LANGUAGE ANALYSIS FOR THE DETERMINATION OF ORIGIN: A Conflict of Paradigms and Its Resolution through New Protocols

The chapter discusses controversies around the practice and theory of language analysis in asylum procedures. The focus is on the qualifications of author teams, the role of non-expert native speakers, and consideration of life histories and repertoires, in particular mobility, layered socialization, and multilingualism. Examples are given from the author's involvement in casework where a new LADO protocol was introduced, and reference is made to the resolution of contradictory approaches in the courts. The chapter identifies prejudice both in the overall society context in which LADO discussions take place and practical linguistic-forensic work is commissioned-notably the political debates around immigration and asylum, which are often emotionally charged-as well as in the more specific discussion around language and language expertise, where concepts such as native speaker, the link between language and place, the role of multilingualism are contested.