scholarly journals Towards a Conceptualization of Legal English as a Lingua Franca?

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 14
Author(s):  
Patrizia Anesa

English is de facto reinforcing its role as the language of international legal communication. Indeed, while different national languages continue to play a crucial role in the definition, the execution, and the application of the law, English is increasingly employed by non-native legal professionals worldwide. Thus, this study focuses on the use of English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) in legal settings and aims to offer considerations towards the conceptualization of Legal English as a Lingua Franca (LELF). As English is considered a global asset in legal communication, it is argued that a finer problematization of LELF is imperative. In this respect, the study also discusses whether it is possible to apply the concept of a lingua franca to legal language tout court or whether the distinctive features of legal discourse across systems make the definition of LELF inapplicable from a conceptual perspective. This article also offers a reflection on the main concerns which arise regarding the widespread use of English in legal settings, especially in the light of the specificities of different legal systems, legal cultures and communities of practice. Thus, all stakeholders involved should adopt a more reflexive approach in order to go beyond the unproblematic acceptance of LELF across legal settings and to be more aware of the implications and consequences that its usage entails.

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 235-268 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Alsina Naudi

Abstract Implementing plain legal language is a project for those who are trying to build trust in legal systems all over the world. This paper aims at comparing successful policies in certain countries and describing the efforts made towards achieving a Spanish plain legal discourse. The paper lays out the definition of plain language, reviews the reluctance of professionals to make changes in legal language and specifies which legal documents are under discussion. The long-standing plain English movement and the positive Swedish example are considered, in combination with the ongoing developments of the German and French legal languages. It then analyses the legislative process within the European Union and uncovers the need for more collaboration between jurists and linguists. Adding to these case studies, this paper interrogates the contemporary state of legal Spanish. Despite institutional efforts in various countries, which are detailed in the last section, legal Spanish remains obscure and holds back the democratization of justice. Taking into account that Spanish is the second-most widely spoken language in the world and the wide use of the Internet for legal matters, the need to clarify legalese is more pressing than ever. The demand for trust in justice advances incessantly, but the implementation of a transparent legal discourse seems to be at a standstill.


Author(s):  
Benjamin E. Reynolds

The central place of revelation in the Gospel of John and the Gospel’s revelatory telling of the life of Jesus are distinctive features of John when compared with the Synoptic Gospels; yet, when John is compared among the apocalypses, these same features indicate John’s striking affinity with the genre of apocalypse. By paying attention to modern genre theory and making an extensive comparison with the standard definition of “apocalypse,” the Gospel of John reflects similarities with Jewish apocalypses in form, content, and function. Even though the Gospel of John reflects similarities with the genre of apocalypse, John is not an apocalypse, but in genre theory terms, John may be described as a gospel in kind and an apocalypse in mode. John’s narrative of Jesus’s life has been qualified and shaped by the genre of apocalypse, such that it may be called an “apocalyptic” gospel. Understanding the Fourth Gospel as “apocalyptic” Gospel provides an explanation for John’s appeal to Israel’s Scriptures and Mosaic authority. Possible historical reasons for the revelatory narration of Jesus’s life in the Gospel of John may be explained by the Gospel’s relationship with the book of Revelation and the history of reception concerning their writing. An examination of Byzantine iconographic traditions highlights how reception history may offer a possible explanation for reading John as “apocalyptic” Gospel.


2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaakko Husa

AbstractThis article examines the complicated legal-cultural process in which Roman law became Byzantine law and Roman legal discourse altered into Byzantine legal discourse. Roman law’s transformation into Early Byzantine law is analysed from the point of view of legal language which mutated from Latin to Greek. The approach is legal cultural and legal linguistic and focuses on the overall shape and general patterns. The goal is to highlight how legal-cultural transformation was incremental, language-bound and that there was no radical or sudden culmination point. Moreover, the analysis answers generally to the question of why sixth-century Byzantine legislative Greek contained frequent Latin loans, expressions, phrases and distortions. The discussion concentrates on the Novellae as an integral part of the process of legal cultural and linguistic change from Roman to Byzantine. Instead of going into detailed linguistic analysis, this article underlines generally the contextuality of law and the importance of legal culture


