Agata de Laforcade
Academic Director, Department of Law, Languages and Intercultural Challenges at ISIT
After the transposition of Directive 2010/64/EU on the right to interpretation and translation in criminal proceedings, the preliminary article of the French Code of Criminal Procedure containing the most important principles in this area provides that if the suspect or accused does not understand the French language, he or she is entitled to be assisted by an interpreter during any questioning, hearing or interviews forming part of the proceedings, as well as during interviews with his or her lawyer. He or she is also entitled to receive a translation of the documents essential for exercising his or her defense and for guaranteeing a fair trial. Legal enshrinement of language rights during criminal proceedings in the preliminary article was an important step and highly symbolic, but does it mean that language rights are considered today as a real component of the right to a fair trial? The answer to this question is not obvious. This presentation will set out the arguments in favor of considering language rights as a component of a fair trial, and well as some arguments that cast doubt upon the fundamental value of language rights in French criminal proceedings.
Keywords: fair trail, language rights, criminal proceedings