法律语言及语体特点
法律的语言
法律的语言法律是一种专门用于规范社会行为的语言体系，它包含了一系列的规则、原则和条款，旨在维护社会秩序、保护公民权益，并提供对违法行为的处罚和法律救济。
法律的语言具有一定的特点和规范，下面将对法律语言进行详细的介绍。
首先，法律的语言特点之一是严密性。
法律对事实、权益、责任等概念进行明确而全面的规定，以保证法律的确定性和可执行性。
法律的表述通常使用严谨、精确的措辞，以避免歧义和误解。
例如，在合同法中，法律明确规定了各方的权利和义务，使用了明确的词语和句式，以确保各方按照合同履行自己的责任。
其次，法律的语言特点之二是正式性。
法律作为一种具有法律效力的文书，其语言表达需要符合一定的规范和格式。
法律文书通常采用正式的语言，使用规范的词汇和句式，以确保法律的权威性和可信度。
法律文书中常见的格式包括标题、条款、定义等，这些格式的使用使得法律表述更加明确和易于理解。
第三，法律的语言特点之三是技术性。
法律涉及到许多专业领域的知识和术语，例如民法、刑法等，因此，它的表述中常常包含专业性较强的术语和定义。
法律语言的技术性使得它在某种程度上对于非法律专业人士来说可能会比较晦涩和难懂，因此在法律文书的表述中需要考虑到目标读者的背景和水平。
此外，法律的语言还需要具备灵活性。
法律适用于各种不同的情况和问题，因此其表述需要具备一定的灵活性，能够适应不同的法律要求和需求。
例如，在解释法律条款时，常常需要根据具体的情况进行解析和诠释，以保证法律的具体适用性。
最后，法律的语言还需要具备可理解性。
法律的表述应该尽可能简洁明了，以确保任何人都能够理解和遵守法律规定。
法律应该以通俗易懂的方式表达，避免使用过于复杂和晦涩的词汇和句式，以便公众能够理解其中的内容和要求。
综上所述，法律的语言是一种严密、正式、技术性、灵活和可理解的语言。
法律的语言特点是为了确保法律的确定性、权威性和可执行性，保障公民权益、维护社会秩序。
对于从事法律工作的人员来说，理解和运用法律的语言是十分重要的，只有掌握了法律的语言，才能更好地履行法律职责。
法律英语的特点
法律英语的特点法律英语的特点一、法律英语的概念法律英语（Legal English），在英语国家中被称为Legal Language 或Language of the Ｌaw，即法律语言，在英语中指表述法律科学概念以及诉讼或非诉讼法律事务时所用的语种或某一语种的部分用语。
从此概念可以看出，法律英语所使用的语言不仅是英语本身，还包括其它语种，如法语、拉丁文等。
二、法律英语的语言特点法律英语作为专业英语（ＥＳＰ）的分支学科之一，具有ＥＳＰ的一般特点：１课程设置是为满足学习者的特定需要；２采用所服务的专业学科的教学研究方法和活动组织方式；３学习重点在于与该专业相适应的语言（语法、词汇、语域）、技巧、语篇以及体裁；4 材料的真实性，即材料来于立法文件、司法文件以及法学家的论著。
法律英语是法律科学与英语语言学间交叉学科研究的结晶，因此其研究应从两个视角进行探析。
一方面，按照法律的观点、方法以及法律规范、法律文书的特殊需要来研究英语在法学理论及实践中的运用；另一方面，运用语言学，尤其是应用语言学的基本原理和方法研究法律科学和法律实践的英语语言特点。
法律英语具有以下语言特点：词汇特点一、准确用词与模糊语言的同时出现法律语言，尤其是立法语言常把准确性与模糊性这一矛盾纳入同一法律规范。
根据严格解释原则，在适用法律时，书面文字是法官解释法律文件的唯一依据，因此法律语言用词造句必须十分准确。
法律语言尤其是立法语言中很少使用描绘性形容词，而且对表示时间、范围、程度等副词使用极为严格，为了避免不必要的歧义。
同时，为了追求语意确切、论证周详，法律语言中常使用同义、近义词,如《香港刑法摘要》（D igest of Hong Kong Criminal Law）第八章关于“参加暴动并阻碍船舶、飞机、或者铁路列车罪”中规定“It is an offence for any perso n taking part in a riot to unlawfully and with force (a)prevent , hinder or obstruct ,or attempt to prevent, hinder, or obstruct, t he loading or unloading, or the movement of ; or (b)board, or attempt to board with intent to do so ; any motor vehicle ,tra mcar ,aircraft ,train or vessel . 然而在现实中，有许多案子是由于对法律文字的理解不一造成的，这就有赖于法官在具体案件中对法律条文进行解释。
法律语言特点的辩证体现
法律语言特点的辩证体现法律语言，作为法律规范和法律实践的载体，具有一系列独特的特点。
这些特点并非孤立存在，而是相互关联、相互影响，呈现出一种辩证的关系。
准确性是法律语言的首要特点。
法律条文必须清晰明确，毫无歧义，以确保法律的适用能够准确无误。
一个词语、一个表述的偏差，都可能导致法律适用的混乱和不公。
例如，在刑法中对于“故意”和“过失”的界定，必须精确到每一个细节，否则就无法准确判定犯罪嫌疑人的罪责。
然而，这种准确性并非绝对的僵化和刻板。
在某些情况下，法律语言也需要一定的灵活性和包容性，以适应不断变化的社会现实和复杂多样的案件情况。
简洁性也是法律语言的重要特征。
法律条文应当简洁明了，避免冗长繁琐的表述，使人们能够迅速理解和把握其核心要义。
简洁的语言有助于提高法律的传播效率和执行效果。
但简洁并不意味着简单粗暴地删减内容，而是在保证意思完整、准确的前提下，对语言进行精炼和优化。
有时，为了充分说明法律的适用条件和限制，适当的详细阐述也是必要的，这就体现了简洁性与复杂性的辩证统一。
规范性是法律语言的又一显著特点。
法律语言有着严格的语法和词汇规范，遵循特定的术语和用语习惯。
这种规范性有助于维护法律的权威性和统一性。
然而，规范性并不排斥创新性。
随着社会的发展和法律实践的丰富，新的法律概念和术语不断涌现，法律语言也在不断发展和创新，以适应新的法律需求。
法律语言的专业性很强，它包含大量的专业术语和法律概念，这些术语和概念对于法律从业者来说是熟悉和准确的，但对于普通民众可能会显得晦涩难懂。
这就需要在专业性和通俗性之间找到平衡。
一方面，法律语言必须保持其专业性，以确保法律的严谨和精确；另一方面，为了让民众更好地理解法律、遵守法律，法律语言也应当尽量通俗易懂，通过解释、说明等方式，将专业术语转化为大众能够理解的语言。
法律语言的逻辑性也十分突出。
它遵循严密的逻辑推理和论证过程，从前提到结论，每一个环节都必须经得起推敲。
逻辑的严密性保证了法律的公正性和可预测性。
浅议立法语言的特点和表述问题
浅议立法语言的特点和表述问题作者：李高协来源：《人大研究》 2015年第1期法律条文是由语言文字表达出来的，它表达的是一种国家意志，文字表达得是否清楚、规范，直接影响着立法质量甚至实施效果。
李高协法律条文是由语言文字表达出来的，它表达的是一种国家意志，文字表达得是否清楚、规范，直接影响着立法质量甚至实施效果。
本文根据有关立法语言的规范要求和研究成果，结合自己多年从事地方立法的实践，主要针对在立法工作中经常遇到的、带有共性和普遍性的有关立法语言的特点与文字表述等技术操作层面的问题谈一些体会，仅供交流和探讨。
一、立法语言的基本特点和要求立法语言简单地讲就是规范性法律文件所使用的语言，是具有法律效力的法律信息载体。
法律作为具有国家强制力的普遍性行为规则的特性，要求其语言表达尽量保持日常语言的风格以便使普通民众所理解和遵循。
同时，对立法语言又有其特殊的要求，比如准确肯定、严谨规范、简洁精练、庄重严肃、通俗易懂。
英国著名的法理学家边沁在他的《立法理论》中说：“如果说法典的风格与其他著作的风格有什么不同的话，那就是具有更大的清晰性、更大的精确性、更大的常见性。
因为它写出来就是让所有人都理解，尤其是让最低文化水平阶层的人理解。
”文艺复兴时期著名的哲学家培根也讲，法律文辞一要准确，二要有弹力性。
我国历史上的一些政治家、法学家也主张立法语言应简明扼要、易晓知行。
秦商鞅说：“圣人为法，必使之明白易知。
”唐太宗李世民讲：“国家法令，惟须简约。
”（一）立法语言要符合国家语言文字的规范和标准。
法律条文表达的是一种国家意志，首先应当符合通用语言文字的规范和标准，使用规范的书面语言。
立法语言和文学语言、文件语言、口头语言不同，应当具体明确、简洁精练，避免使用夸张、比喻以及带有感情色彩的修饰性语言，避免使用宣言性、论述性语言。
