Whether their contents relate to a business transaction, provide evidence for a legal case, or outline instructions for handling personal affairs, there’s a lot riding on every legal document, so each one must be thorough and accurate in order to avoid possible misunderstandings. In the world of business, legal documents play a critical role in protecting the interests of companies and all parties involved. Because of the exceptional degree of linguistic precision demanded, law is one of the most difficult industry areas when it comes to translations. For this reason, one should not take lightly the selection of a translation service for legal documents.
Once translated, each legal document should be identical to the original in terms of its essential meaning. The slightest mistranslation or minor discrepancy can send an ambiguous message to readers and negatively impact the credibility and reputation of the parties involved. Roughly five percent of disputes between Chinese companies and foreign businesses are caused by mistakes made in legal translations.
To avoid misunderstandings and complications, a high level of skill, know-how, and attention to detail is necessary for an effective translation process. Legal documents are packed with complicated legalese, often making them extremely difficult to understand without a certain level of expertise. Legal jargon can be a language in and of itself.
With this level of complexity, translating such documents to another language can be a challenging task, which is further complicated by varying laws. Each country has its own way and style of doing business, handling legal matters, and adhering to necessary requirements. A properly qualified and informed language-service provider can produce a translation that is in full compliance with local laws and regulations.
Flawed document preparation can negatively impact a business or individual, leading to even bigger issues. Bearing that in mind, when the need arises for the translation of legal documents, soliciting the help of a properly qualified translation services provider is a good idea.
The Importance of Legal Translation
Translation and localization experts have an in-depth understanding of the intricacies involved in translating legal text. Translation errors in legal documents can have severe consequences, which can include lengthy and expensive court battles, lost court cases or mistrials, and major disputes between companies, individuals, and countries. To avoid the possibility of mistakes, the translation service you use should have expertise with legal documents such as the following:
- Wills and testaments
- Adoption agreements
- Contracts
- Court transcripts
- Litigation materials
- Evidence documents
- Witness statements
- Corporate and government proposals
- Patent filings
- Legal disclaimers
- Terms of service
- Confidentiality agreements
- And more
Why Use a Translation Services for Legal Documents
In an age of growing globalization, it’s more common for businesses and individuals to conduct business across borders. This creates an urgent need for precise translation of legal documents. Translation and localization professionals are skilled at picking up on cultural nuances, varying sentence structures, and more. Additionally, experienced translators have a solid understanding of legal terminology, laws, and systems to ensure that your records don’t lose their original meaning during the translation process.
Consider working with a translation service to translate legal documents accurately when in these situations:
It’s Out of Your Scope
Legal documents often contain jargon and terminology unfamiliar to people outside of the legal profession. Moreover, different countries and regions may translate these terms differently. Enlisting the help of someone who is well-versed in this area can help ensure accuracy. Some translators are not only skilled at translating legal terminology, but they can also localize the contents of the documents so that they are compliant with local legal requirements.
The Courts Require It
Depending on the type of legal documents being translated, it may be necessary to hire a professional to satisfy the court’s requirements. For documents such as depositions, court transcripts, and evidentiary documents, courts may demand that certified experts translate the documents. Therefore, before beginning the translation process, it’s essential to understand the requirements of your situation.
Additionally, certified translations require the translator to sign a statement affirming that the translation is accurate. Once the document has been certified, it becomes a part of the legal record. Other documents that may require certified translation include witness statements, wills and testaments, business and corporate dealings, immigration documents, financial statements, and medical records, just to name a few.
You Want to Avoid Costly Errors and Legal Ramifications
If a legal agreement or court case is on the line, you don’t want to leave document translation in the hands of an amateur. It’s easy for documents to lose their original meaning if they’re translated by someone who is unfamiliar with the process and the subject matter. That can result in documents that are plagued with errors and prone to misinterpretation, which may ultimately lead to lawsuits, lost claims, and other undesirable outcomes.
Online Translation Isn’t Enough
Online automated translation services aren’t a reliable tool for translating legal documents. These platforms often translate a text word for word, failing to pick up on sentence structure, syntax, idioms, and in the case of legal documents, legal jargon. Relying on such resources for translating legal documents can lead to significant errors and may completely change the original document’s meaning. These mistakes can negatively impact court cases, contracts, and more.
Leave Legal Document Translation to the Professionals
Before undertaking the task of legal document translation, it’s essential to secure the services of a translation specialist who is properly qualified to carry out the task. Some translators specialize in specific areas such as labor law, corporate law, criminal procedures, or contracts.
TrueLanguage’s team of skilled experts can provide you with proper legal document translations. We leverage our years of experience in combination with the latest translation technology to meticulously translate and localize your legal documents. Contact us to learn how to get started.
