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#Legal Terminology Projects

The Dictionaries Project - an essential tool to understand Quebec's civil law

The Paul-André Crépeau Centre for Private and Comparative Law (formerly the Quebec Research Centre of Private Comparative Law) launched the Private Law Dictionaries and Bilingual Lexicons project in 1981 to analyse and present the terminology of Quebec private law. Of the first, bilingual edition the French version was published in 1985, while its English counterpart was completed in 1988. Both were followed, in 1991, by a second edition.

Keeping up with the evolution of law

In 1991, the adoption of the Civil code of Québec had a profound effect on civilian terminology [1 ],making a thorough revision of the former editions of the dictionaries necessary.

The third edition is distinguished from its predecessors not only in content but also in form. With regard to content, the current edition is more didactic, not only explaining vocabulary and indexing its legal usage, but also furthering the reader’s comprehension of the terms defined by presenting them within their legal, linguistic and theoretical contexts. It is thus a unique reference tool in Quebec law whose breadth and ambition exceed those of prior editions, and whose principal entries are true lexicographical studies.

As for its form, the new edition of the Dictionary has been divided into individual volumes which each cover a particular area of Quebec private law, thereby adapting the dictionaries to suit their new and expanded content.

Three volumes of the dictionary are now available: the Dictionnaire de droit privé de la famille et lexiques bilingues / Private Law Dictionary of the Family and Bilingual Lexicons [2 ], the Dictionnaire de droit privé et lexiques bilingues - Les obligations / Private Law Dictionary and Bilingual Lexicons - Obligations [3 ] and the Dictionnaire de droit privé et lexiques bilingues – Les Biens / Private Law Dictionary and Bilingual Lexicons - Property [4 ] were published in 1999, 2003 and 2012 respectively.

A distinctive linguistic and legal framework

By presenting Quebec’s private law both in English and French, the Private Law Dictionaries are unique scholarly works exploring Quebec legal terminology in its special, bilingual legal framework. The Dictionaries are the only reference on legal terminology which can claim to reflect the bilingual and bijuridical particularities of Quebec legal culture.

The Dictionary project emphasizes the constant dialogue between the two official languages of Québec. In so doing it studies the role that language plays in legal thinking, by exploring how language shapes the substantive rules of Québec Civil law, both in itself and through interaction with the North American common law.

Generally speaking, the Dictionaries have become an essential tool for Québec jurists, legal translators, Canadian jurists interested in Québec Civil law and, finally, legal scholars working in comparative law.

[ 1] The Minister of Justice wisely pointed out that "[l]a rédaction de ces dispositions nécessitait des changements importants d'ordre rédactionnel et terminologique", Quebec, Commentaires du ministre de la Justice. t. 1, (Québec City, Publications du Québec, 1993) at viii. For a description of the lexicographical methodology of the Editorial Committee, see the Les Obligations - guide to the use of the dictionary [pdf] of the Private Law Dictionary and Bilingual Lexicons - Obligations .