句式应当完整、明确，符合语法规范，词语搭配合理，避免使用长句。
立法也不用严禁、严格、严厉这类带有主观意愿的形容词，这些词可以用在执法上，但不能用于立法上。
法律语言及语体特点
Linguistic and Stylistic Features of Legal English in T ranslationAbstractWith the quickening process of globalization of the world economy and after China‟s WTO accession, legal English, as a kind of professional English, is progressing rapidly in our country which is surely having more links with other countries in the world. Undoubtedly, there will be more and more legal documents that need to be translated. Legal English is a particular expressing mode and criterion formed gradually developed through a long process of judicial practice. To do well in the translation of English in law, it is crucial to understand its features. It has vivid features in words diction and sentence structure, and embodies the specialty, sobriety, preciseness and veracity of the legal language .This paper, from the point of linguistics and stylistics, analyses the present situation of legal English, elaborates the features of English in translation of legal documents and summarizes its major stylistic features: accuracy, vagueness and speciality. It reiterates the idea that translation of legal documents requires the grasp of its linguistic features so it also explores those linguistic features in a systematic way .Key words: linguistic featuresstylistic featureslegal Englishtranslation.1.Introduction“Legislative writing has acquired a certain degree of Notoriety rarely equaled by any other variety of English. It has long been criticized for its obscure expressions and circumlocutions，long-winded involved construction and tortuous syntax，meaningless repetitions and archaisms. To the specialist community these are indispensable linguistic devices which bring in precision，clarity，unambiguity and all- inc lusiveness and so on. However，to the non-specialist this is a mere ploy to promote solidarity between the members of the specialist community and to keepnon-specialists at a respectable distance and is hence regarded by them as nothing more than pure linguistic nonsense bringing into professional discourse pomposity, verbosity, flabbiness and circumlocution.”(Bhatia，1994:136)This is a judgement given by Vijay Bhatia about the linguistic features of legislative writings in the first paragraph of his works Cognitive Structuring in Legislative Provisions. It talks about both the specific and unique lexical and syntactic features of the legislative text and also how these linguistic features count from the specialists and non-specialists perspectives. In recent years，there has been a continual process of simplification of the legislative language in the English-speaking countries.However, despite these efforts at simplification and clarification, the gap between legislative text and everyday text is still very wide. Present day legislative text retains its identity as a highly specialized and distinctive text type or genre of English. The legislative texts of the legal systemsof England, Canada, the United States of America, Australia and New Zealand, which are derived from the English common law system, are manifestly similar. (Maley，1994:13) And now, deliberate discussion on the lexical as well as syntactic features of the legislative language will be given in the following part with an aim to guide the translation of this type of legal texts.2.Lexical Features of Legal EnglishArchaic relics，including archaism，French and Latin expressions，are retained in English legislative texts to achieve precision. Also，it is there out of the convention left by the long history of English law. The institution of English law dated from the Norman Conquest. The Normans brought