More than 87% of global companies agree that expansion is necessary for growth. In the digital age, it is possible to expand offshore with intuitive marketing strategies. However, to strive for a successful business you must face the hierarchy of the legal system too.

But what if it is in a non-English language?

A global business understands the importance of language, culture, and consumer. However, before you can target the audience, you need to go through the legal parade of documents before you can even establish the business in a foreign market. The translation industry has groomed the business practices, therefore, we can say that translation is one of the primary solutions to understand “how the legal system works” in another country.

A business owner may find himself in hot waters if it’s their first time to communicate with the translation services offering legal translation. So, before you step into the world of laws and judicial policies, this article will enlighten the basic but necessary understanding of legal translation importance and how you can appoint the best legal translation services.

What is the legal translation?

The translation is about converting the documents from source language to target language. However, legal translation is more on the technical side of the documents. It is complex and becomes even more so when translated into the foreign (target) language.

Legal translation is usable at the times of mergers, takeovers, and partnerships, or even when expanding the business. Therefore, it requires more time than the standard translation process. Usually, there are two basic practices for legal translation;

1. Standard legal translation

A subject matter expert, a legal translator, reviews the legal documents and translates it accordingly.

2. Translation with legal review

The lawyer reviews the legal documents after the completion of standard legal translation. The translated document is then verified to make corrections (if any) and makes the necessary suggestions.

With the help of subject matter experts, documents can be translated efficiently and with accuracy too. So when you jump into the legal translation, you need to keep the following matters in mind.

Types of legal translations

Before we jump to the types of documents, you need to be familiar with the common types of legal translation that are usually practiced by the companies.

1. Certified translations

These documents usually cover the patents and contracts that need to be certified to prove their linguistic accuracy. Usually, companies prefer to carry the certified translation in-house with the help of lawyers, but linguistic experts are also part of the translation team.

2. Apostille

A legal document authorized to use for international purposes is the apostille translation. It also needs translation, as its primary role is to ensure the accuracy and quality of the translation.

3. Patent filings

Filing a patent requires a series of steps. Now the legal requirements for patens will vary from source country to target country, therefore, all the steps must be taken into account while translating the document.

4. Notarisation

It’s a bit different from a certified translation. This legal translation form takes place to guarantee that the proper translation process was followed. A notary may read take a look at the translated content, but it doesn’t mean that they understand what the content is about. That’s why translation services that offer the notarization translation have certifications to prove the level of accuracy.

Types of legal documents used for translation

Covering the legalities is a primary concern for any business holder. However, some documents are high in demand for translation purposes. To have clear communication with the next client, you need to take care of the following common documents.

Contracts

A mandatory binding document that is signed by two or more than two parties upon acceptance of terms and conditions is known as contracts. The memo of terms and conditions is written in a way that benefits both parties when accepted. So when a contract is formed between two offshore companies, a multilingual contract goes a long way.

2. Will

Real estate agencies have to deal with the contracts and wills at the same time, especially if a long-term client is involved. Because wills are related to the property matters, is another legally binding document even after the death of the owner. The owner, upon his/her wish, can have their will translated into any language they want. So upon selling a property, the will plays a gradual role in finalizing the deal.

3. Deed

Similar to a will, deeds are used for real estates. When the ownership of the property is to be transferred or when a client buys a new property, the legal document is known as the deed. This document creates the ownership of one’s property.

4. Trust

Imagine an estate. It is a large property that cannot be looked after by the owner only. In the case owner does not have enough resources to maintain the estate/property then they can handover the property for maintenance and care to the other person. The document that gives the authority to take hold of the property for such purpose is known as Trust.

5. Business deals

Legal agreements that can be either temporary or permanent are signed by the two parties. These cannot be violated, and if one party does so, they have to pay for the damages too. Translation of business deals is always a handy tool to have a better grip on what is written.

Qualitative factor to look for in the legal translation services

Now that you have a clear understanding of the documents likely to be involved in the business, you need to focus on finding the right translation services.

The benefit of hiring a legal translation service provider is that they can work remotely (which is often the case) and still produce a genuine document in the target language. However, making a final decision can be tough. So do keep an eye on some of the prominent factors before choosing the legal translation services.

1. The deadlines

Does the translation service provider have a fast turnaround time? Do they meet the deadlines? This is one of the primary questions that should be kept in mind. Legal translations must follow strict deadlines. Imagine if you are in court and the document you needed to have is not available, as a result, the legal matter would delay.

2. Confidentiality

A critical issue and the foremost concern of a business owner is that the legal documents need to be taken care of properly. Leaking legal information can prove to be lethargic for the firm, therefore, a translation service provider that ensures security features and NDAs and also takes an extra set of precautions can be your primary choice too.

3. Tone

Legal document tone is more complex than other documents. The tone of the translated document must be similar to the source document. The tone can easily get lost in the translation so overviewing the document through the translation process is critical.

For instance, if it’s urgent notice, then the urgency should be conveyed with the right words and tone in one language to another.

4. Linguistic structure

Language pairs can make legal documents more complex. Therefore, there are cases when the equivalent words are not available in the target language. To resolve such disputes the translators must be experts and, therefore, their accuracy level must be intact. Clients must be informed in case if any change is made to the document.

Following the compelling linguistic structure that maintains the originality of the source content is compulsory.

5. Change in law

Laws are constantly changing. Sometimes it’s a memo, a clause, or a new policy is instated that affects all other documents too. Translators need to keep themselves up-to-date for accurate translation.

This will drastically improve the quality of translation, and leave no room for errors either. So it’s best to hire professional translation services rather than a freelance translator.

6. Legal variations

Certain terminologies differ from country to country. In rare cases, it also happens that the legal verbiage differs significantly within the country as well. For instance in France, Quebec, Wallonia, and Senegal the language difference is noticeable. Hence, the legal language is also different.

This adds more to the complexity factors. Minute differences if overlooked can affect the translation’s accuracy otherwise.

7. Fluency

How to make sure the translated legal document is deciphered in the same flow as the source language? The use of terminologies, concepts, and systems instates the fluency of the legal documents.

Thus the translators need to have an in-depth understanding and knowledge to translate adequately.

Conclusion

So what do you look for in your language partner? Keeping the above factors and types of legal translation in mind, now, you have a better chance to take the next step into the world of global business.

Legal translation services may not be an easy translation but the best thing to do is conduct the market research that will help you choose your future linguistic partner. A good translation partner can make your business jump by leaps and bounds.