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Clarity and Judgments: the Contrasting Approaches of European and Quebec Judges

Plain language has solid roots in Canada, but as a school of thought, it is novel to members of the French-speaking judiciary in other countries. However, it does have features in common with the related themes of accessibility and understandability of the law.

The need for clear expression, to be better understood not only by legal professionals, but also citizens, is a long-standing concern of the Cour de Cassation of France, the Swiss Tribunal fédéral and the 50 supreme courts that are members of the Association des Hautes juridictions de cassation des pays ayant en partage l'usage du français (AHJUCAF).

In the francophone legal world, how do supreme courts write their judgments in a language understandable to the general public? What is the current legislative framework? What must be done to ensure the public can understand judges and their judgments?

After a quick overview of the situation in France and Switzerland, Jean-Louis Gillet, a Division President of the Cour de Cassation in France, and Bernard Corboz, a judge of the Tribunal fédéral de Suisse, discussed these issues with the help of examples from judgments. The Honourable Mr Justice Pierre J. Dalphond of the Quebec Court of Appeal presented the Quebec point of view.

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