Readers of this blog know that it isn’t just about the law, it is about the language of the law. As I’ve mentioned, many of our legal terms are derived from Norman French courtesy of William the Conqueror. Recently, I began to wonder about the use of Yiddish, the principal language spoken by the Jews for more than a millennium, in California legal opinions. Despite the widespread use of Yiddish words in popular culture, there is a real paucity of Yiddish in California legal opinions. Here’s what I’ve found:
Kvetch - meaning to squeeze, whine or complain. The opposite of kvetch is knell (to be very pleased). Surprisingly, I found no California opinion using kvetch. In fact, the only example that I could find in any state or federal opinion was this line by Vice Chancellor J. Travis Laster in Hamilton Partners, LP v. Englard, 11 A.3d 1180, 1205 (2010): “To kvetch about the technical statutory analysis, however, is to ignore the pragmatic and equitable nature of the Lambrecht ruling.”
Maven or meyven - meaning an expert. I found one published California opinion using maven. In St. Joe Minerals Corp. v. Zurich Ins. Co., 75 Cal.App.4th 261 (2000), the late Justice David G. Sills accurately described Bernard Witkin as “the great maven of California law and particularly appellate procedure”.
Shlep or Schlep - meaning to drag or haul oneself. Again, my search of California opinions turned up nothing. I found shlep in several federal court opinions. Judge Leonard Wexler uses schlep multiple times in Kroll v. Lieberman, 244 F. Supp. 2d 100 (E.D. N.Y. 2003). Initially, he uses schlep as verb: “The principal argument relies on the asserted fact that there is often traffic on the Long Island Expressway and it is somehow “unjust” to require Defendants to “schlep” all the way “out to the Eastern District.” He later uses the word as a noun “It is approximately a twelve minute drive from that airport to the Central Islip Federal Courthouse—not a schlep at all.”
Shlimazel, shlimazl or schlimazel - meaning an unlucky person or simply bad luck. Some readers may remember that the television show Laverne & Shirley began with “1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 schlemiel, schlimazel Hasenpfeffer Incorporated!” (A schlemiel is a bungler and hasenpfeffer is a traditional German rabbit stew). Despite this catchy bit of nonsense, schlimazel has had no mazl in making its way into any reported decision in California (or anywhere else).
Tchotchkes or tshatshke - meaning trinkets. The California appellate courts have also eschewed the use of this word, even though “trinkets” appears in numerous opinions. I found at three opinions in other jurisdictions that opted for the more colorful tchotchkes, including the following: “Through the marketing of the tchotchkes described above, the Museum not only garners revenue, it also helps to expand the renown of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.” Rock & Roll Hall of Fame v. Gentile Productions, 134 F. 3d 749, 757 (6th Cir. 1998).
There are a great many more colorful Yiddish words that are used in American popular culture, such as ganef, mensch, and schande. California jurists may want to consider enlivening their opinions with a few choice borrowings from Yiddish.
