The American Translators Association reminds us of the need for high-quality, human-generated translations in foreign courtroom situations.
“Certified translation of documents, such as contracts or invoices, is often required by creditors doing business internationally. This safeguard is necessary to pursue any future judicial and legal proceedings against a debtor. Generally, foreign courts want the original text in the source language, the translated text in the target language, a statement and notarized signature from a translator attesting to the accuracy of the translation, and validation of the authenticity of the signatory of the document by a Notary Public.
Some nations have a government organization overseeing qualifications and certifications of translators. In countries that do not have a central certification authority, certification by the American Translators Association or other groups may be accepted as the required credential.
In most foreign courts, a translation is considered to be the creation of an equivalent text that expresses the same significance and meaning in a different language. The court expects a certified translator to have a thorough knowledge of the conventions of contracts, invoices, guarantees, or other commercial documents. Software programs merely reproduce the words of the source text in another language, so their translations are not considered certifiable. The court can reject documents if the judge deems the translation inaccurate.”
Extract from "Foreign Courts Accept Certified Translations of Documents Only" Managing Imports and Exports
(12/08)
If you have questions about language translation, whether domestic or international, contact Language Translation, Inc. in San Diego, California. “Let us show you how good translation should be.”
Betty Carlson
Click here to receive our free language translation guides.
Language Translation Inc., a San Diego-based company has been serving the U.S. and countries abroad since 1989 with professional document translation, certified conference interpreting, and software / website localization services.
