Shibboleth – French legal terminology then and now

 

Traditionally, legal language has two purposes: to provide a precise term and to prevent the uninitiated from understanding. The Plain Language movement, at least in English-speaking countries, has somewhat diminished the second tendency to want to confuse the person on the street but that change is far from universal or consistent. As a case in point, Tom West, in his outstanding webinar for the ATA discussed recent changes to the French codes of law, emphasizing terminology. First, I would recommend watching his webinar (through the ATA) if you do legal translation or interpretation in the French/English language pair. On the linguistic front, it was fascinating how the French legal language achieves the desired level of encryption, notably applying vagueness, generality and sheer misleading. Granted, the code reforms have improved the situation in some cases but the examples shed light on the codification of law in both senses of the word.

The first technique is using a general term to describe a specific action. It is similar to saying “kitchen” when you mean to ask someone to turn off the light in the kitchen. One example in French legal terminology is imprévision, which means something unforeseen. In legal language, it refers to the damage caused by an unexpected event not specified in the contract or list of force majeure cases. The English translation is hardship. Another example is that, traditionally, French laws had to meet the standard of bonnes moeurs, literally “good morals”. The new term is ordre public  but the English term is public policy. Finally, the French equivalent of the famous standard of the reasonable person (previously man) is pėre de famille, taken from the Latin term. The term suggests a test of whether a proper father of a  family would take a given action. The French have quite reasonably replaced it with reasonable, apparently because the mothers of the family had had enough of this sexism. In all these cases, it is possible to guess the meaning of the word but it takes a bit of imagination.

A second technique is to take a general word and give it a specific meaning, creating the false impression that the reader actually understands the significance. A prime example is the word crime. Contrary to appearance, the term in French law only refers to the most serious of all offenses, murder, rape and the like, with délit referring to lesser crimes and contravention applying to a misdemeanor. I imagine that a French lawyer would not fully understand the name of the movie Crimes and Misdemeanors. Likewise, a jurisdiction d’exception actually refers to courts with specialized but limited areas of jurisdiction, such as the Commercial Court. Jurisdiction actually refers to a court while exception relates to a specialty. A final example is the common French word proximité, which sounds like and generally means nearness. Alas, in legal French, it would refer to a local or district court. Knowledge is the key.

Finally, some terms are simply misleading. The reformed code replaces the traditional French legal répétition with restitution. The previously used chambre de l’instruction is now honestly called a chambre des investigations and libertés. At least the first term is clear. Finally, the appel public à l’épargne, which had nothing to do with savings (the last word), is now an offre au public des titres financiers. That is a public share offering to English speakers. At least, someone in the French Parliament cared about plain language.

Legal language has always served as a way of allowing or preventing entrance, a shibboleth. To its credit, the French government is working on reducing its level of encoding. I suppose that French will always be more ambiguous than English for better or worse. A word (or two) to the wise, including those in the webinar,  prevents some serious misunderstandings for lawyers and translators.

A call for a small action – Freelancers of the nation, unite!

 

It has been some 100 years since the heyday of unions. Today, the sad truth is fewer and fewer workers, both freelance and salaried, feel the need to join an association. Many, if not most, professional associations are experiencing declining membership numbers and energy and increasing average member age, including translator associations worldwide. Yet, despite the massive changes in the world since the beginning of the 20^th century, the need for collective associations remains as valid as ever: market forces are as unbalanced as in the late 19^th century; banding together strengthens individuals; and associations foster satisfying human connections. Thus, I encourage every freelancer, regardless of his/her profession or country, to join and contribute to a professional association.

The rise of the trade unions did not occur in a vacuum. The industrial barons of the 19^th and early 20^th centuries enjoyed full freedom to make any decision they wanted, almost unfettered by government rules or issues of social justice. The unions challenged their privileges, including the ability to set wages, hours and working conditions unilaterally. 21st-century labor markets are not so different. For example, the conglomeration of the translation agencies has reduced competition and rates to new lows as well as significantly reduced translator choice in rates and technology. Any translator that chooses not to agree to those rates or, increasingly, to use AI suffers. As for autonomy, as Henry Ford and his colleagues had no problem replacing any “problem” worker with a more flexible one, the modern axiom “the customer is always right” seems to justify patently incorrect translation and punishing linguists that insist on quality. Finally, one of the most important benefits of trade unions was to provide opportunities to socialize and be a human being, not a human machine. Especially before the advent of television, going to the union hall was as much an act of social expression as worker action. There, you were a human being, not just an employee. Today, too many freelancers spend the vast majority of their time alone in front of the computer and may even have forgotten how to have a conversation and its benefits. Meeting and talking make you feel like a human being, just like then.

