In addition to court fees, misunderstandings in court can affect people`s lives. Translation errors can change the course of trials, keep innocent people trapped in lengthy trials, or reduce sentences for defendants who might get away with a trial. Even minor legal translation errors can cause damage. Just think of the personal documents you translate because you are applying abroad or adopting a child from abroad. Any translation error can cost you that job or your dream of having a family. We have already talked about the advantages and disadvantages of machine translation. There is a time and place to prioritize technology, and this is not one of them. When it comes to legal documents, machine translation can`t do much for you: the level of accuracy and understanding you need throughout your project requires human language experts in almost every scenario. Legal translations cover many areas, and since legal documents are used officially, there should be no errors in their translations. Poor translation of legal documents can be costly in many ways. It is important to avoid translation errors, as the legal implications are enormous.
There are many risks and consequences of mistakes when using unqualified translators for legal documents, including your reputation, legal liability, and much more. She explains: «The official language of Austria is German. Many believe that since Austria and Germany have common sides in their history and both use the German language, legal terminology is applied in the same way in both countries. This is completely false. Despite obvious similarities between legal systems, legal terminology differs. In the worst case, legal translation errors can lead to tragedy. The National Security Agency in the United States has released a document that reveals perhaps the biggest translation error in history. Sometimes they are funny. In other cases, inappropriate and unprofessional. Many translation errors go viral and cause a sensation online, but they rarely harm anyone, until they do. For some types of translation services, such errors can have a significant impact on individuals and organizations.
For example, legal translation errors can affect the international economy, a company`s reputation, and even people`s lives. She restructured translation workflows at LGP and completely reorganized the work with subcontractors, «which resulted in a limited number of delivery delays and very strict quality and cost control.» She adds: «Experience has taught us that translation costs can reach several thousand euros per file.» There`s also a translation memory that stores your projects in a database, so you never waste time or money translating the same or similar sections of text. These are all things that any good translation agency should offer – so be sure to ask the question! About 5% of disputes between Chinese and foreign companies are caused by legal translation errors. Such events result in significant losses for both parties. Imagine all the hours wasted in court, lawyers, penalties and other related expenses. As convenient and useful as Google Translate may be in multilingual situations, its use is not recommended for legal translations. Don`t just take it from us. There is real scientific research to prove it. When it comes to legal matters, a certain level of precision is required, which Google Translate cannot provide. According to a comparative study carried out in the translation of legal texts from English to Arabic, errors are both lexical and syntactic. In the first category, the output text shows topics such as polysemy and homonymy, legal duplicates, and legal adverbs. The syntactic level includes problems of morphological analysis, harmony and modality (Basel Abd-AlKareem Hijazi, 2013).
Proofreaders should be experienced professionals who have worked with legal documents and have an excellent knowledge of the specific terminology used in courts and law firms. Also make sure they have an excellent knowledge of grammar rules and know how to make adjustments if necessary! It is very risky to have reviewers who are not familiar with legal terms or have no experience in translating legal documents, as they might miss some essential information as they do not recognize important words used in courts and law firms. They may also misunderstand important phrases such as «subject to amendments» or «in force until further notice» because they do not have sufficient knowledge of certain issues addressed in the legal texts. If you do not hire a reliable translation service provider, your clients may claim that the translation has been falsified. The falsification of a translation is considered illegal and will not be tolerated by anyone. If you do, you will lose your reputation and face lawsuits. If there is a mistake in a translation, people will assume that everything was wrong. It is very difficult to prove that something is true and accurate if there are no sources to confirm it. Therefore, you should always hire professional translators who have the necessary skills and experience to be able to translate all your legal documents accurately and reliably. Legal translations are present in very important life processes: adoption of a child abroad, confirmation of the divorce of a binational couple, conclusion of a commercial contract or a product patent or insurance. «Legal language» is one of the strangest types of language, due to its specific terminology and syntax, so translation errors can seriously affect people`s lives. Due to their persistence, LGP now uses a tool to increase translation productivity.
They chose Kilgray`s memoQ. Since the translation needs in the company are extremely high and the structure of some texts is standardized, all in-house translators now work in a central translation memory. Any legal document must be carefully translated and revised. Unfortunately, cases like this are more frequent than expected, and many translation errors go unnoticed, meaning they affect the final verdict. The legal implications of translation errors have been going on for ages. In 1851, the Sultanate of Sulu in the Philippines and Spain signed a peace treaty. The Spanish believed that the agreement meant that the sultanate accepted sovereignty from Spain. The sultanate thought it was a peace treaty. In 1878, the sultanate again signed a treaty with the British trade union. While the sultanate accepted a lease, the English version indicated that it was a sale. You will need to work with a translation company that has proven expertise in legal translation if your company needs this service. You don`t need to look far either, as you can easily reach electronic translation services by emailing contact@etranslationservices.com or calling (800) 882-6058.
Our legal experts are native speakers, live in the country and have years of experience handling legal translations for various companies in different countries. Please contact us and let us discuss your needs. Legal translation errors have a snowball effect. Mistakes can waste hours spent on lawyers, courts, penalties and other expenses. Mistakes can lead to a decline in brand reputation. Clients should contact another translation agency to request a new translation of the same document. Such situations are associated with a waste of time and money. Legal translations require native speakers who are subject matter experts.
You must have a solid legal background to accurately reproduce translations. Legal translations are demanding because the translator must know the laws of the source and target languages. At INGCO International, we have a network of more than 3,500 specialist legal translators with global industry expertise. With our legal translator assessment tool, we select linguists who have in-depth knowledge in the field you need. Once complete, a third-party provider reads the content aloud to ensure that the translation is error-free. You will receive accurate and certified translations that guarantee the smooth running of the transaction, on time and within budget. We translate: Translation errors sometimes deserve viral attention because they are funny and sometimes completely harmless. However, in the case of specialized translations, such as translations of legal and medical documents, translation errors are unforgivable, as they can lead to financial loss and loss of life. Errors in translating legal documents can affect people`s lives, corporate reputations and the international economy.
