Legal English, also known as legalese, is a

register Register or registration may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Register (music), the relative "height" or range of a note, melody, part, instrument, etc. * ''Register'', a 2017 album by Travis Miller * Registration (organ), ...

of English used in

legal writing Legal writing involves the analysis of fact patterns and presentation of arguments in documents such as legal memoranda and Brief (law), briefs. One form of legal writing involves drafting a balanced analysis of a legal problem or issue. Another ...

. It differs from day-to-day spoken English in a variety of ways including the use of specialized vocabulary, syntactic constructions, and set phrases such as

legal doublet A legal doublet is a standardized phrase used frequently in English legal language consisting of two or more words that are irreversible binomials and frequently synonyms, usually connected by ''and'', such as ''cease and desist''. The order of th ...

s. Legal English has traditionally been the preserve of lawyers from

English-speaking countries The English-speaking world comprises the 88 countries and territories in which English is an official, administrative, or cultural language. In the early 2000s, between one and two billion people spoke English, making it the largest language ...

(especially the US, the UK, Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Kenya, and South Africa) which have shared common law traditions. However, due to the spread of Legal English as the predominant language of

international business International business refers to the trade of goods and service goods, services, technology, capital and/or knowledge across national borders and at a global or transnational scale. It includes all commercial activities that promote the transfer o ...

, as well as its role as a legal language within the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

, Legal English is now a global

phenomenon A phenomenon ( phenomena), sometimes spelled phaenomenon, is an observable Event (philosophy), event. The term came into its modern Philosophy, philosophical usage through Immanuel Kant, who contrasted it with the noumenon, which ''cannot'' be ...

Historical development

prehistoric Britain Several species of humans have intermittently occupied Great Britain for almost a million years. The earliest evidence of human occupation around 900,000 years ago is at Happisburgh on the Norfolk coast, with stone tools and footprints prob ...

, traditional common law was discussed in the vernacular (see Celtic law). The legal language and legal tradition changed with waves of conquerors over the following centuries.

Roman Britain Roman Britain was the territory that became the Roman province of ''Britannia'' after the Roman conquest of Britain, consisting of a large part of the island of Great Britain. The occupation lasted from AD 43 to AD 410. Julius Caes ...

(after the

conquest Conquest involves the annexation or control of another entity's territory through war or Coercion (international relations), coercion. Historically, conquests occurred frequently in the international system, and there were limited normative or ...

beginning in AD 43) followed Roman legal tradition, and its legal language was Latin. Following the Roman departure from Britain circa 410 and the Anglo-Saxon invasion of Britain, the dominant tradition was instead

Anglo-Saxon law Anglo-Saxon law (, later ; , ) was the legal system of Anglo-Saxon England from the 6th century until the Norman Conquest of 1066. It was a form of Germanic law based on unwritten custom known as folk-right and on written laws enacted by Histo ...

, which was discussed in the Germanic vernacular (

Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...

), and written in Old English since circa 600, beginning with the

Law of Æthelberht The Law of Æthelberht is a set of legal provisions written in Old English, probably dating to the early 7th century. It originates in the kingdom of Kent, and is the first Germanic-language law code. It is also thought to be the earliest exam ...

. Following the Norman invasion of England in 1066,

Anglo-Norman French Anglo-Norman (; ), also known as Anglo-Norman French, was a dialect of Old Norman that was used in England and, to a lesser extent, other places in Great Britain and Ireland during the Anglo-Norman period. Origin The term "Anglo-Norman" har ...

became the official language of legal proceedings in England for a period of nearly 300 years until the Pleading in English Act 1362 (and continued in minor use for another 300 years), while

Medieval Latin Medieval Latin was the form of Literary Latin used in Roman Catholic Church, Roman Catholic Western Europe during the Middle Ages. It was also the administrative language in the former Western Roman Empire, Roman Provinces of Mauretania, Numidi ...

was used for written records for over 650 years. Some English technical terms were retained, however (see Anglo-Saxon law: Language and dialect for details). In legal pleadings, Anglo-Norman developed into

Law French Law French () is an archaic language originally based on Anglo-Norman, but increasingly influenced by Parisian French and, later, English. It was used in the law courts of England from the 13th century. Its use continued for several centur ...

