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SOME GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF LEGAL LANGUAGE.

Context:

The characteristics of legal language in English and Spanish are derived from its
authoritative role in the institution of law. Hence, the opacity of its discourse: the
conspiracy theory.
Of all the specialized languages, legal language may be the one that pragmatically and
semantically differs the most from culture to culture. Comparative law specialists
consider the existence of very different legal cultures and traditions and, specifically,
legal translators describe the deep gap existing between the legal tradition of Spanish
law and that of the Anglo-Saxon law.
Ostensibly, discrepancies between legal cultures are due to the fact that language is a
cultural product, and so is law. Law is an ideological artifact: it is the most important
social accord in democratic societies, and governs with the highest directive force every
society worldwide. Cultural schemas in the legal area like marriage or contract, for
example, constitute artificial constructs by means of which the human world organizes
the coexistence and conviviality of its members, and, as such, they have a certain
directive force and ideological hue. Therefore, these institutions constitute
predetermined cultural concepts in each culture, similar in essence but arranged
differently in each legal tradition.
As far as the legal communities in the West are concerned, these follow one of two
major legal traditions: the English-speaking Common Law or the Continental law. The
former emerged in England during the Middle Ages and was applied within British
colonies across continents. The latter developed in continental Europe at the same
time and was applied in the colonies of European imperial powers such as Spain and
Portugal. Despite the equal predominance of these two traditions in the world, English
has also turned into the lingua franca for almost every legal practitioner involved in
cross-border legal transactions.

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Traits:

Lexis and semantics Syntax and morphology


Archaisms from Latin, Old English, Old French and Long and complex sentence structures
Norman.
Formalism and ritual words and expressions Passive structures

Semantic redundancy: lexical doubles and triplets. Provisos and other limitating clauses: syntactic
qualification
Univocity (technical words) and equivocity Nominal character of sentences
(common words with un common meanings)
Unusual prepositional phrases and polysyllabic Complex prepositional phrases
words
Vagueness: antonyms, hyperonyms, hyponyms, Syntactic discontinuities
false friends, metaphors.
Table 1. General characteristics of Legal English.

LEXIS AND SEMANTICS


1. ARCHAISMS FROM LATIN, OLD ENGLISH, OLD FRENCH AND NORMAN.
--prima facie, onus probandi, mens rea, obiter dictum, ratio decidendi, stare decisis, culpa
--aforesaid, hence, bequeath, brethren,
--on parole, average, femme sole, plaintiff, force majeur, abscond, estoppel, lien
FORMALISM AND RITUAL WORDS AND EXPRESSIONS
--thereupon ordered and ajudged
--for the purposes connected with the matters aforesaid

SEMANTIC REDUNDANCY: LEXICAL DOUBLETS AND TRIPLETS.


--have and hold, alter and change, null and void, request and require, sole and exclusive, last will
and testament, jointly and severally.
--rest, residue and remainder, give, devise and bequeath, form, manner and method.
UNIVOCITY (TECHNICAL WORDS) AND EQUIVOCITY (COMMON WORDS WITH UNCOMMON MEANINGS)
--prosecutor, trust, tort, barrister, decree, arraignment, duress, effraction.
--compensation, bar, seize, act, action, statute, damages, equity, trial.

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UNUSUAL PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES AND POLYSYLLABIC WORDS

Hereto
Thereabout
Thereafter
hereby
jurisdiction, assignment, implementation, enforcement

COMPLEX PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES


for the purposes of
in pursuance of
by virtue of
VAGUENESS: ANTONYMS, HYPERONYMS, HYPONYMS, FALSE FRIENDS, METAPHORS.
annul: prescribir, anular, abolir.
sanction: castigar, dar la aprobacin
magistrate: juez de paz
article: seccin
section: article
prejudicial: causing prejudice.
a bare contract: sin contraprestacin
a miscarriage of justice: ruptura o violacin de la ley

LETS SEE HOW LEGAL ENGLISH WORKS IN FOCUS:


LEXICAL FEATURES
a)Technical terms (words specific to the jargon) and archaisms.
-prosecutor, trust, tort, barrister, decree, arraignment, duress, effraction.

Words of Latin, French and Old English origin


--prima facie, onus probandi, mens rea, obiter dictum, ratio decidendi, stare decisis,
culpa
--aforesaid, hence, bequeath, brethren,
--on parole, average, femme sole, plaintiff, force majeur, abscond, estoppel, lien

Much of this vocabulary is derived from French, Old English and Latin.
Lawyers prefer to use antique terms instead of new ones. For example, they use imbibe as an
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alternative of drink, inquire rather than ask, peruse instead of read, forthwith as a
substitution of right away or at once and so on. Another convenient example is the use of
the verb witnesseth with the preservation of an eth ending for the third person singular of
the present tense as an alternative of the current morpheme es witnesses.
It was inevitable for English law to escape the influence of Latin which was supported by the
power of the Roman church over Europe at that time, and also to its widespread use
throughout this place of earth as a language of learning and literature. The origin is not the
same as the Latinisms used in Roman Codes. Hence, Latinisms in Common Law are not always
the same as those used in Continental systems, and that is something that the translator has to
acknowledge.
Here are some additional Latin phrases and words in common use:
- Bona fide (good faith or in good faith
- Res judicata (an issue adjudicated, cosa juzgada)
- Res nova ( a new thing; an undecided question of law)
- Actus reus (guilty act)
-Mens rea (guilty mind)

