What is legal language and where is it found? What does a forensic linguist do? How can linguistic skills help legal professionals?
We are constantly surrounded by legal language, but sometimes it is almost impossible to understand. Providing extracts from real-life legal cases, this highly usable and accessible textbook brims with helpful examples and activities that will help you to navigate this area.
Language and Law:
• introduces useful linguistic concepts and tools
• outlines the methods linguists employ to analyse legal language and language in legal situations
• includes topics on such as: written legal language; threats, warnings and speech act theory; courtroom interactions and the work linguists do to help solve crimes; physical and 'spoken' signs; and the creativity of legal language
Introduction
1. Finding the Language
2. The Language of Law
3. Don't Do it!
4. That's Not What I Meant
5. The Trials of Language
6. Different Language Different Rules
7. The CSI Effect?
8. The Pen is Mighty
9. Once Upon a Time
10. Signs in Time and Space
Coda
References
Index.
Annabelle Mooney is a Reader in Sociolinguistics, Department of Media, Culture and Language at the University of Roehampton, UK. Her research concerns language and the law, and she is currently working on human rights.