with them legal concepts and procedures，and thus the institution was established. The written language of the law after the Conquest was at first Latin and English. Later，Latin gained ground steadily and became the predominant language in law. And the Latin then in the institution，was not classical or Medieval Latin，but a variety of Latin which included many Latinizied English and Old French words. By the fourteenth century，French became the language of law. And it is not until 1650，by An Act for Turning the Books of the Law，and all processes and proceedings in Courts of Justice into English(455(1650) 11 Acts and Ordinances or the Interregnum) that English became the official language of the law. By that time，Old English(archaism)，Latin，Nomran-French and Middle English terms got fixed in the vocabulary of law. Over the cenutries，there has been a continual process Anglicisation，but in vocabulary，particularly in the specialized，technical lexicon，the law，the effect of its varied origins is still apparent. (Maley，1994:11-13) And now，let‟s see some of the archaisms, words with Latin and French origins, technical terms and official words retained in the legislative texts.ArchaismFrequent use of archaic words is one of the most remarkable featuers of legal language. Archaisms are the set of words used in the period 450-1100 AD，and the period 1100-1500 AD (Li，2003:17) and seldom appear in modern English，especially in the modern oral English. But they do remain in the legislative texts in light of the correctness and conservation of legislative language. Mellinkoff gave some archaisms that he considered to be the“daily bread”for the lawyers and“exposed to most non-lawyers on infrequent occasions”(1963:13): aforesaid and forthwithhere words: hereafter，herein，hereof，heretofore，herewithlet，as in the law tautology，without let or hindrancesaid and such as adjectivesthere words: thereabout, thereafter, thereat, thereby, therefore, therein, thereon, thereto, theretofore, thereupon, therewithwherewords, especially whereas used in recitals, and whereby witness, in the sense of testimony by signature, oath, etc., as in “ In witness whereof, I have set my hand, etc.”witnesseth, meaning to furnish formal evidence of something, the Old English present indicative, third person singular verb form.These words help ensure the accuracy and formalness of the legal texts.Loan wordsWith the expansion of international exchanges and the accelerated trends of globalization，acountry will more or less be influenced by the outside world, so wll the language of the nation. The borrowing of“loan words” is a process in which both form and meaning are borrowed with only a slight adaptation to the phonological system of the new language in some cases. Legal English has used some words that have been borrowed from Latin，French，etc.Words with Latin originLatin first permeated into English in 597 AD，and intermingled by large amount with English in the field of law，in the archaism period of the 14th and 15th AD (Li，2003:17). And since then，lots of English words with Latin sources remain in legal English，some of which are listed in the following table:affirm(断言) veto(否决)appeal(上诉) immune(免除的)offence(犯罪) verdiet(裁决)injury(伤害) litigant(诉讼人)legal(合法的) register(注册)custody(拘留) orbiter(仲裁人)suppress(镇压) testimony(证词)detention(拘留) negotiate(谈判)homicide(杀人) Convict(宣告)declaration(宣言) prosecute(对…起诉)compensate(补偿) appellate(受理上诉的) There are also Latin words retained in the legislative texts. Here is a list of Latin words basic to legislative texts:jus retentiouis(留置权) per stirpes(代位继承)obligatio solidaria(连带债务) confide jussio(共同保证)words with French originSince 1154，Britain had been reined