The Conversion of Asylum Applicants' Narratives into Legal Discourses in the UK and France: A Comparative Study of Problems of Cultural Translation

The processing of asylum claims is a major administrative and legal undertaking in France and the UK, but many asylum applicants face problems in securing qualified legal representation. Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) play a vital role in both countries by providing asylum applicants with free legal advice. Although surveys of legal provision in EU countries have recently been carried out by legal and human rights organisations, these focused only on formal organisational structures and their legal and administrative frameworks, without comparing in detail the practicalities of providing legal advice in different European countries.

Earlier research by Good identified an important practical aspect of legal provision for asylum applicants that called out for a comparison of this kind. During an investigation into the uses of expert evidence in UK asylum appeals, it became clear that there were vital, unstudied issues concerning the ways lawyers edit and structure asylum applicants' accounts before presenting them to the Home Office or the courts. Recent research by anthropologists and lawyers into forms of legal language suggests that litigants' chances of success are much enhanced when they present issues, both orally and in writing, using styles of language and reasoning familiar to legal professionals. There was a need to investigate whether this was also true as regards asylum applications and, if so, to assess the Implications for the processing of asylum claims in these two quite different national legal systems.

The project therefore studied the processes - and problems - of cultural translation involved in the conversion of asylum applicants' accounts of persecution into legal language by lawyers (usually aided by interpreters). Its two principal objectives were: (1) to document, assess and compare the practical activities of NGOs in each country, focusing on their roles in preparing statements and presenting cases on behalf of their clients; and (2) to analyse the wider structural contexts in both countries, through examining: the impact of recent legislation; the relationship between NGOs and the state; and inter-NGO cooperation in lobbying, information-sharing, and efforts to develop common policy objectives.

The core of the research was a participant-observation study of the activities of selected NGOs in each country, through working as an intern and/or shadowing key staff members. Particular attention was paid to: (i) documenting NGO practices in supporting, advising, and representing asylum applicants; and (ii) examining the literal and metaphorical translation work done by NGO staff in converting accounts of persecution into formats suitable for effective presentation before legal decision-makers. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with key staff in selected NGOs, and with other key actors in the asylum process, such as solicitors, barristers, interpreters, Immigration Judges in the UK and their French equivalents. Further information was obtained through analysis of documentary data held in legal archives in both countries. Key stakeholders from both countries were brought together at a workshop where they shared information and experiences.

The research has a range of important applications and benefits. In policy terms, it will contribute to fairer decision-making on asylum claims in France and the UK; assist the two national NGO communities in developing best practice; inform continuing UK and French debates on the effects of recent and pending asylum legislation and legal aid provision. In scholarly terms, it will further the analysis of issues of linguistic and cultural translation arising in contexts of migration and asylum; throw new light on problems of representation and discourse relating to asylum applicants and refugees; and contribute to better understanding of the relationship between legal and ordinary language conventions, and processes of legal change more generally.