, from which many words in modern legal English are derived. These include ''property'', ''estate'', ''chattel'', ''lease'', ''executor'', and ''tenant''. The use of Law French during this period had an enduring influence on the general

linguistic register In sociolinguistics, a register is a variety of language used for a particular purpose or particular communicative situation. For example, when speaking officially or in a public setting, an English speaker may be more likely to follow prescri ...

of modern legal English. That use also accounts for some of the complex linguistic structures used in legal writing. In 1362, the Statute of Pleading was enacted, which stated that all legal proceedings should be conducted in English (but recorded in Latin). This marked the beginning of formal Legal English; Law French continued to be used in some forms into the 17th century, although Law French became increasingly degenerate. From 1066,

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

was the language of formal records and

statutes A statute is a law or formal written enactment of a legislature. Statutes typically declare, command or prohibit something. Statutes are distinguished from court law and unwritten law (also known as common law) in that they are the expressed wil ...

, and was replaced by English in the Proceedings in Courts of Justice Act 1730. However, because only the highly-educated were fluent in Latin, it never became the language of legal pleading or debate. The influence of Latin can be seen in a number of words and phrases such as ''

ad hoc ''Ad hoc'' is a List of Latin phrases, Latin phrase meaning literally for this. In English language, English, it typically signifies a solution designed for a specific purpose, problem, or task rather than a Generalization, generalized solution ...

'', '' de facto'', ''

de jure In law and government, ''de jure'' (; ; ) describes practices that are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms, regardless of whether the practice exists in reality. The phrase is often used in contrast with '' de facto'' ('from fa ...

'', ''

bona fide In human interactions, good faith () is a sincere intention to be fair, open, and honest, regardless of the outcome of the interaction. Some Latin phrases have lost their literal meaning over centuries, but that is not the case with , which is ...

'', ''inter alia'', and ''

ultra vires ('beyond the powers') is a Latin phrase used in law to describe an act that requires legal authority but is done without it. Its opposite, an act done under proper authority, is ('within the powers'). Acts that are may equivalently be termed ...

,'' which remain in current use in legal writing (see

Law Latin Law Latin, sometimes written L.L. or L. Lat., and sometimes derisively referred to as Dog Latin, is a form of Latin used in legal contexts. While some of the vocabulary does come from Latin, much of it stems from English. Law Latin may also be see ...

Style

In 2004,

David Crystal David Crystal, (born 6 July 1941) is a British linguist who works on the linguistics of the English language. Crystal studied English at University College London and has lectured at Bangor University and the University of Reading. He was aw ...

proposed a stylistic influence upon English legal language. During the

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

period, lawyers used a mixture of

, French and English. To avoid ambiguity, lawyers often offered pairs of words from different languages. Sometimes there was little ambiguity to resolve and the pairs merely gave greater emphasis, becoming a stylistic habit. This is a feature of legal style that continues to the present day. Examples of mixed language doublets are: "breaking and entering" (English/French), "fit and proper" (English/French), "lands and tenements" (English/French), and "will and testament" (English/Latin). Examples of English-only doublets are "let and hindrance" and "have and hold". Modern English vocabulary draws significantly from Germanic languages, French, and Latin, the lattermost often by way of French. These vocabularies are used preferentially in different registers, with words of French origin being more formal than those of Germanic origin, and words of Latin origin being more formal than those of French origin. Thus, the extensive use of French and Latin words in Legal English results in a relatively formal style. Further, legal English is useful for its dramatic effect: for example, a

subpoena A subpoena (; also subpœna, supenna or subpena) or witness summons is a writ issued by a government agency, most often a court, to compel testimony by a witness or production of evidence under a penalty for failure. There are two common types of ...

compelling a witness to appear in court often ends with the archaic threat "Fail not, at your peril"; the "peril" is not described (being arrested and held in

contempt of court Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful toward a court of law and its officers in the form of behavior that opposes or defies the authority, justice, and dignity of the co ...

