THE BOW
Mr. Justice John deP. Wright
Superior Court of Justice
People who attend a well-run trial, who are not too emotionally involved to be
oblivious to their surroundings, often express their admiration for the ambience of the
trial, the dignity with which it proceeds. They are impressed with the courtroom, the
gowns, the forms of address, the little courtesies exchanged. One of these courtesies is
the bow.
Today, the reason for bowing is misunderstood and the mechanics of bowing are little
known. The whole subject generates an undue amount of emotion. This is not new.
But counsel should remember the passage in the Book of Esther, (chapter 3, verse 5):
“and when Harmon saw that Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence, then was
Harmon full of wrath”.
Sometimes when I see people prostrate to the waist I am reminded of the description
of a bow by Steele in The Tatler (1710) No. 16, page 2 “making bows until his buttons
touched the ground”.
Reason For Bow:
It has long been traditional for counsel to bow to the judge when they enter the
courtroom while court is in session and upon the judge entering the courtroom.
The bow is not an exchange of courtesies between two duelists about to fight. The
bow is a sign of respect. Counsel bow to the judge, not as a sign of respect to the
person, but as a sign of respect to the judicial office. A sitting judge represents the
monarch, the embodiment of sovereignty. If the Queen were present, or her
representative, the Governor General or Lieutenant Governor, protocol would dictate
a bow. While the Queen or Governor General might not acknowledge this salute,
traditionally, judges do, just as a senior officer returns the salute of a lower ranking
soldier.
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Mechanics Of The Bow:
Some people feel embarrassed when bowing. Some think the bow is a vestige of a
servile age that is best forgotten however it adds to the dignity of proceedings and
helps to instill a sense of order in the courtroom. When properly executed the bow
should be a natural means of non-verbal greeting. Most people who resist bowing
don’t know how to bow. They think a bow is an obsequious bending from the waist.
From the Bench it sometimes looks as though the person bowing is intent upon
smashing his nose on the counsel table. This is not a proper bow.
The bow should be a decent bow, a dignified, democratic bow. A court bow is a
dignified nod. But a nod that is a little more dignified than the nod one would accord
a friend on the street when hurrying by.
Technically such a bow is called the “neck bow”. It is characterized by a slight
inclination from the waist and the dropping of the head and eyes. In the late 1940s
Amy Vanderbilt described it for Americans in her “Complete Book of Etiquette”:
“a slight, graceful inclination of the body from the waist up. . . He must not
merely duck his head, or, worse, pull in his chin in greeting like a turtle, or give
a backward jerk, like a wet dog. . The only way he can master it is to practice it
in front of a mirror until he knows how he looks. His bow must then become as
much a part of him as his skin.”
Once one has mastered the execution of a graceful bow he or she may find it very
useful in other situations.
Today there either seems to be a complete absence of the use of the bow or there is
too much bowing and scraping. “Buttons touching the ground”.
Personally, I think in this day and age we should get the word out that only lawyers
should bow in court. Specifically, we should tell the police that if they are respectful
and quiet they can come and go without doubling over.
We should tell counsel that they should bow only upon the entry and exit of the judge.
If they enter a courtroom while court is in session I think it is sufficient, and less
distracting, if they simply pause respectfully inside the door, then go to their place.
Ontario Justice Education Network
www.ojen.ca