LING 2080 - The Language of Courts and Crime

3 hours

Linguistic interpretation plays a crucial role in almost every aspect of the legal system. From the written word in legal documents to the spoken word of law enforcement encounters and courtroom proceedings, much hinges on how interpretation is undertaken in these legal contexts. Using the tools of linguistic semantics and pragmatics—i.e. the sciences of “meaning”—this course delves into topics such as threats, perjury, hate speech, consent, Miranda rights, metaphor, hearsay, legalese, ambiguity and vagueness, statutes, contracts, jury instructions, interpretation of trademark and copyright law, intention versus “plain meaning,” legal versus natural reasoning processes, dictionaries and authority, and more. The course begins with an introduction to the relevant aspects of linguistic semantics and pragmatics, and students then apply this knowledge to legal issues from actual court cases of the U.S. legal system. LING 2080 is excellent preparation for students of law and of linguistics, not to mention those of journalism, literature, communication, business, or any other discipline requiring the ability to reason carefully, clearly, scientifically, about both legal and ordinary language.

No previous knowledge of linguistics or law is assumed.

Course specific fees (in addition to tuition and mandatory):
Academic (AF) per hour: $13.80