法律英語與翻譯

LegalEnglishandLegalTranslationWhatislegalEnglish?Descriptivevs.prescriptive.Also‘hybrid’formsoflegallanguageCommunicationbetweenlawyerandclient,orbetweentwolawyersThelanguageusedinthecourtroom(interrogationofwitnesses,summingupbyjudgesetc.)Lawreportsinnewspapers,academictextbooksonlegalmattersLanguageoflegaldocuments–extremelyformal,difficultforthenon-experttoread.ThehistoryofLegalEnglishIOldEnglish:Anglo-Saxonmercenaries(450A.D.,inceptoflegalEnglish)bequeath,goods,guilt,land,manslaughter,murder,right,sheriff,steal,swear,theft,thief.

Latin:Latin-speakingmissionaries(597A.D.)Client,conviction,admit,mediate,andlegitimateCertiorari,quowarranto,subpoena,primafaces,Versus,staredesis,ex,ReThehistoryofLegalEnglishIIScandinavian:Scandinavianraiders(the10thcentry)gift,loan,sale,trust,law,lawyerNormanFrench:Normaninvaders(1066)Authority,chancellor,council,country,crown,exchequer,minister,nation,people,power,state,govern,government,realm,reign,sovereign。CharacteristicsofLegalEnglishJonathanSwiftonlawyers(Gulliver’sTravels):‘Thissocietyhathaparticularcantandjargonoftheirown,thatnoothermortalcanunderstand,andwhereinalltheirlawsarewritten,whichtheytakespecialcaretomultiply’JeremyBentham(1748-1832):‘Thepowerofthelawyerisintheuncertaintyofthelaw’.ArchaicorrarelyusedwordsandexpressionsNOW,THEREFORE,inconsiderationoftheforegoingandtherespectiverepresentations,warranties,covenantsandagreementssetforthinthisAgreementandintendingtobelegallyboundhereby,thepartiesheretoagreeasfollows:Binomialsandtrinomials…thetermsandconditionssetforthinthisagreement…Thisisthelastwillandtestamentofme…Igive,deviseandbequestallmypropertyofeverynatureandkind

……thesamemaybeamended,supplementedormodifiedinaccordancewiththetermshereof…staffandworkers(職工),rulesandregulations(規(guī)章),lastwillandtestament(遺囑),provisionsandstipulations(法律條款),childrenandissue(子孫)FormulaicexpressionsDoyousweartotellthetruth,thewholetruth,andnothingbutthetruth?Now,therefore,thepartiesagreeasfollows:I,____,doherebymake,publishanddeclarethefollowingtobemyLastWillandTestament…ForeignwordsandLatinisms“Thedefensewasthattheplaintiffwasnotadejureofficerandthatadefactoofficerisnotentitledtoasalary.”“IfincaseBacourtwithpowertooverrulecaseAsaysthatcaseAisoverruled,theratiodecidendi

ofcaseAceasesaltogethertohaveanyauthoritysofarasthedoctrineofprecedentisconcerned.”Frequentrepetitionofparticularwords,expressionsandstructuresPowersofvice-chair11.Where(a)amemberofaBoardisappointedtobevice-chaireitherbytheAssemblyorunderregulation10,and(b)thechairoftheBoardhasdiedorhasceasedtoholdoffice,orisunabletoperformthedutiesofchairowingtoillness,absencefromEnglandandWalesoranyothercause,thevice-chairshallactaschairuntilanewchairisappointedortheexistingchair

resumesthedutiesofchair,asthecasemaybe;andreferencestothechairinSchedule3shall,solongasthereisnochairabletoperformthedutiesofchair,betakentoincludereferencestothevice-chair.Longcomplexsentenceswithintricatecoordinationandsubordination

Resolution1786(2007)AdoptedbytheSecurityCouncilatits5785thmeeting,on28November2007TheSecurityCouncil,recallingitsresolution1775(2007)of14September2007,havingregardtoArticle16(4)oftheStatuteoftheInternationalTribunalfortheformerYugoslavia,havingconsideredthenominationbytheSecretary-GeneralofMr.SergeBrammertzforthepositionofProsecutoroftheInternationalTribunalfortheformerYugoslavia(S/2007/678),recallingthatresolution1503(2003)of28August2003calledupontheInternationalTribunalfortheformerYugoslaviatotakeallpossiblemeasurestocompletealltrialactivitiesatfirstinstancebytheendof2008,andtocompleteallworkin2010(ICTYcompletionstrategy),decidestoappointMr.SergeBrammertzasProsecutoroftheInternationalTribunalfortheformerYugoslaviawitheffectfrom1January2008forafour-yearterm,whichissubjecttoanearlierterminationbytheSecurityCounciluponcompletionoftheworkoftheInternationalTribunal.SyntacticdiscontinuitiesIf,afterinformingthesupervisoryauthorityconcernedundersubsection(3),anymeasurestakenbythesupervisoryauthorityagainsttheinsuranceundertakingare,intheopinionoftheregulatoryauthority,notadequateandtheundertakingcontinuestocontravenethisAct,theregulatoryauthoritymay,afterinformingthesupervisoryauthorityofitsintention,applytotheHighCourtforsuchanorder…DevelopedcountryMembersshall,ifrequestedbyotherMembers,providecopiesofthedocumentsor,incaseofvoluminousdocuments,summariesofthedocumentscoveredbyaspecificnotificationinEnglish,FrenchorSpanish.WidespreaduseofthepassiveIfanytermorprovisionofthisAgreementshallbedeemedprohibitedbyorinvalidunderanyapplicablelaw,suchprovisionshallbeinvalidatedwithoutaffectingtheremainingprovisionsofthisAgreement,theOriginalAgreementortheLoanDocuments.ImpersonalstyleNoonemaybesubjectedtoslavery,servitudeorforcedlabour.Everyonehastherightofaccesstoa)anyinformationheldbythestateandb)anyinformationthatisheldbyanotherpersonandthatisrequiredfortheexerciseorprotectionofanyrights.Membersshallensurethattheirsanitaryorphytosanitarymeasuresareadaptedtothesanitaryorphytosanitarycharacteristicsofthearea–whetherallofacountry,partofacountry,orallorpartsofseveralcountries–fromwhichtheproductoriginatedandtowhichtheproductisdestined.LonglistsLonglistscanbetypicallyfoundindefinitionprovisions,e.g."GovernmentalRule"meansanystatute,law,treaty,rule,code,ordinance,regulation,license,permit,certificateororderofanyGovernmentalAuthorityoranyjudgment,decree,injunction,writ,orderorlikeactionofanycourtorotherjudicialorquasijudicialtribunal."Person"meansanindividual,corporation,limitedliabilitycompany,partnership(limited,generalorotherwise),association,trust,businesstrust,orotherentityorgroup.NominalizationNominalizationistheprocessbywhichagrammaticalexpression(veryoftenaverbphrase)isturnedintoanounphrase,e.g.toapply=tomakeanapplicationAnamendmenttotheConstitutionofCanadamaybemadebyproclamationissuedbytheGovernorGeneral…Norestrictionsmaybeplacedontheexerciseoftheserightsotherthanthoseimposedinconformitywiththelaw…Inthepreparationandapplicationofsanitaryorphytosanitarymeasures,MembersshalltakeaccountofthespecialneedsofdevelopingcountryMembers,andinparticularoftheleast-developedcountryMembers.LastWillandTestamentofEl