by France in the House of Plantagenet and French became the official language，widely used in palace, courts and schools. Lots of English words with French origins are reserved in the legislative texts today，such as:bill(法案) petition(请愿)suit(诉讼) summon(传票)plea(抗辩) eyre(巡回法庭)inquest(审讯) defendant(被告)assize(巡回审判) attorney(律师)complaint(控告) advocate(辩护者)plaintiff(原告) judge(审判员，法官)bar(法庭，审判台) hue and cry(通缉令)indictment(告发，控告)Technical termsLots of legal technical terms are used in legislative texts out of the requirement for the correctness and clearness of the legal concept. And there are usually two kinds of technical terms in legislative language: the first type is technical terms employed to express the concept ofcommon-core language in daily life; the second type is common-core vocabulary in daily life borrowed to define specific legal meanings in legal language. The former includes words like: tort(侵权) subrogation(代位权)certiorari(上级法院向下级法院或准司法机构调取案卷的令状)，while the latter contains the words like:average(海损) minor(未成年人)omission(不作为) review(复审)limitation(诉讼实效) precedent(判例，先例)affirmance(上级法院维持对下级法院的判决)official wordsColloquial language is seldom used in legislative texts，and aggregation of big words and written language is one of the characteristics of legislative texts.There are many examples to demonstrate this point:Terminated-end purchase-buyRender-make proceed-gorequest-task prior-earlierdesist-stop employ-useamiable-friendly present-givedemonstrate-show commence-beginThe words on the left side of these groups are official words used in legislative texts，while the words on the right side of these groups having exact meanings with the words on the left，but being more colloquial and informal words used more in daily language.Use of synonymsAs the function of legislation is conferring rights and imposing obligations, the use of synonyms helps make the denotation clearer and more precise. Generally speaking，synonyms cannot be replaced by each other in legal English. The difference between“misstatement”and “misrepresentation” is a good illustration of this point. For example，the directors of a company invited a loan from the public and stated that the money would be used to improve the comp any‟s buildings and to extend the business. The real intention of the directors was to use the money to pay off the comp any‟s debts.In this case，is the statement of the directors to the public called “misstatement”or “misrepresentation”? It depends on the fact whether or not the public has made a contract with the company. If so，“mispresentation”should be used. If not，“misstatement”should be used instead.3.Syntactic Features of Legal EnglishBesides lexicon，the syntactic structure of the legislative language is also unique. Unlike syntactic structures in other texts, complex-prepositions, binomial and multinomial expressions, nominalization，a large number and variety of qualifications are used in legislative texts. “The reason for this complexity appears to be that legislative is often trying to cover all possible combinations of conditions and contingencies. Language complexity increases greatly when an attempt is made to unify all these within the confines of a single sentence.”