Linguists and lawyers
The first article of the United Nations’ Universal
Declaration of Human Rights states that “all men are born free and
equal in dignity and rights”. It prohibits discrimination based on
language, among other criteria, and defines a number of areas in
which rights are guaranteed, including legal proceedings, education,
elections, health care, commerce and the workplace. Each of these
areas has a linguistic component, and every country addresses that
linguistic component according to national traditions. After a brief
history of the linguistic rights, the first part of this talk will
focus on how the legal system in the United States treats those who
do not speak English. In a second part we will examine issues within
the English language itself, how the legal system uses prescriptive
grammars and dictionaries to reach its decisions. While the examples
presented will focus on the United States, the issues are universal
and readers are encouraged to reflect on how the same issues are
addressed in other national contexts.
Article outline
- 1.Introduction
- 2.Linguists as experts
- 2.1Translation and interpretation
- 2.2Understanding warnings
- 2.3Determining the need for an interpreter
- 3.Interpreting the Constitution and statutes
- 3.1Dictionaries and grammars
- 3.2Linguistic corpora
- 3.3Translations and originalism
- 3.4Originalism is a double-edged sword
- 4.Conclusion
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Notes
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References
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Court cases