Translation of legal texts and documents is one of the most demanded. The reason for the complexity of legal translation is based not only on linguistic features, but also on the discrepancy between the legislative and judicial systems of the English-speaking countries and Russia.
Despite the fact that the translation of legal texts and documents is considered one of the most demanded, it is also one of the most laborious. In one form or another, it affects the interests of many organizations, enterprises, as well as individuals. The expansion of international com
munications leads to an increase in the number of contacts between businesses and individuals.
The field of activity of legal translators includes:
Laws and regulations
Constituent documents, statutes
Agreements, agreements, contracts
Court decisions, statements of claim,
Seals, stamps, apostille
Tender proposals, certificates
Notarial certificates, wills
Many documents are stereotyped, contain fixed phrases and clichés. Some involve the deep work of a language specialist. The more versatile a text covers, the more difficult it is to translate. A full-fledged legal translation implies an accurate transfer of the semantic content of the original and compliance with the style.
Peculiarities of translation of legal documents and texts
The reason for the complexity of legal translation is based not only on linguistic features, but also on the discrepancy between the legislative and judicial systems of the English-speaking countries and Russia. This gives rise to a lot of definitions and concepts that are not typical for the other side.
Almost always, the translation of legal documents from English into Russian is accompanied by a large richness of the text with specific vocabulary and terms. They contain abbreviations and abbreviations inherent only in jurisprudence.
The main difficulties of legal translation lie in the absence of direct equivalents of the structural units of the text, typical for one language, in another. Some individual terms of the English language are adequately translated into Russian only by a phrase or even a description.
Intentional deviation from the structural correspondence of texts is possible only to convey an equivalent understanding of the semantic content.
Translation of documents related to the field of law must be informative for the user, have a clear and accessible presentation of the material corresponding to the legal field.
Jurisprudence is inextricably linked with the cultural and mental traditions of the country. It reflects many social phenomena. Only with deep knowledge of the legal fields of both countries can you get a competent translation from English into Russian.
The translator needs to master the style and specific language specific to the jurisdiction under which the translated document falls.
It should be remembered that some elements of vocabulary can be conveyed in different ways – transliteration, transcription, tracing or a combined method. It is also possible to leave the original foreign spelling. Preference should be given to techniques that are most suitable from the point of view of adequacy.
In legal English texts, many words are used not in their usual generally accepted meaning, but in terminological terms. In addition, the text may contain rarely used idiomatic expressions, official clerical expressions. To obtain the equivalence of the translation of such words, it is necessary to have an excellent command of the terminology, and, if necessary, resort to the help of reference books.
At the syntactic level, English legal text is distinguished by uncharacteristic word order and long sentences.
To get a competent translation of legal documents from English into Russian, organizations and individuals need to contact a specialist who has a legal education and sufficient experience as a translator.
Translating documents with a specialist who only speaks spoken English is very problematic. Moreover, trying to do it yourself or using a machine service. Errors made can lead to material losses or violations of other rights of the owner of the document and interested parties.