(John，1994:7) These Complicated syntactic features create barriers to effective understanding of legislative texts，yetgreatly to the clear，unambiguous and all-inclusive features of legislative texts. The following are syntactic features of legislative texts.3.1 Use of long complicated sentencesIn order to avoid misunderstandings and disputes，legal drafts sometimes have to arrange a lot of relevant information in different respects into the same sentence，thereby producing a prevalent phenomenon of long complicated sentences in legal texts. It is common to see a passage or an article that contains only one sentence，which asks for the legal translators‟logical and clear understanding of all constituents of the sentence. Sometimes it is up to legal translators to put the long complicated sentences into compound sentences with objective clauses, adverbial clauses or attributive clauses for a well-ogranized and clear statement. Look at the follownig examples:1)Chinese Original V ersion:第二十四条国家基于下列原因之一，可以限制国际服务贸易:(一) 为维护国家安全或者社会公共利益;（二）为保护生态环境;（三）为建立或者加快建立国内特定的服务行业;（四）为保障国家外汇收支平衡;（五）法律、行政法规规定的其他限制。
试析法律英语的词汇特点
试析法律英语的词汇特点摘要法律英语(Legal English),在英语国家中被称为Legal Language或Language of the Law,即法律语言,在英语中指表述法律科学概念以及诉讼或非诉讼法律事务时所用的语种或某一语种的部分用语。
法律英语是一门有别于普通英语的工具性语言。
作为一门法律习惯语言,法律英语在语法、词汇、逻辑上均有其自身的特点。
本文对法律英语的词汇特点从八个方面进行了简单的分析，希望对学习和掌握法律英语的学习者有所帮助。
关键词法律英语词汇精确性古体词法律语言法律词汇普通英语法律术语法学又称法律学或法律科学，其词源是罗马语族的拉丁文juris-pmdentia。
法律是由立法机构或者其他有权机构制定或认可的准则、规定、规则等。
法律英语（ＬｅｇａｌＥｎｇｌｉｓｈ）是指英国、美国、加拿大、澳大利亚、新西兰等国家的法律语言。
最贴切的英文解释是Ｅｎｇｌｉｓｈｆｏｒｔｈｅｌａｗ。
法律英语是一种特殊用途英语(ESP)，它属于应用语言学的范畴，是一种具有法律职业技能特征的行业语言。
词汇是法律英语语言的基本组成部分，它包括俚语、术语、行话等。
英语词汇分两种，一种是普通词汇，一种是专业词汇。
普通词汇有全面、稳定和造词能力强等特点。
语言中有大量的普通词汇。
法律专业词汇是人们在长期使用民族共同语的过程中，根据立法、司法工作的实际需要而逐步形成的一套具有法律专业特色的词汇和术语。
《牛津法律英语大词典》指出：法律语言部分是由具有特定法律意义的词组成，部分是由日常用语组成，但这些日常词汇往往具有特定法律意义。
我们将这一现象称之为具有普通词形态而无普通词意义的法律词汇。
法律英语是一门有别于普通英语的工具性语言。
作为一门法律习惯语言,法律英语在语法、词汇、逻辑上均有其自身的特点。
随着我国入世和对外开放程度的不断加深，国际合作日益加强，涉外法务活动空前频繁，法律英语的重要性日渐凸显。
2008年5月，教育部法律英语证书（LEC）全国统一考试委员会在中国政法大学成功举办了首次全国统考，把法律英语的学习和研究推向了高潮。
法律合同的语体特征及翻译原则探究
法律合同的语体特征及翻译原则探究法律合同是合法双方达成协议，并确定了各自权利和义务的书面文件。
其语言应该精准、明确，不能存在歧义或模糊的表述，因此其语体特征也是非常独特的。
本文将探究法律合同的语体特征以及翻译原则。
一、语体特征1.正式严谨法律合同所使用的语言应该是正式、严谨的，不能使用口语化的语言或俚语，也不能使用含义模糊的词语，如“大概”、“大约”等。
在法律合同中，一些含义具有争议的词语通常会被定义，以确保各方对于合同条款的理解一致。
2.第三人称法律合同中通常以第三人称进行表述，避免出现过多的主观性。
3.被动语态法律合同中大量使用被动语态，以表达被动、客观的含义。
4.繁琐冗长为了避免出现歧义，法律合同通常会尽可能详细地描述合同内容，使得合同内容较为繁琐冗长。
5.技术性强法律合同中出现了很多法律术语和专业语言，双方需要具备一定的法律常识才能够准确地理解合同内容。
二、翻译原则1.忠实原文翻译法律合同时，应该要求译者保持忠实原文的原则，即字面翻译，不得添加任何误译、漏译或加译内容。
2.专业术语正确翻译在翻译法律合同时，需要特别注意法律术语和专业词汇的翻译准确性，必须准确地表达原文中的含义。
3.精准、明确在翻译法律合同时，应保持翻译文本的精准和明确性，不能出现歧义或模糊表述。
4.避免过多主观性译者在翻译法律合同时需要尽可能避免使用过多主观性的语言，尽可能使用客观、被动语态的表述。
5.注意语言风格在翻译法律合同时，需要特别注意语言风格，避免使用口语化语言或俚语。
6.追求精益求精翻译法律合同时，需要不断完善自己的翻译技能和专业知识，追求精益求精，提高法律合同翻译的质量。
试论法律文书语言的特点
试论法律文书语言的特点马克思说：“语言是思想的直接现实”，古人亦云“言为心声”。
文章的思想内容是要通过语言这一特定的形式来表达的，而语言运用能力的强弱直接关系到文章的成败与优劣。
作为具体实施法律工具的法律文书对语言的要求则更加严格，它的语言呈现出有别于其他文字材料的鲜明特点。
一、语言的准确所谓语言准确，是指所使用的概念和判断能正确地反映事物的本质。
语言准确是对一切文章的最基本要求，也是法律文书的最显著、最重要的特点，是法律文书的生命。
法律文书的内容往往涉及到当事人的生杀予夺或一生的福祸荣辱，关系到法律的正确实施。
因此，法律文书中无论是对当事人身份事项的说明，还是对案件事实的叙述，无论是依据事实、法学理论阐明论证适用法律的正确，还是表明对案件的处理结果，都必须做到语言的准确，而不能含糊其辞，似是而非，语义两歧。
具体应注意以下几点。
1.词语要注意单义性。
内容的法律性要求法律文书的语言必须具备单义性的特点。
所谓单义性是指一定的词语必须表示特指的含义，适于此而绝不同时适于彼，也就是对词语的解释是唯一的。
法律文书词语的单义性主要体现在专业术语的单义性上。
专业术语的单义性决定了对术语解释的严谨周密，理解的角度单一以及含义的确定，避免了误解和歧义。
比如“罚金”和“罚款”，从词的构成上看，都是动宾式合成词，构词形式相同，在日常生活用语中，二者区别也不大，但作为法律术语，二者却有着本质区别，各有特定的含义，是两个截然不同的法律概念，在任何情况下都不能互相代替，混淆使用。
此外，“审查”“侦查”和“审理”，“抢劫”和“抢夺”，“讯问”和“询问”等都有着不同的内涵，不可混用。
2.选用近义词要恰当。
有些近义词基本含义相同，但适用对象有别，若不区分其细微差别而恰当使用，会造成概念不明确。
如“抚养、扶养、赡养”都有养活的意思，但适用对象不同，我国《宪法》第四十九条规定：“父母有抚养教育未成年子女的义务，成年子女有赡养扶助父母的义务。
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Linguistic and Stylistic Features of Legal English in T ranslationAbstractWith the quickening process of globalization of the world economy and after China‟s WTO accession, legal English, as a kind of professional English, is progressing rapidly in our country which is surely having more links with other countries in the world. Undoubtedly, there will be more and more legal documents that need to be translated. Legal English is a particular expressing mode and criterion formed gradually developed through a long process of judicial