To celebrate St. David’s Day, Cheshire & North Wales Law Society hosted a special event with Legal News Wales to explore ‘The use of the Welsh language within the legal system’.
We’ve shared the full recording (below) of this incredibly popular event, with speakers including the Welsh Language Commissioner, the Law Commission, members of the judiciary in Wales, practitioners and law schools.
Our event hosted on 1 March 2021 opened up the debate to evaluate the use made of the Welsh language in the legal system today and questions whether enough is being done to meet the expectations of 21st Century Welsh speakers.
The Welsh Language Act 1993 has been key in safeguarding access to justice to individuals in their mother-tongue, ensuring that those in Wales who wish to use Welsh within the legal system are treated in the same way as those who wish to use English. As a result of the Act, Welsh-medium legal services are readily-available by default. Since the passing of the Act, positive change has been witnessed across the legal system to improve the quality and availability of Welsh language legal services.
Panel members discussed their perspectives on the following matters:
- Their lived experiences of the use of the Welsh language within the legal system;
- What can be done to enhance the use of the Welsh language across the legal system;
- What are the main difficulties that currently prevent enhanced use of the language;
- Adequacy of the provision to assist and encourage Welsh-language use within the legal system;
- The future of Welsh language use within the legal system.
Panelists:
- His Honour Judge Niclas Parry
- Mr Aled Roberts, Welsh Language Commissioner
- Dr Catrin Fflur Huws, Senior Lecturer in Law at Aberystwyth University
- Ms Awen Edwards, Research Assistant, Public Law and Law in Wales Team at the Law Commission
- Mr Osian Roberts, Partner, Guthrie Jones & Jones Solicitors
Chair:
- Dr Emma Roberts, Senior Lecturer in Law at the University of Chester
Watch now
(This event was recorded on 1 March 2021)
Cymraeg
English
Catch up on the rest of our St David’s Day 2021 programme
To watch more of our two-day event series celebrating the legal sector in Wales and St David’s day 2021, click here.
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