In some cases, the two forms are used:

Like Latinisms, the existence of legal French terms within English legal language is also
apparent. After the Norman Conquest in 1066, the language of the invaders gained an
undeniable position in the legal sphere of England, bringing with it a wealth of legal French
terminology. As a case of illustration, the following terms are originally French:
abscond, on parole, average, femme sole, profit pendre, chose, lien

There exist also some archaic adverbs, which are actually a mixture of deictic elements: here
there and where with certain prepositions: of, after, by, under etc. By way of illustration,
here are some examples:
- The parties hereto agree as follow.
- Hereinafter referred to as wife.
- The total rent for the term hereof is the sum of________.
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Similarly archaic sound the following:

b) Common terms with an uncommon meaning (semi-technical terms). These terms of


art include ordinary words used with special meanings. For example, the familiar term
consideration refers, in legal English, to contracts, and means, an act, forbearance or
promise by one party to a contract that constitutes the price for which the promise of
the other party is bought (Oxford Dictionary of Law). Other examples are:

--construction, prefer, redemption, furnish, hold, find, compensation, bar, seize, act, action,
statute, damages, equity, trial.

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Examples extracted from Alcaraz & Hughes, 2002, Legal Translation Explained
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c) Polysyllabic words, derived very often from nominalization:
--jurisdiction, assignment, implementation, enforcement

d) Unusual prepositional phrases


for the purposes of
in pursuance of
by virtue of

f) Word combinations: lexical doublets or triplets

While originally being deployed to help all lawyers no matter which vocabulary they might use
(English, French, or Latin), it now sometimes refers to words which mean exactly the same
thing; this has become a stylistic standard for other legal concepts (dispute, controversy or
claim, search and seizure).

g) Use of pronominal adverbs in combinations (see above) . Words like hereof, thereof, and
whereof (and further derivatives, including -at, -in, -after, -before, -with, -by, -above, -on, -
upon) are not often used in ordinary modern English. They are used in legal English primarily to
avoid repeating names or phrases.
For example, the parties hereto instead of the parties to this contract.

h) -er, -or, and -ee name endings. Legal English contains some words and titles, such as
employer and employee; lessor and lessee, in which the reciprocal and opposite nature of the

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relationship is indicated by the use of alternative endings.

i) Use of phrasal verbs. Phrasal verbs play a large role in legal English, as they do in standard
English, and are often used in a quasi-technical sense. For example, parties enter into contracts,
put down deposits, serve [documents] upon other parties, write off debts, and so on.

j) Over-precision, characterized in the frequent specification of detail and the use of "legal"
adjectives: absolute, qualified, constructive, actual.
Constructive total loss
Actual manslaughter

k) Ambiguity: characterized in the frequent open-endness and the use of "legal" adjectives:
proper, reasonable, suitable
its reasonable, but good faith opinion,

k) Archaic use of the modal shall in legal English: Shall poses a level of difficulty in both
interpretation of clauses containing it and in the translation of such clauses. Traditionally, the
modal shall, in legal texts carries an obligation or a duty as opposed its common function, i.e.
expressing futurity.

- All such payments shall be made to Landlord at Landlord's address as set forth in the
preamble to this Agreement on or before the due date and without demand.

- Tenant shall make no alterations to the buildings or improvements on the Premises or


construct any building or make any other improvements on the Premises without the prior
written consent of Landlord.

- Husband shall pay to Wife spousal support in the sum of ______.

- Tenant shall comply with any and all laws, ordinances, rules and orders of any and all
governmental or quasi-governmental authorities affecting the cleanliness, use, occupancy and
preservation of the Premises.

MORPHO-SYNTACTIC FEATURES
LONG AND COMPLEX SENTENCE STRUCTURES
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--If Party B fails to remedy a breach of this contract within 7 days of receiving written notice
from Party A, and provided that Party A has complied with the terms of this contract, Party A
may sue Party B for damages if Party B breaches this contract without limiting the rights that
Party A might otherwise have at law, but only if Party A notifies Party B of its election to to do
so pursuant to clause 7

PASSIVE STRUCTURES
--The motion was filed, a hearing was held, and a ruling was issued.
--The district attorney filed the motion, both lawyers attended a hearing, and the judge issued a
ruling.

