scholarly journals THE RIGHT TO A FAIR TRIAL: THE ROLE OF THE TRANSLATORINTERPRETER IN THE CRIMINAL TRIAL

Author(s):  
Diana-Domnica Dănişor
Keyword(s):  

The judicial dialogue, as an expression of judicial controversy, is organized in thenational language. In order to observe the principle of audi alteram partem, when a litigantspeaking another language is present, it is required that the dialogue should be reconstitutedwith the assistance of a translator-interpreter. The latter informs the litigant who speaksanother language of “all acts that may affect him to a certain extent”, in order to make thecounsel understand the proceedings and to protect the rights of the person he defends. Thetranslator-interpreter is thus the protector of the rights of the person for whom he translates,allowing the accused to participate in the debate. The presence of this occasionalcollaborator is a guarantee of good justice. Standing among the actors of a trial, theinterpreter is the faithful transmitter of each person’s words by the search of equivalencesbetween two utterances. The translation must render as accurately as possible the intentionsof the author of the translated utterance, thus becoming an “accurate re-creation”, a“creation of meaning”. Frequently based on “syntactical archaisms” and “stereotypedformulas”, these turns do not have an equivalent in other languages.

Author(s):  
Kate Leader

The live presence of a defendant at trial is a long-standing feature of adversarial criminal trial. So much of what constitutes the adversarial method of adjudication is dependent on qualities that arise from this presence: confrontation and demeanor assessment, among other factors, play important roles in how truth is constructed. As such, performative matters—how a defendant enacts and inhabits her role, how she is positioned or silenced-- have long been of concern to legal scholars. These performative concerns are also centrally implicated in defendant rights, such as the right to a fair trial. But today we face new challenges that call into question fundamental beliefs around trials, defendant presence, and fairness. First, technological advances have led to defendants appearing remotely in hearings from the prison in which they are held. Second, the trial itself is arguably vanishing in most adversarial jurisdictions. Third, the use of trials in absentia means that criminal trials may take place in a defendant’s absence; in England and Wales for less serious offenses this can be done without inquiring why a defendant isn’t there. This chapter therefore seeks to understand the performative implications of these challenges by shifting the conversation from presence to absence. What difference does it make if a defendant is no longer there? Does being there facilitate greater fairness, despite the obvious issues of constraint and silencing? Drawing on sociolegal, political, and performance theory the chapter considers the implications of absence in the criminal trial, asking what happens when the defendant disappears.


2021 ◽  
pp. 132-162
Author(s):  
Martin Hannibal ◽  
Lisa Mountford

This chapter first explains the role of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and the factors that are taken into account when deciding to charge a suspect or to divert him from prosecution. It then examines the important obligations which are placed upon the CPS both at common law and under statute to serve pre-trial disclosure of evidence upon the defendant and their importance to the right to a fair trial. Defence disclosure obligations are also considered.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (38) ◽  
pp. 168-177
Author(s):  
Boris Perezhniak ◽  
Dariia Balobanova ◽  
Liliia Timofieieva ◽  
Olena Tavlui ◽  
Yuliia Poliuk

One of the most important places among the universally recognized rights is the right to a fair trial. The essence of this right is that any violated right can be restored through a particular procedure. In the absence of an effective method for the protection of rights and interests, the rights and freedoms recognized and enshrined in law are only declarative provisions. Given the significant role of the right to a fair trial and changes in its provision under quarantine restrictions, it is necessary to analyze the content of this right, highlight principal requirements and problematic aspects of implementation given the current conditions of social relations. The purpose of the work is to analyze the content of the right to a fair trial. The subject of the study is the social relations that arise, change, and terminate during the exercise of the right to a fair trial. The research methodology includes such methods as a statistical-mathematical method, method of social-legal experiment, cybernetic method, comparative-legal method, formal-legal method, logical-legal method, and method of alternatives. The study will analyze the content of the right to a fair trial as international law and national law, its impact and interaction with the national legal system of Ukraine, which includes theoretical, applied, and common law aspects and conceptual rethinking in an era of quarantine restrictions.


Author(s):  
Martin Hannibal ◽  
Lisa Mountford

This chapter first explains the role of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and the factors that are taken into account when deciding to charge a suspect or to divert him from prosecution. It then examines the important obligations which are placed upon the CPS both at common law and under statute to serve pre-trial disclosure of evidence upon the defendant and their importance to the right to a fair trial. Defence disclosure obligations are also considered.


2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 187-223
Author(s):  
Jamil Ddamulira Mujuzi

Abstract Article 3(1) of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Establishment of an African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights provides that: “[t]he jurisdiction of the Court shall extend to all cases and disputes submitted to it concerning the interpretation and application of the [African] Charter, this Protocol and any other relevant Human Rights instrument ratified by the States concerned.” Since its establishment, the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights has handed down judgments dealing, inter alia, with the right to a fair trial under Article 7 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. This article discusses these judgments to highlight how the Court has interpreted or applied Article 7 of the African Charter. The author will analyse the jurisprudence of the Court on the right to a fair trial and in particular discuss the following themes that have emerged from this jurisprudence: the Court’s interpretation of the components of the right to a fair trial; the right to be heard and the right to defend oneself; the right to legal assistance, including legal aid; manifest errors in the trial; the right to be tried within a reasonable time; and the role of a prosecutor in contributing to the fairness of the trial. The author also discusses how the African Court has invoked other treaties to interpret the relevant provisions of the African Charter and how the African Court has interpreted other treaties apart from the African Charter.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Naziah Mohd Alias

<p>This dissertation argues that the protections for vulnerable accused in Malaysian criminal trials are not sufficient. It is crucial to ensure that vulnerable accused receive proper treatment when dealing with the court. After thoroughly scrutinising the law and practice in several other jurisdictions, this dissertation proposes several amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code and the Evidence Act 1950 to provide clear guidelines as to how to deal with vulnerable accused in a criminal trial. It is ultimately recommended that the right to give an unsworn statement be modified so that it is more effective and fair in its operation. This dissertation further recommends the introduction of an adverse inference clause for the right to remain silent at trial so accused person can better understand the effect of their choice. Recommendations are also made to introduce an intermediary service for those vulnerable accused who choose to give sworn evidence in court, and to allow a support person to accompany a vulnerable accused during trial. These amendments aim to assist vulnerable accused persons physically and emotionally, and to protect their fair trial rights.</p>


Author(s):  
Martin Hannibal ◽  
Lisa Mountford

This chapter first explains the role of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and the factors that are taken into account when deciding to charge a suspect or to divert him from prosecution. It then examines the important obligations which are placed upon the CPS both at common law and under statute to serve pre-trial disclosure of evidence upon the defendant and their importance to the right to a fair trial. Defence disclosure obligations are also considered.


2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 133-141
Author(s):  
A A Tymoshenko

The article considers the problem of respect for the right to a fair trial at the pre-trial stage of the criminal process. It is pro- posed to take into account the secondary role of pre-trial activity, whose task is to prepare materials for trial. This competitiveness for the prosecution is not allowed. Analysis of the European Court of Human Rights indicates sufficient blurring boundaries that separate statement of the facts of the presence or absence of a violation of Art. 6 of the European Convention «On Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms» (the right to a fair trial). But in any case the decision is motivated by the observance of guarantees of access to justice. Hence, any infringement of the possibi


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