The Acolad blog

How high-quality legal translations can help you win your case

Written by Paige Korte | Aug 26, 2021 11:43:00 AM

In cases with multilingual documents, translations may seem like just another thing to take care of before the trial. However, your choice of a translation partner is more important than you think! Read on to learn how choosing the right translation partner can give you a competitive advantage, helping you save time and even have a better understanding of the elements involved in the case at hand.

Speed

Speed is the name of the game when it comes to handling large volumes of translations. If you can’t read documents because they’re not in your language, then you can’t begin reviewing the evidence and may be missing key information for your case. This is a significant setback during the discovery process when every minute counts. This is one of the reasons choosing a responsive translation partner is especially critical in the legal sector. At Acolad Legal, we’re available 24/7 and will reply to your quote request in under an hour, so you can get your translation project started ASAP without any hassle.

Speed also doesn’t stop at the quote stage. Translation partners can leverage various types of translation technologies to speed up the translation process and get the finished translations back to you faster than ever before. For example, machine translation has improved by leaps and bounds in recent years and can be used to speed up the translation process when time is of the essence.

Machine translation works best in situations where a text needs to be quickly understood in another language, but not in cases where the translation needs to be stylistically perfect. For projects where you need a higher level of quality, we also offer several levels of proofreading and post-editing, so you can receive a finished translation that has been proofread by a highly-trained translator. Machine translation is often used for large volumes of documents, for example in the e-discovery stage, so you’ll be able to quickly understand the gist of the translated material and keep working.

Accuracy

The interpretation of a single word can change the outcome of a case, so it’s important you’ve chosen the right ones. Multilingual documents can add another layer of complexity, as messages can be distorted from one language to another. When you work with us, you can be confident that each word has been translated by a native speaker who has gone through rigorous training and specializes in the legal sector. We also offer proofreading and editing services, so you can be sure that each word has been reviewed and approved by several professionals.

Legal expertise

Who hasn’t used an internet translation tool, only to find that the result just didn’t sound right? These kinds of mistranslations may be funny when ordering dinner on holiday, but can have serious repercussions when it comes to legal documents. What’s more, legal systems and terminology differ significantly from country to country, so it’s important to have someone on your side who knows the relevant country’s legal terminology like the back of their hand. This is where a legal translator can come in, as they have an excellent understanding of the relevant legal terminology and framework in their native language.

Efficiency

Sending files back and forth can be time consuming, especially when you already have a lot on your plate. Translation technology can assist here, with APIs and connectors helping to reduce manual touchpoints and automate the translation process. There are many content management systems available on the market today, and it is common practice to develop fully customized systems to serve a firm’s specific needs.

There is a full spectrum of automation options available, from custom connectors to hot folder solutions, where the content to be translated is uploaded to a cloud service. Content can then be forwarded automatically to the translation provider. After the translation has been completed, the translated content is returned to the cloud service, where the client can collect it from the folder.

These integration solutions can also help in reducing errors like uploading the wrong files or missing a deadline because the colleague who received the translated files is on holiday.

Conclusion

Whether it’s through increased speed, higher accuracy, or removing manual steps, choosing the right legal translation partner can help give you the edge on the competition. At Acolad Legal, we work with an extensive network of expert legal translators and interpreters and offer personalized service to each of our clients. Do you have an upcoming legal translation project? We’d love to discuss it with you.