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Faizan
If you look up any respected translation company or agency, you're more than likely to find that a large slice of their resources are channeled into legal translation services, which make up a sizable percentage of job orders. It's one of the most in-demand specialised translation services in the world today. To get to the root of why that is, the reason why there is such a demand for a service must be examined. Why do clients need legal translations, and why is a marriage between law and linguistics so essential, as opposed to hoping one sphere will take care of the other?
Globalisation has been a catalyst for legal translation services really coming to fruition in recent decades. Despite the EU and other factors pulling nations closer together on many levels, branching out as a company into new international pastures remains a lengthy and complicated process. Crammed into the bracket of legal documents are contracts, insurance policies, tax returns, warranties and countless other examples, all in need of translation in order to operate abroad.
For this to be done, there has to be a full acceptance that only specialised legal translators have the capabilities for such a task. Complicated terminology is often understandably noted when speaking of their responsibilities. Jargon of greater complexity exists, but the French legal term 'force majeur' demonstrates in the simplest sense how word-for-word translation doesn't always suffice for legal documents. A literal translation gives you 'superior force' in English, yet in a legal sense it's true meaning is 'an act of God.' Mastering this terminology is almost the equivalent of having to speak a third language.
A human element has to also come into play, though. Good legal work in a courtroom owes it dues to strong presentation and sound communication, and the same principles apply to legal documents. Terminology is just one way in which legal cultures differ country to country. Translators must be aware of these subtle differences as well as of general cultural differences, which can affect choice of phrasing considering how differently certain words can be interpreted by separate cultures.
These are just some of the ingredients that form a thorough and flexible legal translation service. Companies can rest assured in knowing that the translators assigned to their project have spent years perfecting the winning combination of legal nous and linguistical prowess - their expertise capturing precision and accuracy in documents by filing down the sharp edges of the language barrier.
Globalisation has been a catalyst for legal translation services really coming to fruition in recent decades. Despite the EU and other factors pulling nations closer together on many levels, branching out as a company into new international pastures remains a lengthy and complicated process. Crammed into the bracket of legal documents are contracts, insurance policies, tax returns, warranties and countless other examples, all in need of translation in order to operate abroad.
For this to be done, there has to be a full acceptance that only specialised legal translators have the capabilities for such a task. Complicated terminology is often understandably noted when speaking of their responsibilities. Jargon of greater complexity exists, but the French legal term 'force majeur' demonstrates in the simplest sense how word-for-word translation doesn't always suffice for legal documents. A literal translation gives you 'superior force' in English, yet in a legal sense it's true meaning is 'an act of God.' Mastering this terminology is almost the equivalent of having to speak a third language.
A human element has to also come into play, though. Good legal work in a courtroom owes it dues to strong presentation and sound communication, and the same principles apply to legal documents. Terminology is just one way in which legal cultures differ country to country. Translators must be aware of these subtle differences as well as of general cultural differences, which can affect choice of phrasing considering how differently certain words can be interpreted by separate cultures.
These are just some of the ingredients that form a thorough and flexible legal translation service. Companies can rest assured in knowing that the translators assigned to their project have spent years perfecting the winning combination of legal nous and linguistical prowess - their expertise capturing precision and accuracy in documents by filing down the sharp edges of the language barrier.
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