national languages

  42. Rhetoric • In Ancient Greece, r. was closely connected with activities of advocates before the courts • 1st treatise on rhetoric – written by Corax of Syrecuse in 5th c. B.C.; its focus: legal rhetoric • In the Middle Ages, rhetoric was one of the three subjects of the teaching trivium (grammar, logic and rhetoric); an important place in the training of European lawyers

  43. Legal linguistics today • Modern linguistics developed at the beginning of 20th c. • Enormous progress of science and technology in 20th c. gave birth to study LSP (Fachsprachen, lengues de spécialité both comparatively and in relation to ordinary language)

  44. Legal linguistics • Linguistique juridique, jurilinguistique • Rechtslinguistik (Recht und Sprache) • Juryslingwistika (Polish) • Pravovaia lingvistika (Russian)

  45. Legal linguistics • Research: synchronic (contemporary language) or diachronic (historical) • Canada: contrastive analysis of two legal languages (English and French); closely bound up with the science of translation; this type of legal linguistics has spread to other countries, such as Poland

  46. Legal linguistics • In all schools undertaking research into legal language, lawyers and linguists are to be found • Researchers: often dual training, or a study is carried out in close cooperation between lawyers and linguists • Today researchers with linguistic training often use quantitative methods with the aid of computers; a typical research subject: occurrences of terms, or other linguistic elements (e.g. prefixes, suffixes) in legal texts

  47. Legal linguistics • Research topic: understandability and readability of legal texts from the stand-point of non-lawyers • Characteristics of the language of legislative drafting • Studies by lawyers – often diachronic, connected with history of law

  48. Legal linguistics • Examines the development, characteristics and usage of legal language • Studies may concern vocabulary (terminology), syntax (sentence structure), or semantics (meanings) • A synthesis between legal science and linguistics, notably applied linguistics • Also based on sociolinguistics

  49. Legal linguistics • Closely connected to semantics • Lexicology – a central position; it is through terminology that legal language differs from ordinary language • Legal lexicography – compiling legal lexicons and dictionaries • Syntax: sentence length, frequency of subordinate clauses

  50. Legal linguistics • Morphology: the construction of compound words from the standpoint of their clarity - important in German, Swedish, Finnish) • Forensic linguistics - examines production and perception of utterances from the legal standpoint, notably in courts: phonetic analysis of human voice (threatening phone calls), verifying the authenticity of documents • Research into legal style (application in rhetoric): how advocates convince judges of the worth of their messages

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