Translation For Lawyers

We've blogged about multilingual FCPA (Foreign Corrupt Practices Act) legal document translations and legal interpreting services in the context of international employment law. A current legal question in the global economy is whether or not - or how far - national employment law legislation has any authority outside of the given jurisdiction.

Continue reading "Employment Contract Translations and the Global Reach of Employment Laws" »

We've blogged about certified legal translation services and multilingual legal language interpreters for international estate planning. Professional certified legal translation services come in handy in the process of international trust administration. Although trust administration is typically removed from court oversight and is instead managed by a privately appointed trustee, a trust still must be formally wrapped up after the creator of the trust has died. This is particularly true when an overseas trust is involved. In general, a trust is wrapped up in accordance with a Trust Distribution Agreement, which is designed to protect both the trustee and the beneficiaries. This document is drafted as a formal legal agreement and provides instructions on all aspects of trust administration, including:

Continue reading "Certified & Notarized Legal Translation and Wrapping Up an Overseas Trust" »

We've blogged about legal interpreting and translating services in the context of international family law cases. Under the Hague Abduction Convention and EC Regulation 2201/2003, a parent has what is termed 'rights of custody'. However, at least in the EU, many courts are ruling to expand the scope of this right. For example, in J. McB. V. L.E., the Irish Supreme Court rules on the question:

"Does the European Convention on Human Rights preclude a Member State from requiring by its law that the father of a child who is not married to the mother shall have obtained an order
of a court of competent jurisdiction granting him custody in order to qualify as having 'custody rights' as defined by Brussels IIbis?"

Continue reading "Court Interpreting Services and a Father's Right to Custody in the International Context" »

We've blogged about professional translation services in the context of international child custody cases. Although The Hague Convention and the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) tend to be similar and thus connected, there are areas of contention - which may have significant impact on jurisdiction. In the recent Case of Neulinger and Shuruk, the European Court of Human Rights (Court) determined that a Swiss return order under the Hague Convention violated the right to family life under the ECHR. This particular case involved a Swiss court order for a mother to return the child to Israel, ruling that the father had custody and thus the mother needed consent before removing the child from the country.

Continue reading "Language Translation and Child Custody: Hague Convention vs. European Court of Human Rights" »

We've blogged about the importance of professional legal translation services for international estate planning. When one owns property in a foreign country and they are a resident non-citizen, this will have an impact on both their US and foreign estate taxes. Under US law, three factors effect estate tax: citizenship, residency and the location of the property. All US citizens are subject to taxation on all property located anywhere in the world. Needless to say, this opens the door to the risk of double taxation, as the property located in the foreign country may also be subject to taxation by that country's laws. More so, estate taxes often fall outside double taxation treaties.

Continue reading "Professional Translation Services, International Estate Planning and Tax Considerations" »

Professional translation services and legal translation and court interpreting services are essential when dealing with a non-citizen spouse and global assets, as foreign languages and foreign laws often come into play.

Continue reading "Language Translation Services and Estate Transfers to Non-Citizen Spouses" »

We've blogged about foreign language translation for attorneys and law firms, and international conflict of laws. When Rome II Regulation comes into play in a general or specific format, it will undoubtedly require foreign language translations of the laws of the various states. The purpose of Rome II is to interpret the laws of Member States and decide how to apply them to a specific situation.

Continue reading "Legal Translation and Unfair Competition Under the Rome II Regulation" »

We've blogged about the role of professional translation services in determining the scope of  U.S. employment discrimination laws in international setting.  When confronted with the question of whether a U.S. employment discrimination law is applicable to an international employer, one must begin the determination by looking at where the job is located, employer and employee status and international law defenses.

In general, US law will be held applicable when:

Continue reading " Professional Translation and Determining Applicability of U.S. Employment Laws in International Setting" »

We've blogged about legal translation and international conflicts of law; about legal translation and legal interpretation services in international arbitration, and about court interpreter and legal translator services for the claims brought under the Alien Tort Claims Act (ATCA).  Legal translation services are important for all American companies doing business abroad.  Legal translations become vital when an American company doing business abroad is accused of human rights abuses.  One of the immediate legal issues that arise is a choice of law question.

Continue reading "Legal Language Services, Legal Translation, Choice of Law and Doing Business Abroad" »

Earlier we've blogged about document translation in the context of foreign regulatory evidence in products liability cases and about the role of professional translating and interpreting services in enforcing U.S. judgments in Europe. As the business world becomes more and more global, there are increasing instances of conflict of law questions. Essentially, a conflict of law arises whenever a business transaction spans two different countries.

Continue reading "Foreign Language Translation for Attorneys and Law Firms, and International Conflict of Laws" »

As securities-fraud lawsuits go global, the need for professional foreign language live, print, and written translation services is on the rise. Late last year the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey entered a ruling that essentially excludes all non-U.S. purchasers of Shell securities from becoming a party in a class action lawsuit for security fraud filed in the United States.

Continue reading "Cross-Border Litigation Increases the Need for Professional Foreign Language Legal Translation Services" »

With the highly publicized Royal Dutch Shell class action suit, the field of global class actions is once again being redefined. And with this and similar suits, multilingual foreign language live, print, and written translation becomes an essential issue to successfully litigating and negotiating these actions.

Continue reading "Legal Document Translations in Light of Royal Dutch Shell Global Class Action and Collective Settlement Agreements" »

As more and more people invest in foreign real estate, the legal question of what happens to that property during the probate process is struggling for an answer. The issue is complicated by the laws of the jurisdiction where the property is located, where the will is made and probate occurs, as well as by tax planning considerations. And that's where certified translation of foreign laws and translation of foreign wills comes in handy.

Continue reading "Certified Translation of Foreign Laws and Wills, and the Law of Trusts and Estates when Foreign Real Estate is Involved" »

When negotiating a contract for a client involved in the entertainment sector, including authors, actors and directors, one issue that needs to be resolved is foreign language translations and adaptations of your client’s work. As many movies and books are translated and released for foreign sales, specific contract clauses must address your client’s financial interests in these foreign language adaptations.

Continue reading "Foreign Language Translation and Adaptation, and Entertainment Law" »

A recent Thomson West Report states that the global economy has caused a grand shift in the approach to legal discovery. Whereas traditionally discovery involved the requesting and gathering of information within a jurisdiction, with the increasing use of electronic data storage and multilingual communications around the globe, today attorneys struggle with the need to pursue evidentiary discovery across borders.

Continue reading "Language Translation Services, Multilingual Electronic Discovery, and the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure" »