September 2nd, 2014
âOyez! Oyez! Oyez!â
When the marshal steps forward tomorrow to open the Supreme Courtâs fall term, these are the very first words he will say. But where do they come from? And what exactly do they mean?
âOyezâ is actually a French wordâLaw French, to be precise. It dates back to the years following the Norman Conquest. Literally, it means âHear ye!â It was used by criers in the Middle Ages when calling for attention so they could make a public proclamation. It was also adopted by courts, first in England and then in America, as a formal way to open judicial proceedings.
You might be wondering: Okay, thatâs fine, but why are we still borrowing from a language that hasnât been used for hundreds of years? Good question. I can think of two reasons.
The first reason is ceremony. Important events are often accompanied by a ceremony, setting them apart from the ordinary, workaday events in our lives. Weddings are a good example. When my daughter was married a few months ago, the formality of the wedding ceremony reminded us it was an important, life-changing event. Ceremony plays a part in court proceedings too. The spacious courtroom, the robes worn by the judges, the crowd rising as the judges enter and, yes, even the words spoken by the marshalâall of them are meant to remind us that the Supreme Courtâs proceedings have important legal significance.
The second reason is continuity. Tradition forms an important connection with the past. Hearing the marshal cry âOyez!â reminds us that even though the judges may change over time, the Supreme Court, as an institution, traces its roots back to West Virginiaâs statehood in 1863. More than that, the Supreme Court is part of a judicial heritage thatâs hundreds of years old. âOyezâ is a simple, but highly effective way to emphasize that heritage.
We encourage you to follow the Supreme Courtâs work throughout its fall term. And, of course, we invite you to visit our site regularly as we provide coverage of cases affecting civil litigation and practice.
