1. WhatYouNeedtobea
Legal Translator

2. Damaging Translation Mistakes
• Translation mistakes can be damaging to a law
firm or their clients.
• These mistakes are the worst-case scenario:
– Missing a final deadline.
– Inconsistency in terminology.
– Mistranslations of phrases or words.

3. Avoid Translation Errors
• Obviously everyone
wants to avoid making
those kinds of errors in
the first place.
• Hiring a legal
translation team that
has the necessary
expertise will help
avoid that.

4. Key Legal Translator Attributes
Legal translators that have these attributes are
more successful:
• Legal Knowledge
• Legal Jargon
• Fluency
• Organization
• Technologically Conversant

5. Legal Knowledge
• Legal systems can be
difficult to
understand.
• Understanding legal
concepts is necessary
to translate properly.
• Different branches of
law function
differently.

6. Legal Jargon
• Every legal system has its own legal
terminology.
• Latin terms in American legal system have
different meanings than the original Latin
ones.
• Keep up with new legal terms.

7. Fluency
• Need an intimate knowledge of both
translation languages.
• Meaning needs to be as close to the original
as possible.
• Native speakers of the language that is being
translated into are most successful.

8. Organization
• Organized approach
will ensure the
project is delegated
properly.
• Editing and quality
control will rely on
some organization.

9. Technologically Conversant
• Terminology
management and
project tracking can
help with translation.
• Knowledge of
technology in general
can help with certified
legal document
translations involving
technology (like
patents or IP).

10. Finding a Qualified Legal
Translation Team
• Certified document translation can be
performed by a full-time translator or a
translation company.
• You can hire a certified translation service
company that will meet your legal translation
needs.