Genres and language in digital communication: trends and new directions
21st annual conference of the European Association of Languages for Specific Purposes (AELFE2023) and the 7th Conference of the Asia-Pacific LSP & Professional Communication Association (LSPPC7)
Universidad de Zaragoza, Spain
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The research explores the compatibility of syntactic characteristics of legal English and plain English. The paper analyses the competition of linguistic means of expression between plain English and legal English. To this end, the paper (1) explores the characteristics of legal writing and identifies syntactic features that cause comprehension problems; (2) analyses syntactic features and means of expression of plain English; (3) investigates the
compatibility of the requirements for plain English with the characteristics of legal English.
The research is based on the Treaty of Lisbon. The findings prove that although formal requirements for legal English are compatible with the requirements for plain English, there is a great difference between the means of expression of the two variations. Nevertheless, plain English principles allow appropriate user-friendly syntactic competitors for most complicated cases of syntax in legal writing.
This article posits that there is a natural affinity between an ethnographic-inspired approach and ESP teaching and research in the wide-angled, sociocultural perspective prevalent in French universities. In spite of little bibliometric evidence to this effect, this study identifies an unrecognised but nevertheless discernible ethnographic-orientated current which underlines the involvement of all three central protagonists of the discipline, ESP teachers, learners and researchers. The article concludes by advocating that the sociocultural orientation of ESP teaching and research in the French academic context stands to benefit from greater integration of the principles and practices of ethnography in French ESP studies.