) but the formality of the language tends to have a stronger effect on the recipient of the subpoena than a simple statement like "We can arrest you if you don't show up". Whereas legal language in the medieval period combined Latin, French, and English to avoid ambiguity. According to Walter Probert, judicial lawyers, roughly starting in the twentieth century, often manipulate the language to be more persuasive of their campaign ideals.

Key features

As noted above, legal English differs greatly from standard English in a number of ways. The most important of these differences are as follows: * Use of

terms of art Jargon, or technical language, is the specialized terminology associated with a particular field or area of activity. Jargon is normally employed in a particular communicative context and may not be well understood outside that context. The conte ...

. Legal English, in common with the language used by other trades and professions, employs a great deal of technical terminology which is unfamiliar to the

layman In religious organizations, the laity () — individually a layperson, layman or laywoman — consists of all members who are not part of the clergy, usually including any non-ordained members of religious orders, e.g. a nun or a lay brother. ...

(e.g. ''

waiver A waiver is the voluntary relinquishment or surrender of some known right or privilege. A waiver is often written, such as a disclaimer that has been accepted, but it may also be spoken between two or more parties. When the right to hold a ...

restraint of trade Restraints of trade is a common law doctrine relating to the enforceability of contractual restrictions on freedom to conduct business. It is a precursor of modern competition law. In an old leading case of '' Mitchel v Reynolds'' (1711) Lord S ...

restrictive covenant A covenant, in its most general and covenant (historical), historical sense, is a solemn promise to engage in or refrain from a specified action. Under historical English common law, a covenant was distinguished from an ordinary contract by the ...

promissory estoppel A promise is a commitment by someone to do or not do something. As a noun ''promise'' means a declaration assuring that one will or will not do something. As a verb it means to commit oneself by a promise to do or give. It can also mean a capacity ...

''). Much of this vocabulary is derived from French and Latin. * These terms of art include ordinary words used with special meanings. For example, the familiar term ''

consideration Consideration is a concept of English law, English common law and is a necessity for simple contracts but not for special contracts (contracts by deed). The concept has been adopted by other common law jurisdictions. It is commonly referred to a ...

'' refers, in legal English, to

contract A contract is an agreement that specifies certain legally enforceable rights and obligations pertaining to two or more parties. A contract typically involves consent to transfer of goods, services, money, or promise to transfer any of thos ...

s 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,'' and ''find''. * Lack of

punctuation Punctuation marks are marks indicating how a piece of writing, written text should be read (silently or aloud) and, consequently, understood. The oldest known examples of punctuation marks were found in the Mesha Stele from the 9th century BC, c ...

. Old legal documents sometimes omitted all punctuation. In England, this arose from the perception that the meaning of legal documents should be contained only in the words used, and that punctuation created ambiguity. Another reason was the concern that punctuation could be added undetectably to a document after it came into effect and so alter its meaning. Therefore, the presence of punctuation could be used to detect any tampering with the original document. Punctuation is commonly used in modern legal drafting to clarify the meaning of any particular sentence. * Use of doublets and triplets. The mix of languages used in early legalese led to the tendency in legal English to string together two or three words to convey a single legal concept. Examples are ''null and void'', ''fit and proper'', ''(due) care and attention'', ''perform and discharge'', ''terms and conditions'', ''controversy or claim'', ''promise, agree and covenant'' and ''cease and desist''. While originally being done to help all lawyers regardless of the language they spoke (English, French, or Latin), it now often joins words with identical meanings. * Unusual

word order In linguistics, word order (also known as linear order) is the order of the syntactic constituents of a language. Word order typology studies it from a cross-linguistic perspective, and examines how languages employ different orders. Correlatio ...

