Why Professionals Absolutely Need to Be Bilingual

Interestingly enough, many of the most capable lawyers speak two languages– in Canada typically English and French, in South Africa, English and Afrikaans, in India, English and Hindi, and in large parts of the American Southwest, English and Spanish. But that’s not what we’re talking about here.

When young people go off to professional school they quickly learn to speak a cool new language. Within the first few weeks, baby lawyers strut around muttering gravely about stare decisis, causes of action, quantum meruit, mandamus and fishing expeditions, feeling quite clever and quite important. Baby doctors and baby engineers also learn entire new languages and they, too, adopt the secret language of their priesthoods. Some of them forget how to speak English. And that’s a problem.

It’s a problem because their clients only speak English. To clients, certiorari or a detachment of the deltoid ligament from the medial malleolus is mumbo jumbo, and while they may be convinced that their lawyer or doctor is a genius, they have no idea what is going on.

But before you think I’m bashing legalese, medicalese or archeologese, let me be clear: the language of a profession is an important tool within the profession for the purpose of communicating technical information in a precise and efficient manner. For me to say “in equal shares, per stirpes” in “plain English”, for instance, would require half a page and still leave doubt, whereas the technical term has immediate and exact meaning for any lawyer or judge.

The problem with professionalese is not within the profession, where it occupies a good and valuable place. It occurs when the professional is trying to express critical professional concepts to a lay person.

To convey professional information in everyday language is not an easy skill, which is one of the two reasons why so many professionals talk funny. The other is that the professional is trying to impress, in which he will succeed, but probably not in a good way.

The ability to code-switch easily between English and professionalese is typically the mark of a professional who truly understands all of the nuts, bolts and nuances of his or her profession, and who cares deeply about having an informed clientele. It’s also an important way to limit malpractice.

Are you bilingual?