Latinisms in the English and Italian Legal Text Although the majority of terms that are found in the legal language used in English law documents, it as not entirely escaped the use of Latin. This is most common in areas of the law such as property. Furthermore, another problem that comes up quite often is in the translation of Italian documents to English. Italian uses Latin a great deal, and often it can be difficult to ascertain whether it is appropriate to leave the Latin as it stands, or to use an English term instead. Of course, this always depends on the context, and whether a translation would accurately convey the original meaning. English law uses so many Latin terms because it grew out of the legal development of the Middle Ages, when Latin, which was bolstered by the power and prestige of the Roman Catholic Church, was the lingua franca throughout Europe for written texts. Latin was also used by the political and educated class for both public and private business, across the entirety of Europe, and so it had the force of an institution. It was inevitable, therefore, that some of its precepts and formulations should become enshrined in the texts and professional speech of English lawgivers who shared a common culture with their colleagues elsewhere. Even today, the term Nulla poena sine lege (No punishment except in accordance with the law) is found in the writings of British lawyers. Hundreds of Latin phrases remain in use, but translators cannot always permit a Latin phrase to remain untranslated. The decision as to whether a Latin term should be translated will depend upon the source text and context of the phrase. Examples Fieri facas “you may cause it to be done” Prima facie “at first sight” Onus probandi “burden of proof”
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