A linguagem jurídica como obstáculo ao acesso à justiça

Abstract

This undergraduate thesis addresses the topic of legal language and its impact on access to justice. Based on data from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), which indicate a significant number of illiterate individuals in Brazil, the study seeks to reflect on the importance of making legal language comprehensible to all citizens. The research is based on the ideas of Michel Foucault, presented in his work "The Order of Discourse," and highlights how convoluted legal language can create a distance between legal professionals and ordinary citizens, making access to justice difficult. The objective is to demonstrate the need to simplify legal language, making it more accessible and understandable to the general population. The research adopts a qualitative approach and utilizes the hypothetical-deductive scientific method. Through the analysis of legal discourse, examples are presented on how it is possible to update language and facilitate access to justice. The study also emphasizes the importance of understanding access to justice not only as access to the judiciary but as access to a just legal order and to the law itself. The research contributes to understanding how language can be used as an instrument of social control and highlights the need to overcome linguistic and economic barriers that hinder full access to justice.