. There is a noticeable difference in the word order used compared to standard English. For example, ''the provisions for termination hereinafter appearing'' or ''will at the cost of the borrower forthwith comply with the same''. * Use of unfamiliar

pro-form In linguistics, a pro-form is a type of function word or expression (linguistics) that stands in for (expresses the same content as) another word, phrase, clause or sentence where the meaning is recoverable from the context. They are used eithe ...

s. For example, ''the same, the said, the aforementioned'' etc. The use of the terms often do not replace the noun but are used as adjectives to modify the noun. For example, ''the said John Smith''. * Use of pronominal adverbs. Words like ''hereof, thereof,'' and ''whereof'' (and further derivatives, including ''-at, -in, -after, -before, -with, -by, -above, -on, -upon'') are not often used in standard English. Their use in legal English is primarily to avoid repeating names or phrases, such as ''the parties hereto'' instead of ''the parties to this contract''. * ''-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 relationship is indicated by the use of alternative endings. * Use of phrasal verbs. Phrasal verbs play a large role in legal English and are often used in a quasi-technical sense, such as ''parties enter into contracts, put down deposits, serve'' ocuments''upon other parties, write off debts, attend at locations'', and so on. * Operation within a specific disciplinary value system delimited by professional, epistemological and pragmatic concerns (use of ''reasonable'', ''proper'', ''clear'', ''appropriate'', etc.).

Education

Because of the prevalence of the English language in international business relations, as well as its role as a legal language globally, a feeling has existed for a long period in the international legal community that traditional English language training is not sufficient to meet lawyers’ English language requirements. The main reason for this is that such training generally ignores the ways in which English usage may be modified by the particular demands of legal practice – and by the conventions of legal English as a separate branch of English in itself. As a result, non-native English speaking legal professionals and law students increasingly seek specialist training in legal English, and such training is now provided by law schools, language centres, private firms and podcasts that focus on legal language. The UK TOLES examination was set up to teach legal English to non-native English speakers. The exams focus on the aspects of legal English noted as lacking by lawyers. An annual Global Legal Skills Conference was also established as a forum for professors of Legal English and other skills professionals to exchange information on teaching methods and materials.

References

Footnotes

References

* Bain Butler, D. (2013). ''Strategies for clarity in legal writing''. Clarity 70. New York: Aspen Publishers. * Bain Butler, D. (2015). ''Developing international EFL/ESL scholarly writers''. * Bhatia, V. K. (1993). ''Analyzing genre: Language in professional settings''. London: Longman. * Goddard, C. (2010). “Didactic aspects of legal English: Dynamics of course preparation”, in ''ESP across cultures'', Special issue: ''Legal English across cultures'', eds. M. Gotti & C. Williams, vol. 7, 45-62. * Oates, L. & Enquist, A. (2009). ''Just writing: Grammar, punctuation, and style for the legal writer'', rev. edn. New York, NY: Aspen Publishers. * Ramsfield, J. (2005). ''Culture to culture: A guide to U.S. legal writing''. Durham, NC: Carolina Academic Press. * Tiersma, Peter M. (1999), ''Legal language''. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. * Wydick, R. (2005b). ''Plain English for lawyers: Teacher's manual'', 5th edn. Durham, NC: Carolina Academic Press.

External links

{{wikt, legalese
Strategies for clarity in legal writing
Clarity 70, p. 31 * M Pasternak, C Rico,
Tax Interpretation, Planning, and Avoidance: Some Linguistic Analysis
, 23 Akron Tax Journal, 33 (2008). * The

' (2006) by Rupert Haigh and published by Oxford University Press. *
English Style Guide
for the European Commission. *
programming language
to generate legal English from code.
Teaching legal English vocabulary
Ruth Breeze (ESP Today, 2015). English-language education Legal communication English legal terminology English for specific purposes Dialects of English

Historical development

Style

Key features

Education

See also

References

Footnotes

References

Further reading

External links