What Is a Legal Translator and How to Become One?

As a student, teachers must have asked you many times, ‘Do you know what you want to do after graduating?’ or ‘Have you chosen a specialisation yet?’ haven’t they? But the truth is that many students have not decided their future yet. I was one of them. Since middle school I always knew that I wanted to become a translator, but I did not know which kind of translator I wanted to be. Translation is a wide profession with many specialisations, and I had never heard of them before during my master’s degree. And I know for sure that you haven’t either. In my article I will introduce you to ‘Legal translation’ and I hope that you will enjoy reading this and that it will help you find your professional path.

Legal Translation

The History of Legal Translation

The Old Testament is said to be the first text which was translated from Hebrew into Greek in the 3rd century BC. However, the invention of legal translation seems to be older. The first legal texts to be translated appear to be the Roman law, in the 5th century BC. These laws were written in Latin, but the common language back in those days was Greek. For it to be used, the laws were translated into Greek, and this is how legal translation began.

France also had an important part in its creation. During the 13th century, the former king of France, Louis IX required the Roman code to be translated into French. As invasions and wars continued, the country’s languages kept on changing and translating laws or codes were necessary. However, these texts were merely translated from one language into another one, and most of the time the legal sense was lost making those texts hardly understandable by anyone.

How Canada Invented Legal Translation

In fact, the real creator of legal translation is said to be Canada. Since Canada perfectly uses both English and French, it is more capable of understanding the ambiguity of legal texts. Until 1867, all Canadian laws were written in English and they later had to be translated into French. At first, it was done by translators who had no knowledge of law. As a result, they were not able to understand the specific details of legalese and to keep the legal sense of the text while translating. As a result, most of the texts did not make sense and they were refused by the court.

It was in the 1970s that Canada came up with two news methods for translating. The first one was to write the laws simultaneously both in French and English. The second one was for a translator and a legal writer to work together. Thanks to these two methods, the texts kept their legal sense and were understandable for anyone who read them. 

The 20th century and Globalisation: The Need for Legal Translation in Our Society

The need for translating legal documents considerably increased with globalisation in the 20th century. Because of commercial exchanges or travels, legal translation was not only needed for laws, but for a wider range of documents.

Legal translation may involve, for example.

• Documents between two parties such as contracts, agreements, purchase-sale contracts, labour agreements.
• Establishment of documents such as articles of association, resolutions, registration certificates.
• Documents for governmental authorities such as laws, resolutions, orders, regulations.
• Court documents such as petitions, court judgements, instructions.
• Auxiliary documents such as powers of attorney, certificates, licenses and permits.

Of course, legal translation is not limited to these documents. Legal translation is a wide specialisation, and it requires specific skills to avoid any mistakes.

How to Become a Legal Translator: The Studies and Skills Required.

Skills

As for any translator, language skills are more than mandatory. First, you must fluently speak two languages to fully understand the specificities of the source text you are reading, and to be able to transcribe the meaning of the text in your target language. However, for legal translation you will also need legal knowledge or basics to assimilate the legal sense of the text and know the differences or similarities of two legal systems.

A legal text also means legalese: the specific terminology, phrases or writing style only used in law. Knowing legal terminology in your two languages will allow you to maintain the legal meaning in your translation.

So, do you need to study law at university? How do you learn all these legal specificities

Studies

You do not need a master’s degree in law to become a legal translator. If you’re wondering why, it is because a legal translator is above all else a translator: someone who is specialised in languages and works with them. Many graduated translators start with varieties of documents in different specialisation. But this does not mean that they have a master’s degree in every specialisation. Also, as I said earlier, many translators work along with specialists to ensure the accuracy of their translation.

So, what should you study? First a bachelor’s degree in languages is recommended. You could do a bachelor’s degree in Applied Foreign Languages (AFL) or a double bachelor’s degree in languages and law. With those degrees you will gain full knowledge of languages, culture, economics, law and even more. Once you have graduated from your bachelor’s degree, doing a master’s degree in translation as we have at Grenoble Alpes University, will give you a wide vision of translation. Some people do not agree and believe that a degree in law is a necessity to become a legal translator, but you can still take a short training in law once you have graduated. This decision will only depend on you and you have many available options.

However, beyond any degree, practice and experience are extremely important. By practising legal translation, you will end up reading many varied texts and so improve your legal knowledge. The more legal texts you will translate and the better you will get at understanding the legalese in your two languages.

Want to Go Further? What about Becoming a Sworn Translator?

A lot of people confuse legal translator and sworn translator. But these are two different kinds of translators. They both translate legal documents, but sworn translators mostly translate documents required for the embassy, consulate, immigration office or governments. Those documents can be for example, birth certificates, marriage certificates or diplomas. In brief, a sworn translator deals with personal documents needed for the country.

If you want to become a sworn translator in France, then the process is quite simple. First, you must work as a professional translator for a few years, so if you are a newly graduated translator you should wait a few years to gain experience. Once you have enough experience and knowledge in the legal field, it is time to apply.

At the beginning of the year, you will need to pick up your application file from the High Court of your district. Just as a curriculum vitae, you will have to write down all your professional experiences, your formation and a cover letter. Then you will have until March to return your file to the Public Prosecutor in the High Court. After that, you will get the final decision in December. During those 9 months, the police department will look at your criminal record, which needs to be clean, and other personal information. And in December, the results will be posted. If you have been accepted then you will take the oath at the Court of Appeals of your district. After that, you will officially be a sworn translator across all France and for 5 renewable years.

Sworn translation does not exist in the United States and in the United Kingdom. For these countries we talk about ‘certified translation’, a statement of the translator ensuring the completeness and accuracy of the document.

In the United States, you do not need to be certified to do a certified translation. However, you can pass a certification through institutes such as the American Translators Association (ATA). The certification is a three-hour exam which will test your reading comprehension and the quality of your translation.

In the United Kingdom, it is a little more complicated. Clients will ask for a certified translation depending on the type of document. For documents such as a marriage certificate, you will just need to write a statement at the end of your text to certify it. For documents used overseas, then the statement will be sworn in front of a notary public, who will then put a stamp on it. The notary public never revises the quality of the translation, he only confirms the identity of the translator and its statement. Plus, if you want to be certified in the United Kingdom, you can pass an exam at two non-governmental organisations: The Chartered Institute of Linguists, and the Institute of Translation. You will not really become certified; you will instead become a qualified member of an organisation which has a certified seal.

Some Final Words

Now, you can say that you are an expert on legal translation. I hope this reading gave you a full insight into this specialisation, and that it helped you decide whether you will choose it or not. Of course, you cannot really know until you have practised it which is why I recommend doing a master’s degree and internships.

Coulbrant Alexia