practice. To do well in the translation of English in law, it is crucial to understand its features. It has vivid features in words diction and sentence structure, and embodies the specialty, sobriety, preciseness and veracity of the legal language .This paper, from the point of linguistics and stylistics, analyses the present situation of legal English, elaborates the features of English in translation of legal documents and summarizes its major stylistic features: accuracy, vagueness and speciality. It reiterates the idea that translation of legal documents requires the grasp of its linguistic features so it also explores those linguistic features in a systematic way .Key words: linguistic featuresstylistic featureslegal Englishtranslation.1.Introduction“Legislative writing has acquired a certain degree of Notoriety rarely equaled by any other variety of English. It has long been criticized for its obscure expressions and circumlocutions，long-winded involved construction and tortuous syntax，meaningless repetitions and archaisms. To the specialist community these are indispensable linguistic devices which bring in precision，clarity，unambiguity and all- inc lusiveness and so on. However，to the non-specialist this is a mere ploy to promote solidarity between the members of the specialist community and to keepnon-specialists at a respectable distance and is hence regarded by them as nothing more than pure linguistic nonsense bringing into professional discourse pomposity, verbosity, flabbiness and circumlocution.”(Bhatia，1994:136)This is a judgement given by Vijay Bhatia about the linguistic features of legislative writings in the first paragraph of his works Cognitive Structuring in Legislative Provisions. It talks about both the specific and unique lexical and syntactic features of the legislative text and also how these linguistic features count from the specialists and non-specialists perspectives. In recent years，there has been a continual process of simplification of the legislative language in the English-speaking countries.However, despite these efforts at simplification and clarification, the gap between legislative text and everyday text is still very wide. Present day legislative text retains its identity as a highly specialized and distinctive text type or genre of English. The legislative texts of the legal systemsof England, Canada, the United States of America, Australia and New Zealand, which are derived from the English common law system, are manifestly similar. (Maley，1994:13) And now, deliberate discussion on the lexical as well as syntactic features of the legislative language will be given in the following part with an aim to guide the translation of this type of legal texts.2.Lexical Features of Legal EnglishArchaic relics，including archaism，French and Latin expressions，are retained in English legislative texts to achieve precision. Also，it is there out of the convention left by the long history of English law. The institution of English law dated from the Norman Conquest. The Normans brought with them legal concepts and procedures，and thus the institution was established. The written language of the law after the Conquest was at first Latin and English. Later，Latin gained ground steadily and became the predominant language in law. And the Latin then in the institution，was not classical or Medieval Latin，but a variety of Latin which included many Latinizied English and Old French words. By the fourteenth century，French became the language of law. And it is not until 1650，by An Act for Turning the Books of the Law，and all processes and proceedings in Courts of Justice into English(455(1650) 11 Acts and Ordinances or