Last updated on May 17th, 2021 at 06:11 pm

Two main reasons have triggered the need for legal translation:

1. World Immigration
2. International Commerce (globalization)

Contrary to marketing translation, there is no freedom when translating legal documents. The translation has to be a verbatim of the original document since one change will render the translation invalid or could be the reason of a lawsuit.

However, there are a couple of similarities between marketing and legal translation. One, is that translators specialize in legal translation. Legal terminology is very specific, almost unnatural compared to everyday vocabulary. It uses, for example, many Latin words. That is why translators train to do this job and go to workshops to keep up with the subject.

And just as with translation services for marketing material, there are translation services for legal documents. The legal system in England and in the United States use different words to name the same things, for example:

Lawyer is a general word for someone who has professional training in legal work or who is an expert in the law. In American English, the word attorney is often used instead, especially in legal or official language and especially to refer to a lawyer who represents people in court.

In British English, there is a difference between a solicitor, who gives legal advice and prepares legal documents, and a barrister, who represents people in court.

Not to mention that different countries have different legal systems, which carry many other variations.

The importance of hiring a professional translator cannot be emphasized enough in legal translation. It can only be compared to medical translations. Make sure that your translator is aware of and able to perform perfectly your legal needs to avoid difficulties in your legal process.