2021 ◽  
Vol 60 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 363-398

Abstract The Roman father and son of the same name, P. Decius Mus, became paragon heroes by deliberately giving their lives in battle that Rome might win over a fierce enemy. Both engaged in a special ritual called devotio (from which our word “devotion” derives) to offer themselves to the gods of the Underworld, with whom regular people have very little interaction and to whom they rarely sacrifice. While the Mus family is the most famous for this act, it turns out the willingness to sacrifice oneself for Rome frequently occurs within stories of great patriots, including the story of Horatius Cocles, Mettius Curtius, Atilius Regulus, and even the traitors Coriolanus and Tarpeia. Romans regarded self-sacrifice as a very high, noble endeavor, whereas they loathed and persecuted practitioners of human sacrifice. It is therefore quite amazing to read that the Romans thrice engaged in state-sponsored human sacrifice, a fact they rarely mention and generally forget. The most famous enemy practitioners of human sacrifice were the Druids, whom the Romans massacred on Mona Island on Midsummer Night's Eve, but the Carthaginians, the Germans, the Celts, and the Thracians all infamously practiced human sacrifice. To Romans, the act of human sacrifice falls just short of cannibalism in the spectrum of forbidden practices, and was an accusation occasionally thrown against an enemy to claim they are totally barbaric. On the other hand, Romans recognized their own who committed acts of self-sacrifice for the good of the society, as heroes. There can be no better patriot than he who gives his life to save his country. Often the stories of their heroism have been exaggerated or sanitized. These acts of heroism often turn out to be acts of human sacrifice, supposedly a crime. It turns out that Romans have a strong legacy of practicing human sacrifice that lasts into the historic era, despite their alleged opposition to it. Numerous sources relate one story each. Collecting them all makes it impossible to deny the longevity of human sacrifice in Rome, although most Romans under the emperors were probably unaware of it. The paradox of condemning but still practicing human sacrifice demonstrates the nature of Roman religion, where do ut des plays a crucial role in standard sacrifice as well as in unpleasant acts like human sacrifice. Devotio was an inverted form of sacrifice, precisely because it was an offering to the gods of the Underworld, rather than to Jupiter or the Parcae. Romans may have forsaken devotio, but they continued to practice human sacrifice far longer than most of us have suspected, if one widens the current narrow definition of human sacrifice to include events where a life is taken in order to bring about a better future for the commonwealth, appease the gods, or ensure a Roman victory in battle.


2018 ◽  
Vol 43 (02) ◽  
pp. 528-553 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanoch Dagan ◽  
Roy Kreitner

New legal realism (NLR) furthers the legal realist legacy by focusing attention on both the pertinent social science and the craft that typifies legal discourse and legal institutions. NLR's globalized ambitions also highlight the potential of a nonstatist view of law. The realist view of law raises three challenges facing NLR: identifying the “lingua franca” of law as an academic discipline within which NLR insights on translation and synthesis should be situated; conceptualizing NLR's focus on bottom-up investigation, so that it does not defy the rule of law; and recognizing the normative underpinning for NLR's reformist impulse.


Author(s):  
Oleksandr Petryk ◽  
Alexander Meleshchenko ◽  
Anastasiia Volobuieva

On 7 May 2015, the term “esports” was officially added to one of the most extensive online English dictionaries “Dictionary.com.” The dictionary gives the following definition of the term “esports”: “competitive tournaments of video games, especially among professional gamers” (IGN, 2015). The history of esports began in the late 20th century with the game Quake, which allowed users to play together through a LAN or internet network. Since then, a tremendous number of new esports leagues have emerged. Every year, game publishers promote esports disciplines; create a media space around them, and make competitively oriented games, creating an active audience. The popularity of computer-based esports grows each year at an increasing speed. Therefore, it is not surprising that the traditional for typical sports (football, basketball, volleyball, etc.) model of interaction between professional players (esports athletes) and sports clubs (esports organizations) emerged quite rapidly. This interaction aims to optimize the training process to increase athletic achievements and develop the media component for players and clubs. This article analyzes how esports clubs function in media spaces: their goals, tools, strategies, results, and development prospects on the examples and experience of professional esports organizations in Germany, Finland, and China.


