All you need to know about legal translation

In our previous blog, you got to read about language translation services costs and a brief overview of the cost of legal translation and Arabic legal translation services. However, there’s more to it. In this blog, we will take you through the nitty-gritty of legal translation and why it is important for you to equip yourself with this knowledge. Let’s start. 

What is legal translation?

“Order, Order!” are not just the terms that are commonly used in the courts, but also reflect something extremely in the legal system - ORDER. Considering the importance of conduct in the legal industry, variation in legal issues across the globe, and the significance of different regulations, the amount of complexity in legal translations is quite high! As a business support service provider, we at EZ, pride ourselves in explaining the most difficult concepts in the most simplified manner! 

Legal translation is a process that transforms legal documents and material from one language to another while keeping the meaning and intent, intact. In simple words, it is basically the translation of the language of the legal realm. Any kind of legal document contains immensely sensitive information, for which context and accuracy are vital. Documents like agreements, contracts, statements from witnesses, immigration documents, court orders, trusts, wills, patents, depositions, litigation documents, property labels, and articles of incorporation are some examples of the kind of documents that a legal translator will have to work with. 

The complexity of legal translation services: 

Now, that you know what legal translation is, it is safe to say that such a type of translation can be considered one of the most difficult translation jobs to do. If you have planned to go ahead with legal translation, it is important to have a better understanding of the complexity of the work that has to be done. 

Let us look at some more reasons why legal translation is an exhaustive process:

1. A person working on the translation of legal documents has to unfailingly contend with the delivery of accurate voice tone, and niche and register terminology. They have to fully understand the meaning of legal jargon in both languages to make the translated document contextual. So, in order to work as a legal translator, a person needs to have a better understanding of the meanings associated with the legal terms. 

2. Even slight ambiguity in a translated document can lead to delays, invalidate documents, and ruin relationships.

3. Legal translation is much wordier with complex structures of sentences. So, a person not used to translating such documents, even if they have studied law, will have a lot of difficulties in delivering error-free translated content.

4. Experience of multiple years within the legal system is imperative for legal translations. Without a deep understanding of the content to be translated, some inaccuracy is bound to occur.

5. It is also necessary to know that for some languages, legal documents are written in active voice while for others it is written in passive. For example, in English, passive and formal voice is used in the legal text while most other languages use active voice instead.

6. In some the countries like Sweden, Spain, and the Netherlands, a legal translator is made to take an oath! Similarly, in many other countries, a translator must have a degree in legal translation. Legal translators are also made to give a lot of tests to identify their proficiency and practice.

7. It is highly difficult, and also advised against translating a legal document by oneself without sufficient knowledge of the law. Even with a good amount of knowledge, there are some practices and rules that keep a check on the legal document translation, and your document may not be notarized if you do it yourself. Some mistakes in legal translations have led to extreme backlash and expensive lawsuits, as well.

Talking about Arabic legal translation, there are a few common challenges that translators face. Such as Arabic’s distinct linguistic system, different legal systems, different terminology, different formatting, etc. 

Now, after reading these complexities, you must be thinking about how to find a relevant legal translator or translation company for such a complex process. Do not worry, the solutions to this question are ready! 

For a legal translator, mentioned below are the must-have qualities: 

  • Familiarity with the cultural practices, language, and legal system of both the source and the target language.
  • Relevant qualifications in the field of translation in law depend on the country.
  • A thorough understanding of the sub-areas of the specific and relevant laws.
  • Acquaintance with the difference in the kind of law language used in the courtroom and that used in the documents.
  • A firm understanding of the technical documents
  • Staying updated with the creation of any new laws or amendments to the existing laws

Similarly, for a translation company, mentioned below are the factors needed to be kept in mind:

  • Quality- Quality in a translated document means consistency throughout the content. The whole document should be proofread multiple times by the company, before submitting the final product to the respective client. For instance, at EZ, we promise Consistently High Quality in every deliverable that we send out! 
  • Respect for client information- Once again, the information contained in legal documents is highly sensitive and confidential, which is why information breach is not affordable. Only secure systems, like the ISO-Certified ones at EZ, with the promise of maximum Information Security, should be used to process, keep and translate legal documents.
  • Company reputation and experience- Understandably, entrusting a company with legal translation is hard, for which customer testimonials, portfolio, and company reputation help a lot in forging a decision. It is always a good idea to check for these factors while assigning a company your legal translation work. 
  • Transparency- A company should always be transparent with its client. If you want to know about the qualifications of people working on your legal documents or the rough timeline of deliverables and the reason behind the specific quote from your translation company, then they should be able to oblige without any hesitation.

Now, you are aware of all the reasons why legal translation is complex and how only the expert translators, like the ones in EZ, are in a position to deliver the best. So, get in touch with our Round-the-clock Available Experts, to avail any service from our Suite Of Business Support Services! Contact us today and get a free POC.

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