Legal terminology: On intelligibility and strategies for dissemination

Abstract

The aim of the chapter is to study the concept of paraphrase developed by Simonnæs for describing textual elements directed at non-experts in court decisions and intended to give insight into the legal argumentation of the court. Following a discussion of the concept of paraphrase I will study two texts disseminating legal concepts in different situations (Wikipedia article for general public, article from ministry aimed at children and adolescents) and especially investigate, to what extent the paraphrase concept is applicable also for describing dissemination strategies in such situations. In the conclusion, hypotheses for further investigation of knowledge dissemination in the field of law are formulated.