# What countries have trials in more than one language? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 19, 2019, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-trials-in-more-than-one-language/834174 "2019-05-19T01:38:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2019, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-trials-in-more-than-one-language/834174/21 "2019-05-19T19:01:17Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > It can be an issue because bilingualism is not equally distributed. Large chunks of anglo-Canada is primarily Anglophone only, and large chunks of Quebec are Francophone only. My co-worker’s husband (in Toronto) would insist on a French-language trial whenever he got a speeding ticket. Apparently that resulted in the ticket getting dismissed more often than not. ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-trials-in-more-than-one-language/834174/22 "2019-05-20T01:24:14Z")
I can’t remember where but there used to be a Pacific Island that was jointly administered by the UK and France (Vanuatu?). IIRC the deal was the British would police the island one day, with English speaking courts then the French would the next day and so on. Eventually UK had enough and made the island independent and the French were so cranky about it they refused to attend the ceremony and took all of their equipment, office supplies etc and shipped it back home. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-trials-in-more-than-one-language/834174/23 "2019-05-20T05:06:42Z")
In South Africa, everyone has the right to use one of the 11 official languages in court, but English has been the only language of record for all courts since 2017. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-trials-in-more-than-one-language/834174/24 "2019-05-20T05:14:33Z")
When you say “everyone” can choose which language to use, does that include judges and prosecutors? Or do they just speak English? ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-trials-in-more-than-one-language/834174/25 "2019-05-20T06:06:35Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > It can be an issue because bilingualism is not equally distributed. Large chunks of anglo-Canada is primarily Anglophone only, and large chunks of Quebec are Francophone only. It can take a while, but as I am sure you know, **Northern Piper** , things can be arranged for proceedings to take place in French in Anglophone Canada. A Francophone friend and colleague of mine, located in Edmonton, gets some work this way. It hasn’t happened often, but he has been called in to represent various interests in French in the courts in Edmonton, and environs. As I said, it takes some time to pull everybody together (lawyers, judge, clerk, etc.), but he has acted for clients in entirely-in-French proceedings here in primarily-Anglophone Alberta. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 8:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-trials-in-more-than-one-language/834174/26 "2019-05-20T08:31:19Z")
> [@doreen](#): > > I’m not so sure that providing interpreters qualifies as conducting a trial in both languages. I mean, nobody considers a trial to be conducted in five languages when the records are kept in English, the judges and lawyers and court personnel all use English and the defendant and some witnesses do not speak English and speak four non-English languages between them. And if that counts, then the US conducts trials in multiple languages. Agreed; It is fairly common to have an interpreter in UK courts, but the trial is conducted in English. Even if the judge and counsel spoke English as a second language and had a different language in common, there is no question that the trial would be in English. Even in Wales, where everyone might be Welsh-speaking, the trial is effectively in English. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 9:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-trials-in-more-than-one-language/834174/27 "2019-05-20T09:54:16Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Interesting that in both Pakistan and India the courts operate in English. Is that because there are so many local languages that English is an acceptable _lingua franca_? Simply yes. And it avoids the thorny ethnic issues & also the unique headaches of regional minority languages. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 11:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-trials-in-more-than-one-language/834174/28 "2019-05-20T11:30:15Z")
The Eighth Schedule of the [Indian] Constitution consists of the following 22 languages – Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, Bodo, Santhali, Maithili and Dogri. > **[Census: More than 19,500 languages spoken in India as mother tongues](https://gulfnews.com/world/asia/india/census-more-than-19500-languages-spoken-in-india-as-mother-tongues-1.2244791)** > > The mother tongue of each member of a household need not necessarily be the same There are some 19,500 languages/dialects that are recognised as distinct. ---
**Author:** ![am77494](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d2c977/32.png) [@am77494](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/am77494)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-trials-in-more-than-one-language/834174/29 "2019-05-20T13:14:14Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Interesting that in both Pakistan and India the courts operate in English. Is that because there are so many local languages that English is an acceptable _lingua franca_? India’s constitution was adopted from the best practices of UK, US, Ireland, France, Canada, Australia and Soviet Union. Cite : [Constitution of India - Wikipedia](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitution_of_India) India has been a democratic country since 1947 (independence) and has strived to be secular and inclusive. For Pakistan “The Constitution declared Pakistan an Islamic Republic and Islam as the state religion. It also stated that all laws would have to