May 8, 2008

Foreign Language Translation and International Accounting Litigation

Like many professional specialties – including the law, computer science and medicine – the field of accounting has many terms that are particular to the accounting profession. Although people within the accounting field understand these trade terms, these terms often do not translate easily outside the profession. This is particularly true when accounting documents need to be translated into a foreign language for transnational and cross-border accounting litigation.

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May 6, 2008

Determining the Unavailability of Foreign Language Translator/ Interpreter to Provide Expert Witness Testimony in Person- Telephonic Evidence

Earlier we blogged about the admissibility of the telephonic expert witness testimony by a foreign language translator/ court interpreter. One key factor in a court’s decision to allow telephonic testimony is whether or not the witness is available. Thus, in order to admit foreign language translator testimony via telephone, a party must sufficiently demonstrate that in fact the foreign language translator/ interpreter is “truly unavailable”.

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May 4, 2008

Admissibility of Telephonic Expert Witness Testimony by Foreign Language Translator/ Court Interpreter

Although sometimes admissible, the use of telephonic expert witness testimony given by a foreign language translator or court interpreter is highly disfavored by the courts. In general, the courts are likely to apply the same standards of admissibility of telephonic testimony by a foreign language translator/ interpreter as they would to any type of telephonic testimony.

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April 28, 2008

Document Translation, Trade Marks and the Doctrine of Foreign Equivalents

Language translation issues often come up in the context of foreign language words in trademarks. In a case involving vodka, the TTAB clarified its definition of the Doctrine of Equivalents by refusing to register the mark Moskovskaya. The central issue was the definition of “the ordinary American purchaser” in reference to the applied for mark.

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April 24, 2008

Translations, FTC and Foreign Language Complaints

Translation issues often come up in the context of FTC hearings. As the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) handles many cases involving foreign language elements, it has developed specific rules to govern its hearing. All cases involving “foreign elements” – or matters where the complainant, respondent, investigated party, applicant or party requesting official interpretation of the law is a foreign enterprise – are governed by these guidelines.

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April 18, 2008

Translating Multilingual Language Documents during e-Discovery

The debate regarding human foreign language translation versus machine-based foreign language translation during foreign language electronic discovery is one that may never be decided. However, one issue that is rarely thrown into the mix is how these two approaches handle translation of mixed language documents, i.e. documents written in more than one foreign language.

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April 16, 2008

Language Translation and Contract Interpretation: Foreign Language as Trade Use Evidence

Depending on the quality of the original, source text, foreign language translations may sometimes be perceived as ambiguous. According to the Law of Contracts, one method for interpreting the terms of an ambiguously written contract is to look at any terms of trade used within the document. This refers to any terminology that has a special meaning within a given trade that is the subject of the contract. However, this can become an even more complicated task when the terms of trade are in a foreign language.

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April 11, 2008

Language Translations and Registering a Foreign Language Trademark

When applying for a trademark that contains a foreign language term or word, certain issues as to the meaning of the term may arise. This may become an obstacle to successfully obtaining the trademark when the foreign language term has different meanings in different cultures.

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April 9, 2008

Language Translation and Validity of Real Estate Transactions Conducted in a Foreign Language

We’ve already blogged about foreign language translations in the context of reverse mortgage loans. But when it comes to foreign language translation in the context of real estate transactions, it helps to remember that there are two basic steps in conducting a valid real estate transaction – creating a valid deed and properly filing the deed. More so, each step may be affected when a foreign language real estate deed is involved.

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April 4, 2008

Challenging Unfavorable Ruling Resulting from Unethical Use of Foreign Language Documentary Evidence

Irrespective of the availability of foreign language legal document translations, various issues may come up in the context of foreign language evidence. What happens if an opposing party uses a foreign language document in an unethical manner and receives a favorable judgment because of it? Can the ruling be challenged, based on the unethical use of the document? If so, what is the standard of review?

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April 1, 2008

Pharmaceutical Translations and the European Union’s Fast Track Approval Process for US Pharmaceuticals

Recently the European Union issued a new, fast-track review process for approving foreign made pharmaceuticals to be sold in the European Union. Since the European Union operates under numerous languages, it is important that any application for pharmaceutical approval under the EMEA fast-track system be submitted with the proper foreign language translations. This becomes particularly important when trying to demonstrate the unmet need or improvement requirement under the Accelerated Assessment Procedure.


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March 28, 2008

Language Translation and Ethical Issues of Filing Privileged Foreign Language Documents: The Receiving Attorney’s Side

Sometimes during multilingual discovery an attorney will inadvertently file a privileged document. This can happen with foreign language documents, especially when the English translation is not available. When this occurs, the receiving attorney has various ethical obligations as to how to handle the filing. However, every state has very different approaches to what these ethical obligations are.

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