Therefore, I call on every freelancer, including translators, to join an association. The annual cost is minimal and tax-deductible as a business expense. In return, one receives emotional and organizational strength, i.e., the knowledge that you are not alone. Moreover, being a member allows access to an incredible amount of professional knowledge. For example, the ITA (Israel) and ATA (US) each have an incredible library of webinars available to their member on any subject. This library can shave years off the learning curve. Often, being a member brings direct financial benefits, e.g., buyers seek members of the association and even post job requests in its networks. Likewise, getting to know colleagues often leads to referrals and recommendations. Making some contribution, whether time or knowledge, multiplies that benefit as colleagues learn more about your unique traits. Mutual support creates amazing synergy, often in unexpected ways, all for a small investment of time and energy.

As a personal testament, my father helped organize the reporters of the AP news organization into a union at a time when that organization treated them only slightly better than slaves. He paid a professional price for that but was proud of it to his last day. I am a member of three translator associations (Israel, France and the US) and participate, when possible, in their meetings. I regularly receive job offers from buyers that see my name on their sites, direct notices from the association and referrals from colleagues that have met me. Maybe just as important, I feel that I am part of a larger community, which professionally strengthens me just as my contributions strengthen that community. Although I lack the "organizational" mind to run an organization, I sit on the ITA Audit Committee and contribute ideas when relevant. I give what I have to give. I have gained far more than I have contributed.

In summary, if you are new to a profession, join an association. The knowledge that you can access can save years of errors and wasted effort. If you are established, the association can provide you with the tools and knowledge to adapt to a rapidly changing market. Yesterday’s business model is increasingly irrelevant; the association can help you quickly adapt. If you find yourself complaining about rates, conditions, AI, your colleagues or lack thereof, joining an association is one positive act. In unity, there is strength for everybody. We get by with a little help from your friends.

The more, the merrier? – the mult-presenter experience

 

[3 perfomers]

In my final year at UC Santa Cruz more than 40 years ago, I took a senior seminar entitled “History of Socialism”. What was remarkable and memorable about this course, aside from the amount of work and information involved, was the presence of two teachers, each an expert in a different aspect of the topic. Seeing two experts openly disagreeing on the interpretation of various events gave us students the feelings of awe and freedom, significantly enhancing the course. Last week, I was part of a group of three lecturers giving an ATA (American Translator Association) webinar on preparing a professional website, a topic that I had previously presented to the Israel Translators Association in collaboration with Uri Bruck. I and my colleagues, Dmitry Beschetny and Ben Karl, discussed the rational and manner of preparing a profession translator/interpreter website. I found the experience enriching, challenging and worthwhile.

This combination of expertise provided a texture to the course in that each person contributed his knowledge, style and voice. In the case of the course, we covered three aspects of website construction, specifically the rationale, approach to third party providers and doing it yourself, each of us sharing his experience and point of view. As expected, the presentation styles differed in terms of organization and terminology. More importantly, the voice differed as every individual has a unique presence, ranging in formality and technical vocabulary. The webinar had three noticeable separate parts.

Clearly, this cooperation demanded extra effort, compromise and vision. Specifically, as there was a need to create unity among three parts, the planning involved many emails and several Zoom conversations to ensure that everybody was on the same page. In such cases, it also involved a certain loss of individual preference in order to create a unity of not only of theme but spirit. To make and accept this compromise, the parties must create a single overall vision and identify how each element contributes to it without insisting on a single path. This whole process involves far more time and effort than solo presenting.

However, this investment was worthwhile for both the learners and lecturers. The attendees received far more information and advice than would have received from any single lecturer. Furthermore, the lack of complete consensus among the lecturers reinforced the message that many roads lead to Rome. Thus, the issue become which method is more appropriate, not one size does or does not fit all. The division into three sections and three voices also made it easier to concentrate for two hours, an important benefit. For me as a lecturer, I enjoyed hearing the experience of my colleagues and will benefit from it when I redo my site at some time. All the participants gained.

In teaching and presenting as well as other areas of life, synergy can have important benefits, adding knowledge, texture, perspective and variety. Of course, it involves more time investment but the results can justify it. More may not always be merrier but it is almost always richer.

Certified madness – what is an official translation

 

[official stamp*]

In translation, one of those simple questions that requires a long answer is “can you provide a certified translation”? The reasons why no simple response is possible are that no single set of criteria apply to a certified translation or no uniform nomenclature exists. Having just profited from an excellent and well-organized ATA (American Translators Association) webinar by Robert Sette on certification in the US market as well as having immersed myself in the intricacies of the French system this summer at the SFT (Société française des traducteurs) conference and being familiar with the Hebrew-English market, I would like to present a short overview of the certification situation for the benefit of both translators and translation buyers. As I see it, the main cause of the confusion is the confusing use of the terms certified translation, certified translator, notarized translation and apostille.