be brought into accordance with the injunctions of Islam as laid down in the Quran and Sunnah and that no law repugnant to such injunctions could be enacted.” cite : [Islam in Pakistan - Wikipedia](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam_in_Pakistan) As a note, Islam unlike other religions, dictates a country’s law, banking and many other systems. A recent example is the death penalty case for a Christian woman in Pakistan for blasphemy. So the Indian acceptance of many languages is driven by the acceptance and respect of many ethnicities and the idea to let them individually flourish. In Pakistan “Islam was stated to be more important than ethnicity.” Cite : [Islam in Pakistan - Wikipedia](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam_in_Pakistan) This was one of the reasons Bangladesh broke apart from Pakistan. The Pakistanis imposes Urdu (their language) for all official business whereas the Bangladeshis values their own Bengali language. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-trials-in-more-than-one-language/834174/30 "2019-05-20T14:30:50Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > When you say “everyone” can choose which language to use, does that include judges and prosecutors? Yes > [@](#): > > Or do they just speak English? …but also, mostly this. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-trials-in-more-than-one-language/834174/31 "2019-05-20T15:35:21Z")
> [@Spoons](#): > > As I said, it takes some time to pull everybody together (lawyers, judge, clerk, etc.), but he has acted for clients in entirely-in-French proceedings here in primarily-Anglophone Alberta. The big issue is assembling a jury pool. I’ve heard of one case in the NWT where the court services had trouble getting a jury pool of French-speaking jurors, and also that the issue has come up in some areas of Quebec, where it’s been difficult to get a jury pool of English-speaking jurors. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-trials-in-more-than-one-language/834174/32 "2019-05-20T15:45:56Z")
> [@bob\_2](#): > > Agreed; It is fairly common to have an interpreter in UK courts, but the trial is conducted in English. Even if the judge and counsel spoke English as a second language and had a different language in common, there is no question that the trial would be in English. Even in Wales, where everyone might be Welsh-speaking, the trial is effectively in English. This article from the BBC in 2017 says that there is an increasing number of trials conducted in Welsh, not English: “Predicted rise in court cases heard in Welsh language” > [@](#): > > There were 570 cases heard in Welsh in 2015-16, including one judicial review, and that figure is anticipated to rise to rise to 600-700 by the end of this year. > > Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd’s annual report said that there had been “increased awareness” of the impact of devolution in Wales. > > The number of Welsh speaking judges has also risen. (And as an aside, Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd is a really Welsh name!) > **[Predicted rise in court cases heard in Welsh language](https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-41254183)** > > The number of court cases heard in Welsh is expected to be 600-700 by the end of the year. ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-trials-in-more-than-one-language/834174/33 "2019-05-20T18:07:28Z")
> [@russian\_heel](#): > > I can’t remember where but there used to be a Pacific Island that was jointly administered by the UK and France (Vanuatu?). IIRC the deal was the British would police the island one day, with English speaking courts then the French would the next day and so on. From the wikipedia article, it wasn’t the case. The court was common (one French judge, one British, and until the 1930, one Spanish) and the defendant could choose which law would apply. In fact, you could chose your law for everything. For instance, an immigrant could choose to immigrate under French or British law, a corporation could be created according to French or British law, etc… What I’m wondering is what happened for civil trials if one side wanted French law and the other British law. The article describes the situation as chaotic, which is what I would expect. The only thing that alternated was the police force. ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2019, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-trials-in-more-than-one-language/834174/34 "2019-05-21T03:11:43Z")
OK thanks. I remembered hearing this on the audio book “Pacific” making it hard to backtrack the complete situation. Did I have the island right? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2019, 9:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-trials-in-more-than-one-language/834174/35 "2019-05-21T09:42:04Z")
> [@russian\_heel](#): > > OK thanks. I remembered hearing this on the audio book “Pacific” making it hard to backtrack the complete situation. Did I have the island right? Yes, Vanuatu. previously known as the condominium of New Hebrides. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2019, 11:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-trials-in-more-than-one-language/834174/36 "2019-05-21T11:46:42Z")
> [@clairobscur](#): > > What I’m wondering is what happened for civil trials if one side wanted French law and the other British law. That already got solved by the Romans\* (whose Empire included a multitude of legal systems, plus Roman law itself): if the situation involved a contract, the contract itself needs to say under which courts/legal system will a conflict be decided; if it doesn’t, then the person suing does so under the system of his choice. - There may have been similar solutions invented by other people, but this is the one that I know of and the one from which European legal systems (and in turn, those of our former colonies) are said to derive it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-trials-in-more-than-one-language/834174.md?page=1)