Speak English or What?

Codeswitching and Interpreter Use in New York City Courts

Philipp Sebastian Angermeyer

Oxford Studies in Language and Law

Analyzes interpreter-mediated interaction in New York City small claims courts
Draws on audio-recorded arbitration hearings and ethnographic fieldwork

Speak English or What?

Codeswitching and Interpreter Use in New York City Courts

Philipp Sebastian Angermeyer

Oxford Studies in Language and Law

Description

This book presents a study of interpreter-mediated interaction in New York City small claims courts, drawing on audio-recorded arbitration hearings and ethnographic fieldwork. Focusing on the language use of speakers of Haitian Creole, Polish, Russian, or Spanish, the study explores how these litigants make use of their limited proficiency in English, in addition to communicating with the help of professional court interpreters. Drawing on research on courtroom interaction, legal interpreting, and conversational codeswitching, the study explores how the ability of immigrant litigants to participate in these hearings is impacted by institutional language practices and underlying language ideologies, as well as by the approaches of individual arbitrators and interpreters who vary in their willingness to accommodate to litigants and share the burden of communication with them. Litigants are shown to codeswitch between the languages in interactionally meaningful ways that facilitate communication, but such bilingual practices are found to be in conflict with court policies that habitually discourage the use of English and require litigants to act as monolinguals, using only one language throughout the entire proceedings. Moreover, the standard distribution of interpreting modes in the courtroom is shown to disadvantage litigants who rely on the interpreter, as consecutive interpreting causes their narrative testimony to be less coherent and more prone to interruptions, while simultaneous interpreting often leads to incomplete translation of legal arguments or of their opponent's testimony. Consequently, the study raises questions about the relationship between linguistic diversity and inequality, arguing that the legal system inherently privileges speakers of English.

Speak English or What?

Codeswitching and Interpreter Use in New York City Courts

Philipp Sebastian Angermeyer

Oxford Studies in Language and Law

Chapter 1. Indexicalities of language choice in small claims court
Chapter 2. Challenging claims: Immigrants in small claims court
Chapter 3. "I've heard your story:" How arbitrators decide
Chapter 4. Only translating? The role of the interpreter
Chapter 5. Testifying in another language: What's lost in translation
Chapter 6. Codeswitching in the courtroom
Chapter 7. Language ideology and legal outcomes
Appendix
References

Speak English or What?

Codeswitching and Interpreter Use in New York City Courts

Philipp Sebastian Angermeyer

Oxford Studies in Language and Law

Author Information

Philipp Sebastian Angermeyer, Associate Professor of Linguistics, York University

Philipp Sebastian Angermeyer is Assistant Professor in the Department of Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics at York University.

Contributors:

n/a

Speak English or What?

Codeswitching and Interpreter Use in New York City Courts

Philipp Sebastian Angermeyer

Oxford Studies in Language and Law

Reviews and Awards

"... this book goes beyond court interpreting per se, spotlighting other topics that have been under-researched to date, such as codeswitching in interpreted interactions ... brings new and original ideas and perspectives to the study of court interpreting. A breath of fresh air." - Journal of Specialised Translation

"The book raises important questions about the fairness of trial for speakers of languages other than English (LOTE) as it explores how language ideologies and institutional practices act litigants opportunity to tell their story ... It will certainly be most useful in research and teaching of multilingual practices in a legal context." - Piotr Wegorowski, Language and Law

"Angermeyer convincingly shows throughout this book how speaking a language other than English in court is a disadvantage for litigants, not only with regard to the possibility of making one's voice heard, but also for the actual legal outcome" - Raphael Sannholm, Interpreting 18:2 (2016)

"I must once again applaud this thought-provoking book that brings new and original ideas and perspectives to the study of court interpreting. A breath of fresh air." - Mireia Vargas-Urpi, Journal of Specialised Translation