When a person needs and requests a certified translation, the first and most important requirement is to ascertain the requirements of the demanding agency. In the United States, each court establishes its own regulations while, in Europe, national regulations set the criteria (as Gomer Pyle often said, “surprise, surprise”). Some embassies even insist that only their official translators do it for it to be official, including Austria (See Gomer Pyle above). Government agencies worldwide set their own rules and are not always very specific. Universities can be even less precise. On the other extreme, Israel, the land of administrative organized chaos, the issue is often rather vague except for financial matters such as wills and estates. So, it is necessary to confirm the actual requirements of the party requiring certification.

A far more complex issue is who exactly is a certified translator, or, in some jurisdictions, a sworn translator or other official title. This question is essentially a national issue. In the United States, it is person that has passed the specific ATA certification test and maintained his/her status or a person authorized by a court. Alas, the ATA does have not tests in many language combinations, including Hebrew-English, meaning that any person claiming fluency in those language combinations can certify the translation. In most parts of Europe, only translators that have been recognized by the State, usually through the regional courts, can claim that title. In Israel, the only official translation qualification is a certificate of Recognized Translator, issued by the ITA (Israel Translators Organization). Interestingly enough, the existing structures allow such translators to certify documents translated into their foreign language, i.e., they do not limit the direction of the certification. For example, certified court translators in Europe or the United States can certify a translation from English to Spanish even if they cannot actually produce a proper Spanish document because their native language is English.

As Mr. Sette explained, the key for a valid certification is the phrasing of the certifying document. The qualifications and actions of the translator must be accurate and clear. For example, it is only acceptable for a translator  to use the statement a certified translator translated the document if the person actually has such documentation and actually produced the document. It would be perjury to claim either if the person merely is fluent in both languages and/or only checked an existing translation.  On the other hand, it is possible to specify general language knowledge and state that the document is an accurate translation. The devil is the details here.

Notarized translation is a bit of misnomer. Public notaries in the United States merely confirm the accuracy of signatures. They can certify that the signature on the translator statement of accurateness is real, no more than that. Clearly, translators in the US cannot notarize their own signature. By contrast, notaries in Europe have much wider powers and roles. They can in some cases both translate and notarize translation, with the government so empowering them or even given them a monopoly in certain circumstances.

Apostilles are actually the simplest. Established by the Hague Convention (Convention de la Haye du 5 october 1961), it creates a manner for governments to recognize official documents issued by foreign governments. In practice, it is possible to submit any official document with a signature of a public figure to the entity and receive an apostille of its genuineness. To paraphrase that song by Lou BegoVO, “a little bureaucracy in my life”.

In summary, if a person needs a “certified translator”, the steps are to ascertain what the actual requirements are; identify a translator with the corresponding credentials; phrase the certifying statement in a precise and accurate method; and,  if required, have the signature of the statement of faithfulness notarized. Simple, isn't it?

* Picture captions help the blind fully access the Internet.

Picture credit

Mind your French (and English)!

[Flags of the United Kingdom and France*]

Profiting from some free time this Friday (to accentuate the positive as Johnny Mercer wrote), I was directed to and listened to several podcasts prepared by the French Division of the American Translators Association. I found them very interesting and relevant both to translators and customers as they presented issues and solutions in French-English translation (both ways). They also reinforced the notion that wisdom is the knowledge of how much there is still to learn.

In the podcast on financial translation, Amanda Williams strongly demonstrated how important subject material knowledge is vital for accuracy. Since French and English share many roots and almost as many false friends, blindly using the shared root is often but not always incorrect. For example, the French word contrôle can be translated as audit in English but also control, depending on the context. Familiarly with the IFRS, which is the international accounting regulations, is vital as exemplified by the English translation of the French immobilisation corporelle: property, plants and equipment. A final example is the catch-all French term operations, which is often rendered activity in English. As the speaker said, the world needs more great financial translation, with emphasis on the word “great”.

In their podcast on Translations that pop, Angela Dubois and Andie Ho presented effective translation solutions of difficult source material and made it clear how native-language familiarity with the target language and understanding of the intended message are keys to the art. Citing a translation for the marketing phrase gérer votre quotidien devient facile by Natalie Fadi [apologies in advance for this spelling], they praised the effectiveness of managing your day to day just got easier, noting that the subtle adding of the word just and change in the form of easy made the translation seamless. Likewise, the same translator translated the phrase Elegance à la plage, de la plage à l’ėlegance regarding designer clothing into Elegance from dawn to dusk. The commentators noted the primary element was the flexibility of use the clothing, not the beach, as well as the switch from place to time. Finally, Ms. Dubois presented her French translation of the English marketing phrase for an application. Acme, any time and any place became Acme, dans votre poche [Acme in your pocket]. In translating marketing material, both the intended message of the source material and the sound and rhythm of the target language must be considered.