the Interregnum) that English became the official language of the law. By that time，Old English(archaism)，Latin，Nomran-French and Middle English terms got fixed in the vocabulary of law. Over the cenutries，there has been a continual process Anglicisation，but in vocabulary，particularly in the specialized，technical lexicon，the law，the effect of its varied origins is still apparent. (Maley，1994:11-13) And now，let‟s see some of the archaisms, words with Latin and French origins, technical terms and official words retained in the legislative texts.ArchaismFrequent use of archaic words is one of the most remarkable featuers of legal language. Archaisms are the set of words used in the period 450-1100 AD，and the period 1100-1500 AD (Li，2003:17) and seldom appear in modern English，especially in the modern oral English. But they do remain in the legislative texts in light of the correctness and conservation of legislative language. Mellinkoff gave some archaisms that he considered to be the“daily bread”for the lawyers and“exposed to most non-lawyers on infrequent occasions”(1963:13): aforesaid and forthwithhere words: hereafter，herein，hereof，heretofore，herewithlet，as in the law tautology，without let or hindrancesaid and such as adjectivesthere words: thereabout, thereafter, thereat, thereby, therefore, therein, thereon, thereto, theretofore, thereupon, therewithwherewords, especially whereas used in recitals, and whereby witness, in the sense of testimony by signature, oath, etc., as in “ In witness whereof, I have set my hand, etc.”witnesseth, meaning to furnish formal evidence of something, the Old English present indicative, third person singular verb form.These words help ensure the accuracy and formalness of the legal texts.Loan wordsWith the expansion of international exchanges and the accelerated trends of globalization，acountry will more or less be influenced by the outside world, so wll the language of the nation. The borrowing of“loan words” is a process in which both form and meaning are borrowed with only a slight adaptation to the phonological system of the new language in some cases. Legal English has used some words that have been borrowed from Latin，French，etc.Words with Latin originLatin first permeated into English in 597 AD，and intermingled by large amount with English in the field of law，in the archaism period of the 14th and 15th AD (Li，2003:17). And since then，lots of English words with Latin sources remain in legal English，some of which are listed in the following table:affirm(断言) veto(否决)appeal(上诉) immune(免除的)offence(犯罪) verdiet(裁决)injury(伤害) litigant(诉讼人)legal(合法的) register(注册)custody(拘留) orbiter(仲裁人)suppress(镇压) testimony(证词)detention(拘留) negotiate(谈判)homicide(杀人) Convict(宣告)declaration(宣言) prosecute(对…起诉)compensate(补偿) appellate(受理上诉的) There are also Latin words retained in the legislative texts. Here is a list of Latin words basic to legislative texts:jus retentiouis(留置权) per stirpes(代位继承)obligatio solidaria(连带债务) confide jussio(共同保证)words with French originSince 1154，Britain had been reined by France in the House of Plantagenet and French became the official language，widely used in palace, courts and schools. Lots of English words with French origins are reserved in the legislative texts today，such as:bill(法案) petition(请愿)suit(诉讼) summon(传票)plea(抗辩) eyre(巡回法庭)inquest(审讯) defendant(被告)assize(巡回审判) attorney(律师)complaint(控告) advocate(辩护者)plaintiff(原告) judge(审判员，法官)bar(法庭，审判台) hue and cry(通缉令)indictment(告发，控告)Technical termsLots of legal technical terms are used in legislative texts out of the requirement for the correctness and clearness of the legal concept. And there are usually two kinds of technical terms in