Articles
| Open Access |
https://doi.org/10.37547/ijlc/Volume05Issue10-09
The Language Of National Legislation: Legal And Technical Challenges
Abstract
This article examines the linguistic and legal-technical dimensions of drafting, adopting, and publishing normative legal acts in the Republic of Uzbekistan. It highlights the central role of the Uzbek language as the state language and analyses the implications of multilingual duplication, terminological inconsistency, and the formal nature of linguistic expertise in legislative practice. Drawing upon data from the National Database of Legislation (Lex.uz), the research reveals several challenges: the continued duplication of acts in Uzbek and Russian despite the availability of automated translation tools; the absence of standardised terminology and conceptual definitions across legal texts; and the limited application of linguistic expertise, which currently extends only to draft acts concerning the state language and its development. The study argues for the institutionalisation of linguistic expertise, the creation of a centralised terminological glossary (“bank of terms”) within Lex.uz, and the exclusive adoption of legislative acts in the state language. Such reforms are deemed essential for enhancing legal clarity, ensuring linguistic consistency, and strengthening the quality of national law-making in Uzbekistan.
Keywords
Language of law, normative legal acts, legal drafting, linguistic expertise
References
Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan. National Database of Legislation of the Republic of Uzbekistan. https://lex.uz/ru/docs/6445147 (accessed 17 October 2025).
Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On the State Language”. National Database of Legislation of the Republic of Uzbekistan. https://lex.uz/ru/docs/121433 (accessed 17 October 2025).
Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On Normative Legal Acts”. National Database of Legislation of the Republic of Uzbekistan. https://lex.uz/ru/docs/5378968 (accessed 17 October 2025).
Official Languages of the United Nations. Official Website of the United Nations. https://www.un.org/ru/our-work/official-languages (accessed 17 October 2025).
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Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On Approval of the Regulation on the Procedure for Conducting Linguistic Expertise of Draft Normative Legal Acts” dated 28 October 2021, No. 662. National Database of Legislation of the Republic of Uzbekistan. https://lex.uz/ru/docs/5701504 (accessed 17 October 2025).
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