Why you should go with a legal translation specialization company
Your law firm is now international. You’re dealing with clients and contacts all around the world. Congratulations. Now, to be successful, you need your case materials, website, contracts, agreements, and more translated.
As you look at your scope of work, you wonder about the fastest and cheapest way to accurately and effectively translate your materials. It’s not as simple as plugging your document into a machine translator, or handing it over to a newbie translator. Legal translation projects require a solid understanding of legalese in multiple languages, and the ability to effectively communicate that same terminology into another language, as well as the ability to do so quickly and error-free. Failure at this can be costly for your law firm.
So what happens when you have no way of knowing how accurate the quality of the translation you receive is, since you cannot read the original document? Your best option is to hire a language service provider with experience in the legal industry.
Why specialization is key
Your law firm is cost-conscious, naturally, but translation isn’t an area to try to save money on when you can jeopardize the reputation of your firm with a lower-quality (and cheaper) translation service. Using case documents translated by a freelance or lesser-skilled translator may not stand up in court if they are not accurately translated, and they may even lead you in the wrong direction with the case.
The following are a few of the reasons you should choose a legal translation specialization company over other translation firms.
Better grasp of legal terms
Legal terminology is a language in and of itself, making legal translation projects more difficult than average. Failure to understand this technical lingo in the source document will result in it being poorly translated into English, and you will end up with an incorrect translation.
Legal translation specialization companies have a solid grasp of the terminology used in your industry. The provider understands your language, but perhaps more important, she knows how to translate these effectively to and from another language.
Deep expertise in the legal industry is not something all translation companies can offer. Finding a language service provider who understands your industry can make a major difference in the quality of work you receive.
Skilled translators know what type of translation you need
Not every case file needs word-for-word translation. There are also options like summarization and enhanced machine translation. A translator who knows the legal industry will be able to recommend the right type of translation for a particular document. A contract, for example, might require verbatim translation, while case materials might benefit from a summarization, which is usually priced lower and can be turned around faster.
Wider variety of languages offered
The larger your operation is, the more languages you will need to have your materials translated into and out of. Finding a single high-quality translator familiar with the legal industry to translate everything for your law firm is not easy. It is also time-consuming.
Working with a legal translation specialization company, you have faster access to more language resources under one umbrella. You save time during the hiring process and rest easy knowing your translation project is in the hands of a tried, tested, and proven translator.
Streamlined workflow
Translating legal documents, journal articles, technical guidelines, and more is a big job. It requires a dedicated project manager to oversee the operation. More important, it requires that all translators are on the same page. This way, every word, nuance, and sentence gets translated correctly in every language.
There is not an international workflow standard for legal translations. This means that there are countless ways that translators work on each project. Crossing over in workflow can muddle a situation, increasing the likelihood of mistakes.
Lawyers, paralegals, and their clients cannot afford to make mistakes on such critical work. With a legal translation specialization company, you have the same workflow for every project. This makes it easier to keep each translation consistent and accurate.
When it comes to your legal translation needs, accuracy is of paramount importance. With a company that specializes in this type of translation work, you know you will receive the best results with the best outcome for your firm.
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