Author(s):  
José Ferraz-Caetano ◽  
João Paiva ◽  
Francisco Malta Romeiras

Resumo No final do século XIX, a química ganhou notoriedade como uma das principais “ciências ao serviço” da nação. O surgimento de novos tópicos, métodos e práticas úteis contribuíram para a valorização da química e para a definição de medidas governamentais em temas como saúde pública, educação e proteção ambiental. Lente na Academia Politécnica do Porto entre 1877 e 1910, António Ferreira da Silva (1853–1923) desempenhou um papel central na modernização do ensino e da investigação em química em Portugal. Ferreira da Silva foi responsável pela introdução de cursos suplementares de química, pela reformulação do ensino prático, e pela elaboração de novos procedimentos e regulamentos de ensino “que em muito engrandeceram a educação científica” em Portugal. Enquanto lente da Academia Politécnica do Porto, Ferreira da Silva privilegiou ainda a articulação entre o Laboratório da Academia e as indústrias nacionais, contribuindo, em larga medida, para emergência da Química Analítica como uma nova disciplina.Palavras-chave: António Ferreira da Silva; Academia Politécnica do Porto; Química Analítica. Abstract By the turn of the nineteenth century, chemistry had become a “science at the service” of the nation. The emergence of useful topics, methods, and practices contributed to the valorization of chemistry and to the definition of new governmental directives on issues such as public health, education and environment. Lecturer at the Academia Politécnica do Porto between 1877 and 1911, António Ferreira da Silva (1853–1923) played a crucial role in the modernization of the teaching and practice of chemistry in Portugal. Ferreira da Silva created new supplementary chemistry courses, reformed the practical teaching of chemistry, and drafted new proceedings and syllabi “that glorified scientific education” in Portugal. As lecturer of the Academia Politécnica do Porto, he made important steps in the establishment of collaborations between the Academia’s Laboratory and national industries, which largely contributed to the emergence of Analytical Chemistry as an autonomous discipline. Keywords: António Ferreira da Silva; Academia Politécnica do Porto; Analytical Chemistry.


Author(s):  
Ioana CECOVNIUC ◽  

The aim of this paper is to briefly review the work of three contemporary Romanian poets from an ectopic point of view. Consequently, the starting point will be from Tomás Albaladejo Mayordomo’s definition of “ectopic literature” (2011), seen as the literature that is produced by an author who changes his usual topos (physical, socio-cultural and linguistic background) for an initially odd or peculiar one. Distinctive features of “ectopic literature” as well as significant factors - such as autobiographical data and main themes - are earmarked to be applied to the work for subsequent analysis.


Author(s):  
Татьяна Александровна Скворцова ◽  
Максим Викторович Астафуров

Статья посвящена исследованию достаточно молодого феномена “lex sportivа”, выявлению подходов к определению сущности и структуры “lex sportivа”, определению сходных и отличительных черт между системами lex sportiva и lex mercatoria. Проанализированы решения Спортивного арбитражного суда в г. Лозанне и их влияние на формирование lex sportiva. Дано определение lex sportiva на основе проведенного исследования. The article is devoted to the research of the fairly young phenomenon of lex sportiva, to the detection of the approaches to defining the matter and structure “lex sportiva”, to the qualification of the similarities and distinctive features between the “lex sportiva” and “lex mercatoria” systems. Analyzed the decisions of the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne and their influence on the formation of the lex sportiva. The definition of lex sportiva is given on the basis of the conducted research.


Author(s):  
Erica Cooper

In this chapter, I examine the extent to which one-drop ideology continues to dictate the legal definition of whiteness. The following questions serve as the basis of my research: 1) How do “white,” “mixed race or colored,” and the “one-drop rule” operate as ideographs in post-civil rights legal discourse? 2) Has the codification of the one-drop rule and whiteness been severed in contemporary legal discourse? To address the first research question, I use an ideographic analysis to examine legal briefs from the Malone Brothers and Mary Walker cases. To address my second research question, I complete a content analysis of state and/or federal court cases, 12 involving racial identity from 1980 to 2012, thereby demonstrating that a dramatic shift occurs in how white and mixed race are defined in the language endorsed by court justices.


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