What do you know about legal translation?

by Target Language Translation Services

- December 10 2021

At some point in your life, whether it is a personal need or one of a professional nature, it is conceivable you will need to have legal documents translated. This can be anything from a simple overseas traffic ticket to something more complicated such as a divorce packet when filing for dual citizenship or to revoke it. When actions require the involvement of two countries with different languages, any documents that must travel between them both in order to be acted upon must be translated, and in the vast majority of cases, must be certified copies. During the process of translating legal, it’s essential to find a linguist with a solid grasp of the legal language and terminology. A good legal translator will not only be well-versed in the nuances of the two languages between which any documents need to be translated, but also require a comprehensive understanding of the legal sector.

Different types of legal translations

Each form of legal translation has its own requirements, depending on the language it needs to be translated into, and the type of document itself. Here are the most commonly requested forms of legal translation.

Certified translations

In the event that you need to provide a translated document for legal purposes, such as a patent or contract, many countries will require that they are certified in order to prove their linguistic accuracy. At Target Language Translation, our certified translations are carried out in-house, with our accredited team able to attest to the quality and precision of our legal translations.

Notarisation

A notarised translation differs from its certified counterpart by being more focused on guaranteeing that procedures have been appropriately . A notary will sign off on a translated text, but not necessarily understand its contents, which is why all of our notarized translations come with an additional certificate of accuracy alongside the certificate of notarization.

Apostille

Apostille translation simply means that a document has been authorized to be used for international purposes. The apostille itself, which often needs to be translated itself, acts as an assurance of the quality of the translation.

Patent filings

To file a patent abroad takes a number of steps, and requires many different legal translations to meet all the administrative requirements of its target country. Our patent filing service takes care of all of these steps on your behalf.

How to ensure quality legal translation

When requesting legal translation service to translate official documents from one language to another, there are steps that you can take to help guarantee high quality and timely legal translation. We are glad to provide you with some of the most important tips that will give you peace of mind that the translation will meet your needs.

Make translation a top priority in the first stage of your legal process.

Planning ahead can help you make the legal translation process as cost effective as possible. The legal translation process is a complex one filled with specific legal terminologies and implications. By thinking of translation in the first stage of your process, you can begin budgeting as much time as possible to dedicate to translation of your documents. Having enough time can help eliminate rush translation fees and also give you ample time to secure the best legal translators for the job. By having more time, you’ll also be able to properly produce and compile the legal documents required to submit them for translation.

Make clearly what documents need to be translated and the level of certification required for each.

Legal documents can be both complex and extensive. Oftentimes, there are pages that don’t need to be translated and this is something you’d need to clarify first with your attorney and/or entity requesting these legal translations. Once you have a list of documents that need translation, you’ll need to share this list with the translation company. As each country or organization petitioning the translated documents have their own requirement for certifications, clearly identifying which of your legal documents need translating and providing the specific instructions for certifications can save you time and money.

Decide the dialect.

There are variations in spelling, grammar and style for each language. For example, several elements of the English language written and spoken in the U.S is different from British English. The same applies for other languages including Chinese, French, Portuguese and Spanish. Such differences are significant and can add another level of complexity in working with legal content. So, when asking about legal translation of documents from English to Spanish, be sure to determine if the translations should be made into Spanish for Mexico, Spain, or another Spanish speaking country. You will need this information to help the translation company you’re working with to assign a legal translator who is a native speaker of the specific Spanish dialect.

Understand the legal system.

Just as each dialect of a language is unique to each country, so is each country’s legal system. A country’s legal system contains concepts reflected in its legal language which are culturally-dependent, and you’ll need a legal translator who is as knowledgeable of those concepts as he or she is in the target language. Legal documents translated for a court will especially require extra care from the translator to ensure accurate legal terminology is used for that country. Be sure to provide all the information and supporting documents early in the process.

Find a professional legal translator.

Whether written or spoken, all legal processes revolve around words. As a result, getting your point across clearly, and in detail, is crucial to ensure there is no ambiguity or confusion over the terms of a contract or court case. However, with so much detail to pack into each document, they can become hard enough to understand in one language, dense with so-called legalese. As a result, translating all of this information, including terms which are unique to the legal profession, needs to be done in a way which can be easily comprehended by international legal organizations. The most effective way to do this is to enlist the help of a professional legal translator who understands the language of the law as well as the language of the land.

To be sure that you’re getting the best legal translation services, you should always ensure that your agency is ISO-certified. As for the translators, you should enquire about their legal credentials, and ask your translation agency to guarantee that they assign you a qualified translator who is selected based on their experience and special areas of expertise.

If you’re looking to discuss which types of legal translation is right for your needs, get in touch with the team at Target Language Translation today.

This article is reprinted from JR LANGUAGE, CreditEval and Global voices.

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