IV

Judges and Lawyers are Finding Ways to Protect the Rights of People with Low Literacy Skills

In this section of the manual, judges and lawyers share some methods they use to ensure that low literacy does not jeopardize the right to understand and the overall administration of justice. Most judges and lawyers are not comfortable with screening every accused, witness or juror for literacy problems. As

Judge Renaud points out:

"If you screen everyone, there can be an invasion of their personal rights and I think their personal dignity [...]. It's always difficult to have an absolute rule."

However, it is generally agreed that a systematic approach to identifying and dealing with low literacy is essential. Some ideas are summarized below.

Identifying Literacy Problems and Barriers

As Judge Nicholas points out, judges and lawyers must be paying close attention to identify the problem. Clients and witnesses may try to hide their inability to read and write in various ways. Some of the most common include:

• saying they have forgotten their glasses;
• glancing at a written sheet and then changing the subject;
• becoming aggressive, surly or disruptive;