Forensic Linguistics: Overview

Forensic linguistics is a branch of applied linguistics that deals with the intersection between language and law, with work in the area united by a motivation to improve the delivery of justice through language analysis. It is generally considered to be formed of three central strands: the study of legal language, such as statutes, contracts, wills, and jury instructions; the language of legal processes such as police interviews and courtroom interaction, including explorations around the experiences in these contexts of children, nonnative speakers, people suffering from specific impairments, and other vulnerable groups; and the use of linguistic methods for providing investigative assistance and evidence in civil and criminal cases, such as where there is a question over the authorship of a written text or the meaning of a specific piece of language. This entry provides an overview of these three key areas, with illustrative examples and suggestions for further reading.