legislative language: the first type is technical terms employed to express the concept ofcommon-core language in daily life; the second type is common-core vocabulary in daily life borrowed to define specific legal meanings in legal language. The former includes words like: tort(侵权) subrogation(代位权)certiorari(上级法院向下级法院或准司法机构调取案卷的令状)，while the latter contains the words like:average(海损) minor(未成年人)omission(不作为) review(复审)limitation(诉讼实效) precedent(判例，先例)affirmance(上级法院维持对下级法院的判决)official wordsColloquial language is seldom used in legislative texts，and aggregation of big words and written language is one of the characteristics of legislative texts.There are many examples to demonstrate this point:Terminated-end purchase-buyRender-make proceed-gorequest-task prior-earlierdesist-stop employ-useamiable-friendly present-givedemonstrate-show commence-beginThe words on the left side of these groups are official words used in legislative texts，while the words on the right side of these groups having exact meanings with the words on the left，but being more colloquial and informal words used more in daily language.Use of synonymsAs the function of legislation is conferring rights and imposing obligations, the use of synonyms helps make the denotation clearer and more precise. Generally speaking，synonyms cannot be replaced by each other in legal English. The difference between“misstatement”and “misrepresentation” is a good illustration of this point. For example，the directors of a company invited a loan from the public and stated that the money would be used to improve the comp any‟s buildings and to extend the business. The real intention of the directors was to use the money to pay off the comp any‟s debts.In this case，is the statement of the directors to the public called “misstatement”or “misrepresentation”? It depends on the fact whether or not the public has made a contract with the company. If so，“mispresentation”should be used. If not，“misstatement”should be used instead.3.Syntactic Features of Legal EnglishBesides lexicon，the syntactic structure of the legislative language is also unique. Unlike syntactic structures in other texts, complex-prepositions, binomial and multinomial expressions, nominalization，a large number and variety of qualifications are used in legislative texts. “The reason for this complexity appears to be that legislative is often trying to cover all possible combinations of conditions and contingencies. Language complexity increases greatly when an attempt is made to unify all these within the confines of a single sentence.”(John，1994:7) These Complicated syntactic features create barriers to effective understanding of legislative texts，yetgreatly to the clear，unambiguous and all-inclusive features of legislative texts. The following are syntactic features of legislative texts.3.1 Use of long complicated sentencesIn order to avoid misunderstandings and disputes，legal drafts sometimes have to arrange a lot of relevant information in different respects into the same sentence，thereby producing a prevalent phenomenon of long complicated sentences in legal texts. It is common to see a passage or an article that contains only one sentence，which asks for the legal translators‟logical and clear understanding of all constituents of the sentence. Sometimes it is up to legal translators to put the long complicated sentences into compound sentences with objective clauses, adverbial clauses or attributive clauses for a well-ogranized and clear statement. Look at the follownig examples:1)Chinese Original V ersion:第二十四条国家基于下列原因之一，可以限制国际服务贸易:(一) 为维护国家安全或者社会公共利益;（二）为保护生态环境;（三）为建立或者加快建立国内特定的服务行业;（四）为保障国家外汇收支平衡;（五）法律、行政法规规定的其他限制。