I won’t trouble you with the details but suffice to say I am the plaintiff in a Court case here.
I asked that it be conducted in English, given my linguistic imitations but the Judge unceremoniously referred me to the Court rules – with chapter and verse references – and refused my request. The very same rules, it turns out, state categorically that any plaintiff who is not competent in Danish may demand an interpreter and may also submit written evidence in his native language. But the Judge doesn’t want to know.
The first round involved a conference call with the Judge and the defendant’s counsel, during which the Judge seemed, to say the least, detached from the issues. The explanation came in the form of the Court ‘minutes’ which cited my case reference but included the name and other facts about somebody quite unknown to me. The Judgement was vague to the point of invisibility, so I wrote to the clerk and asked what was up, querying the various errors. No explanation or apology was forthcoming but the ‘minutes’ were reissued with corrections to the name etc. The Judgement was not changed (not allowed, perhaps?) and a second conference call was scheduled, presumably to enable the Judge to catch up.
Shambles is too polite a word for the system of justice so far revealed. WS Gilbert would remind me of his ditty on the subject, I’m sure:
The Law is the true embodiment
Of everything that’s excellent.
It has no kind of fault or flaw,
And I, my Lords, embody the Law.
Boadicea's Chariot 
Your wife is Danish isn’t she? Why didn’t you get her to do the case for you?
You should see the shambles when someone at home wants it all in Welsh, as is their right!
OK in some of the rural magistrates courts but Crown Court in Swansea gives the real run around, very few high court judges are Welsh let alone Welsh speaking! Most people don’t bother unless they are deliberately trying to cause obstruction as the delays are endless!
Would it be possible for you to appeal the case on the grounds that the judge was not following the law? It seems as if the case was not properly tried.
CO: I like to have a bit of fun with language in San Francisco. Under the equal protection clause if one minority language is given special status then all people have the right to communicate with the city/county government in their native tongues. Since Cantonese and Castillian are granted legal status, I simply communicate in German. They don’t like it one bit and they usually never have German-speaking staff so more often than not they leave me alone.
Morning Janus
Should things not work out for you, I obviously wont be able to visit (expenses, distance etc.)
Do let me know the institution and cell no. and I will correspond with you. After all, we are basically pen pals on here so I have no problem maintaining the relationship if the dirt hits the fan 😉
CO, yes, of course and she does!
Soutie, thankyou. 🙂
Christopher, probably! But life’s too short….
Chris, you are plain naughty! The boy used to take his leg off and turn up in his wheelchair on the same principle!
They left him alone too!
Hugh,
Firstly let me express my sorrow that you appear to have found the worst judge since Simon Cowell said, “Gary Barlow, lets give him a shot at it.”.
But on the other hand I would like to say that I thoroughly endorse the “Our courts are Danish and they speak Danish. If you can’t understand, find yourself an interpreter who does.” If only our PC fruitcakes could grow a pair and do the same for the UK. It would save the tax payer and arm and a leg.
Judges are a law to themselves. Do you see what I did there, eh, eh?
Furry, akshully the rules say the Court has to do the interpretation, not me.
Sounds like this is one of the (very few) cases where the ECHR might be useful!
Ah I see Hugh,
In which case it is only half as good as I thought. Over here, we have to keep interpreters on the payroll at all NHS clinics and hospitals in case any walk in patient prefers to speak their own language or cannot understand the Anglais. I presume it is the same for the justice ‘so called’ system.
Ferret: under German law all official documents will be provided in the official language of the country, standard German. It is also the right and responsibility of every citizen to speak standard German. Some provisions are made for holiday-makers who might find themselves in a bit of a bind, but all permanent residents of the country are obliged to learn the Duits.
Ja wohl! 😉
In France you are required to provide your own interpreter for legal matters. I am considered competent enough in French not to need one, but my cousin had to pay for one when buying his property. I was not allowed to act for him, though I had done so in all his dealings with the estate agent, since I am not an accredited translator. You’re right, Ferret, Britain is a fool to itself to provide translation services free of charge.
Agh, I do hope that it works out in your favour, Janus.
It’s bad enough having to take part in this sort of legal proceedings but it must be very frustrating if you are not fluent in the language.
I actually disagree with most of you in this matter. It seems to me to be perfectly reasonable that a translator should be available to anyone who is not fluent in the language, how else can one be expected to understand the legal process and present a reasonable defence. I would not be happy to be in this position.
Yes, Araminta, a translator should certainly be obligatory, but it should be the person who needs the translation who pays for it
It’s a bit tough if you cannot afford it, especially if you are innocent, Sheona, but otherwise I agree.