CHAPTER V. Persons to be Admitted to the Court

and the Manner of Preparing and Keeping the Acts

Can. 1470 §1. Unless particular law provides otherwise, while cases are being heard before the tribunal, only those

persons are to be present in court whom the law or the judge has established as necessary to expedite the process.

§2. With appropriate penalties, the judge can call to task all those present at a trial who are gravely lacking

in the respect and obedience due the tribunal; furthermore, the judge can also suspend advocates and procurators

from the exercise of their function in ecclesiastical tribunals.

Can. 1471 If a person to be questioned speaks a language unknown to the judge or the parties, an interpreter

designated by the judge and under oath is to be used. The statements, however, are to be put into writing in the

original language and a translation added. An interpreter is also to be used if a speech or hearing impaired person

must be questioned unless the judge may prefer the person to answer the questions in writing.

Can. 1472 §1. The judicial acts, both the acts of the case, that is, those regarding the merit of the question, and the

acts of the process, that is, those pertaining to the procedure, must be put in writing.

§2. The individual pages of the acts are to be numbered and authenticated.

Can. 1473 Whenever judicial acts require the signature of the parties or witnesses and the party or witness is unable

or unwilling to sign, this is to be noted in the acts; the judge and the notary are also to attest that the act was read

to the party or the witness verbatim and that the party or the witness was either not able or unwilling to sign.

Can. 1474 §1. In the case of an appeal, a copy of the acts authenticated by the attestation of a notary is to be sent

to the higher tribunal.

§2. If the acts were written in a language unknown to the higher tribunal, they are to be translated into one

known to that tribunal, with due precautions taken that the translation is a faithful one.

Can. 1475 §1. When the trial has been completed, documents which belong to private persons must be returned;

a copy of them, however, is to be retained.

§2. Without a mandate of the judge, notaries and the chancellor are forbidden to furnish a copy of the judicial

acts and documents acquired in the process.