"Coperative" Cross-Examination

by JLS
for the GC

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Abstract

From:

http://web.bham.ac.uk/forensic/IAFL03/abstracts.html

L. Zhang & X. Jin, "A Conversation analysis of the judge-defendant
interaction in the criminal court"

"As it is said, co-conversationalists have to cooperate

with each other in conversing so as to have a smooth communication ahead. Will the two major participants, the judge and the defendant, in the highly-marked social setting, the court-trial, observe the basic conversational principles, namely, the Gricean Cooperative Principle?"

"If so, does their interaction show any distinctive feature of their own?"

"A case study of the judge-defendant interaction in a criminal court shows that in their interaction the CP is faithfully observed."

"The interaction of the two sides displays

imbalance, asymmetry and monitored-ness with the judge

in the prestigious position."

"This conclusion is based on a comprehensive study of their conversation (which includes the structure , contents, etc.) and their non-verbal language. This study suggests that little change has been made in the conversation between the two sides even after the New Procedure has been enacted in the court-trial and that this stereotypical interaction in court disables the defendants to defend themselves in the court."