Finally, Miranda Joubioux gave several examples of problematic words in French that had been discussed in the Pet Peeves and Betes Noirs website. The first terms she discussed were the French words accueillir and accueil, mentioning several options, including host, house, include, live, cater to and be open to. Similarly, the common French word acteur can be translated into stakeholder, player, insiders, movers and shakers, to name a few, or even be ignored. A final example is the phrase dans le cadre de, which is generally too formal for English. Options include as part of, in and at. What arose from the discussions is that blind obedience to French syntax and word choice is poor translation.

The fruits of my Friday labor were greater understanding and appreciation of the differences between these two somewhat related languages. Since I also translate into English from non-related languges (Russian and Hebrew) in addition to from French the podcast reinforced my feeling that their closeness actually made translation more difficult, not less. In any case, it is a lifetime of work but a work of love to fully appreciate their varying manners of expressing ideas. Vive la difference!

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Certified translation for immigration purposes

An essential part of the immigration process is providing the required documents to the authorities. If the documents are not in English, they may need to be translated.  The requirements to attest for the translation vary from authority to authority and document to document.  They range from minimal to very specific. Whatever the case, to avoid wasted time and money and possible rejection, it is necessary to ask the authority for their specific requirements.  If you need a “certified translation”, be aware that that the term may have different meanings depending on the government body and language combination. 

The most demanding (and expensive) requirement is a transition by an embassy-approved translator with an affidavit. In most countries, the cost of the legal seal is set by the government and is rather high, unlike in the United States. Thus, the applicant must pay for both the translation and notary seal.

Another equivalent option, when there is no requirement for an embassy-approved translator, is to find a translator-attorney, who will both translate and attest to its accuracy.  Such a translation should satisfy even the most demanding authorities. However, the number of translators that are also attorneys is limited, which would be reflected in their fee.

Fortunately, this high level of certification is not always required. Authorities will often accept translation by a “certified” translator.  The meaning of that term depends on the language and place. In a few countries, like Argentina, the government approves translators.  In the United States, the American Translators Association certifies translators of many but not all language combinations through a test.  A list of ATA certified translators can be found on their site https://www.atanet.org/. For some language combinations, you need to contact the national translator’s organization for the equivalent. For example, the highest level of certification for the Hebrew-English pair is “Recognized Translator” by the Israeli Translators Association. In this case, the translator must sign a statement attesting to the accuracy of the translation and, in so required, attach an avadavat attesting to the signature.

It should be noted that translation by a non-professional or self-translation will almost never be acceptable for reasons of accuracy and objectivity and may even make the application invalid. It should go without saying Google Translate is not an option.

In summary, when translation of documents is needed, the applicant needs to clarify the requirements and identify the closest equivalent. it is always advisable to confirm the acceptability of the option with the specific authority.  While it is often possible to avoid notary fees, immigration documents must be translated by a professional translator to ensure their acceptability.

© Stephen Rifkind – Gaguzia Translations 2019

     stephen@gaguzia-translations.com

     Hebrew/French/Russian to English

Diversity and hope

I just returned from the ATA60 (American Translators Association) Conference in Palm Springs. It was a large event, with some 1400 participants and around 170 presentations (including ones by my wife and I) on various subjects spread over some four days. To say that the conference was a rich experience is an understatement.

Given the sheer quantity of conversations I had over that period, it is still difficult to recall specific points and people.   Regardless, I left feeling very hopeful not only about the future of the profession of translation but also about the ability of people to treat their differences not as barriers but instead as opportunities for enrichment and friendship.

Despite that the fact that all of the participants were involved in the language industry in one way or another, the greatest pattern was no pattern at all.  It was impossible to create a picture of a typical translator or interpreter. They came in all sizes, ages and colors, had unique styles of dressing, began their careers in countless different ways and spoke widely varying sets of languages. Many were expatriates but no less were those who still lived close to their place of birth. Since it is was a conference of the American Translators Association, the language of communication was English but English was not the mother tongue of a large percentage of the participants. A journalist visiting the conference would be at lost for words to describe the average translator or interpreter except for the ability to speak more than one language.

The amazing and exhilarating aspect of this conference, one that arises from the fog of several days of talking with people over several days, is that these differences did not create tension or lead to conflict but instead provided a basis for dialogue, understanding and even friendship. It was amazing to discover how a Russian ended up living in Colorado or an American in Germany. I met people who had specific skills way beyond mine. This recognition does not create envy but instead inspires me to learn and improve. Each of us brought a different package of experience and knowledge to the conference and shared it. Synergy, not competition, was the spirit.

In an increasingly sectarian world, I discovered an island of sanity, where diversity is a positive force for understanding and friendship. I do not know how much financial benefit I will gain from the ATA conference but I clearly experienced a gush of fresh air, filled with hope, mutual respect and even some friendships.  On that basis alone, the time and money I invested to attend this conference were more than justified. Variety is the spice of life.