In past years, the legal industry has been limited in its expressions and operations. One of the major problems faced by law firms, legal practitioners, and even legal scholars is that of the language barrier. The restriction between a soaring legal career and a worldwide audience.
Linguists and lawyers alike, have attempted to apply general translation theories to legal texts in the past. While some legal translators appear content to apply general translation theory principles, others question the utility of translation theory in legal translation. In as much as the English language is referred to as a universal language, you’d agree with me that a certain percentage of the world population does not communicate in the language. And truly, language should not be a problem while trying to access a legal document. So how do we solve the problem? Legal Translation.
Legal translation is a specialized translation service that requires trained legal experts, who handle law-related documents such as; laws, legal statements, affidavits, legal certifications, and litigation and arbitration documents. The majority of legal writing is precise and technical, attempting to precisely define legally binding rights and duties. The demand for competent legal translators is greater than ever in this age of globalization. This may explain the growing interest in legal translation not only among linguists but also among lawyers, particularly in the last ten years. It is peculiar and quite difficult because it requires a standard level of understanding of the legal profession, legal lingo, and vast knowledge of local and international laws, regulations, and treaties. Therefore, legal translators must be professionals in the field, because legal terms could be interpreted differently by a layman.
Legal text translation, like other areas of translation, is (or should be) receiver oriented. Also, legal translators must have in-depth knowledge of legal terminologies in the source and target languages of the legal materials, aside from knowing regional and cultural differences. Legal translation requires a distinct level of accuracy that cannot be achieved by just a regular translator, or a translating machine, but rather by an expert who specializes in the translation of legal documents.
Aside from the language barrier, the difference in the legal systems should be considered; this is complicated even more by the fact that legal discourse is culturally mediated, resulting in significant differences in categories and concepts between legal systems. For instance, there were juridical concepts in Roman law that simply did not exist in common law legal systems. Therefore, a legal translator has to be up to date with the currents of law, legal, and business practices in the country.
At Offshore Ally, we offer you a satisfying professional legal translation service that will meet your request in as many languages as you desire. Our excellent team of global experts are culturally oriented and are driven to improve worldwide communication through outstanding and accurate, localized translation services. Finally, we would deliver to you a timely, error-free, properly expressed document that is tailored specifically to suit your needs.