How to avoid the repercussions of mistranslations. In the past, a legal translation may have only involved some official correspondence that was sent by the individuals who are involved with the trial (Translating).
Translating Your Evidence – Social Media Posts
Or perhaps, there would be a case where a person’s mail or letters were translated to serve as evidence in the case for or against them. However, the internet means that our way of communicating has completely changed.
Translating Social Media Posts
Cases where harassment is being alleged by one party against another will often involve social media interactions between the two parties, or public messages posted by the defendant.
As we know, words and phrases are not always directly translatable into another language. If something is mistranslated, or the translator is doing their job too literally without considering the context of what the defendant was posting, there could be serious repercussions.
As an example, a harmless or slightly aggressive post on social media by the defendant could be mistranslated into something very serious, or vice versa. It is vital for both parties involved with the trial to ensure translations of social media content are being completed in the proper way.
Legal Consequences
When a social media post is part of a trial, it goes through a rigorous authentication process. For instance, it must be determined whether the defendant is the one who created the post, and what the nature of their post was. A legal translation is typically associated with complicated or official documents, but it is just as vital where a social media post is concerned.
The translation must properly convert the defendant’s statement into the target language, while maintaining the context and intent of what they were saying in that post.
How Can We Assist?
At SemioticTransfer we have a team of legal translation experts who have extensive experience with translating social media posts. It is a relatively recent phenomenon to include such posts during trial proceedings or negotiations, but our team is still well versed in these translations. We will ensure that any statements you made on social media are accurately translated and entered into your legal proceedings.
Do you have an upcoming project already planned? Request a non-binding quote today.
Further details can be discussed with us directly by telephone.
We look forward to receiving your call on +41 56 470 40 40 or you can send us an email at contact@semiotictransfer.ch. Visit our blog.