PROVISOS AND OTHER LIMITATING CLAUSES: SYNTACTIC QUALIFICATIONS AND


DISCONTINUITIES
--Either Chief Inspector may, in exercising his functions under this section with respect to a
registered inspector, have regard to any action taken by the other Chief Inspector with respect
to that registered inspector.
Education (Schools) Act, 1992, s. 11(4)
--An appeal under this section may be brought only with the leave of the Immigration Appeal
Tribunal or, if such leave is refused, with the leave of the appropriate appeal court.
Asylum and Immigration Appeals Act, 1993, s. 9(2)
--Syntactic discontinuity can also be traced in adjective phrases, as the following example
suggests.
(..) the goods are free, and will remain free until the time when the property is to pass, from
any charge or encumbrance not disclosed or known to the buyer before the contract is made,

NOMINAL CHARACTER OF SENTENCES


The usage of the property by the defendants was for the storage of firewood and building
materials. (17 words; passive voice; weak verb)

An agreement was made by the parties to reach a decision by Friday. (13 words; passive voice;
weak verb)

The intention of Congress was for the interpretation of the statute to be made broadly by the
courts. (18 words; passive voice; weak verbs)

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COMPLEX PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES
--In the light of the Commissions considerable experience in applying Articles 87 and 88 of the
Treaty to regional investment aid and in the light of the guidelines on national regional aid
issued by the Commission [] it is appropriate [...] that
--If a thing is transferred regardless of its quality and quantity
--Should this Regulation expire without being extended, Member States should have an
adjustment period of six months with regard to de minimis aid covered by it
--products and services in respect of which the Member State has granted a special or exclusive
right
--For the purpose of this Regulation: 1. "aid" means any measure fulfilling all the criteria laid
down in Article 87
--Such documents shall include commitments offered by the undertakings concerned vis-- vis
the Commission with a view to rendering the concentration compatible with the common
market
OTHER SYNTACTIC PECULIARITIES:
1. Conditionals
When the Lease term expires, if Renton has fully complied with all its obligations under the
Lease, Renton will be entitled to a 20% interest in the profits of Jamie Ridge in the form of a
non-managing membership interest, and the right to lease or buy for nominal consideration
approximately 1.6 acres, in an area designated by Jamie Ridge, for the purpose of operating a
garden nursery, provided that any such lease or sale would be contingent upon the nursery's
purpose being permitted under all applicable laws, and provided further that the area
designated for the nursery would be burdened by a restrictive covenant prohibiting any other
use thereof.

2. Unusual anaphora and absence of pronouns to make language more precise, not leaving
doubt as to the referent (ironically, they end by confusing the reader!)
In legal writing, draftsmen avoid the use of anaphoric devices or referential pronouns. Such as:
the personal pronouns (he, she, it etc) or the demonstrative ones (this, that, etc), in addition to
the verb to do that may substitute a whole clause as in the following example, He rents a car
and so does his brother . Actually, legal language is highly concerned with the exactness of
reference; hence its tendency toward lexical repetition, and therefore to functional
redundancy.

The Lessee shall pay to the Lessor at the office of the Lessor
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When translating legal texts, it is commonly advocated to keep the same redundancy of the
original text since it is a redundancy that is functional. So, the translator should ensure that the
version proposed is without ambiguity as its original counterpart.

3. Impersonal Constructions (avoidance of the first and second person pronouns "I" and
"you"; judges referring to themselves as "the court").
The defence shall remain neutral on this point

4. Passive constructions.

A copy of every Action Letter shall be sent to the Clerk of the Administrative Office for
entry and filing, and a memorandum briefly describing the Action Letter shall be distributed
to each Commissioner within three days thereafter

5. Multiple Negation

"innocent misrecollection is not uncommon".


a decision vacating an injunction prohibiting the state from requiring a sex offender to
register
(The decision allows the state to require a sex offender to register.)

6. Long and Complex Sentences (sometimes hundreds of words long). For example, the
provisions for termination hereinafter appearing or will at the cost of the borrower
forthwith comply with the same.

7. Wordiness and redundancy ("I give, devise and bequeath the rest, residue and remainder
of my estate...").

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Look for examples of these traits in the following text:
-Archaisms
-Technical words
-Common words with uncommon meanings
-Doublets
-Conditionals
-Unusual anaphoras, repetition
-Impersonality
-Long sentences

Text Of One Sentence From A Citybank Loan Form


In the event of default in the payment of this or any obligation or the performance or
observance of any term or covenant contained herein or in any note or any other contract or
agreement evidencing or relating to any obligation or any collateral on the borrowers part to
be performed or observed; or the undersigned borrower shall die; or any of the undersigned
become insolvent or make assignment for the benefit of creditors; or a petition shall be filed by
or against any of the undersigned under any provision of the Bankruptcy Act; or any money,
securities or property of the undersigned now or hereafter on deposit with or in the possession
or under the control of the Bank shall be attached or become subject to distraint proceeedings
or any other order or process of any court; or the Bank shall deem itself to be insecure, then
and in any such event, the Bank shall have a right (at its option), without demand or notice of
any kind, to declare all or any part of the obligations to be immediately due and payable,
whereupon such obligations shall become and be immediately due and payable, and the Bank
shall have the right to exercise all the
rights and remedies available to a secured party upon default under the Uniform Commercial
code (the Code) in effect in New York at the time and such other
rights and remedies as may otherwise provided by law.

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