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Legal translation as a human right: Ensuring a fair trial through translation quality and training
No full textThis paper addresses the issue of the translation of legal texts in criminal proceedings as a human right. Language rights have been recognized in a series of instruments, notably the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and more recently the Directive 2010/64/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 October 2010 on the right to interpretation and translation in criminal proceedings. The latter has been defined by EP rapporteur Ludford as the first EU fair trial law whereby translation becomes a tool for the inclusion of those who do not speak or understand the language of the proceedings. After an analysis of the Directive in the first part, this paper will tackle its implementation in the member states, which have taken advantage of its vagueness, hardly changing current practices. Finally, a training format developed within the EU project QUALETRA will be presented in the third part of the paper to address the quality requirements set out in the Directive
Executing the instructions. An empirical investigation into the usability of technical translations done by trainees
Full text linkThis paper reports the results of a longitudinal empirical study on the acquisition of translation competence as concerns technical translation. The study comprised the assignment of two different translations of a number of extracts from a snowmobile service manual administered to translator trainees at an interval of a month. The first task was followed by a seminar on technical translation focused on a genre analysis of instructional documents and aimed at providing guidelines to produce better translations. On the basis of the relevant literature and the analysis of a small-scale corpus of automotive instruction manuals originally written in Italian, the target texts were assessed in terms of syntactic structure and Iconic Linkage. Finally, a relation between the translations’ usability and their overall quality is investigated
Legal Translation Problems: The Trials of Specialised Translation Competence
No full textThis paper presents the results of an empirical study aimed at investigating the translation problems faced by a cohort of graduates in translation with no specialisation in legal translation on the one hand, and a cohort of linguistically-skilled law graduates with no translation background on the other, who translated the same criminal law document from English into Italian. The acceptability of the translations produced by the sample has been assessed by using PACTE's (2009) methodology to contrast the overall performance of each group. These qualitative findings have then been triangulated with process-related data collected through keystroke logging, screen and video recording to assess the significance of subjectfield knowledge on the participants' translation performance in specialised translation (cf. Hjort-Pedersen and Faber 2005; Cao 2007)
The Trials of Legal Translation Competence: Triangulating Processes and Products of Translators vs. Lawyers
Full text linkNel corso degli ultimi decenni la ricerca ha proposto una serie di modelli per la concettualizzazione della competenza traduttiva in ambito sia accademico che professionale (e.g. Kelly 2002; PACTE 2003; EMT Expert Group 2009; Göpferich 2009). Malgrado il sempre più vasto consenso su modelli multi-componenziali costituiti da una serie di abilità specifiche di base, le diverse prospettive hanno portato a una certa ambiguità terminologica (se non addirittura concettuale). Nel caso specifico della traduzione giuridica, molti studiosi hanno cercato di delineare il profilo del traduttore giuridico competente (ad esempio Šarčević 1994; Hertog 2001; Prieto Ramos 2011; Piecychna 2013) senza però trovare una risposta definitiva in merito alla natura e alla portata delle conoscenze giuridiche necessarie per garantire la qualità del testo d’arrivo.
Nel tentativo di colmare questa lacuna, il presente lavoro si propone di indagare la competenza traduttiva giuridica in una prospettiva prevalentemente didattica. A questo scopo è stato condotto uno studio empirico presso l’Università di Trieste, volto ad analizzare le traduzioni dall’inglese all’italiano di un documento di diritto penale comunitario effettuate da potenziali traduttori giuridici che avevano concluso percorsi formativi diversi: da un lato, un campione di laureati in traduzione senza alcuna specializzazione in campo giuridico e, dall’altro, un gruppo di giuristi con una comprovata conoscenza linguistica dell’inglese linguisticamente qualificati che però non avevano avuto alcun tipo di formazione in traduzione. Più specificatamente, lo studio si è concentrato sui problemi che i partecipanti hanno incontrato tanto nel processo traduttivo quanto nel risultante testo tradotto e che sono stati considerati come indicatori di deficit di conoscenze dichiarative e procedurali da colmare mediante una formazione adeguata.
Lo studio ha adottato un duplice approccio. In primo luogo è stato analizzato il processo traduttivo dei partecipanti tramite la triangolazione di dati raccolti con metodi di rilevazione diversi, quali la registrazione dell’attività a schermo e delle digitazioni, una ripresa video esterna e un questionario ex post. L’analisi delle caratteristiche comportamentali e procedurali dei partecipanti prende in considerazione il tempo di consegna, le fasi traduttive, le pause, i problemi di traduzione, le consultazioni di fonti di riferimento e il processo decisionale. In una seconda fase dello studio i dati relativi al processo sono stati associati alla qualità dei testi prodotti dai partecipanti, che è stata valutata sia attraverso l’analisi degli errori che tramite il criterio dell’accettabilità.
L’analisi ha permesso di individuare i diversi livelli di competenza dei due gruppi e, di riflesso, le loro specifiche esigenze formative. La possibile correlazione tra il diverso percorso di studi dei partecipanti e la qualità delle loro traduzioni sembra quindi suggerire che una formazione nel campo della traduzione sia una componente fondamentale della competenza traduttiva anche nel settore giuridico, anche se pur sempre da integrare con nozioni giuridiche. I risultati presentati in questa tesi sono quindi un primo tentativo empirico di corroborare il modello di competenza traduttiva giuridica sviluppato nell’ambito del progetto QUALETRA a integrazione del modello EMT, nonché di mettere alla prova l’assunto secondo il quale un traduttore giuridico competente sarebbe in primo luogo un traduttore competente (Cao 2007).Over the past few decades, research has yielded valuable models for the conceptualisation of translation competence, both in the academic and professional worlds (e.g. Kelly 2002; PACTE 2003; EMT Expert Group 2009; Göpferich 2009). However, despite the growing consensus on translation competence as a multi-faceted competence comprising several core skills, the different perspectives have resulted in terminological (when not downright conceptual) ambiguity. In the specific case of legal translation, whilst many scholars have tried to outline the profile of the competent legal translator (e.g. Šarčević 1994; Hertog 2001; Prieto Ramos 2011; Piecychna 2013), the scope and extent of the legal knowledge required to ensure quality still remain open questions.
With the aim to help filling this gap in both the training and profession of legal translators, this PhD research project tried to investigate legal translation competence with a special focus on the didactic perspective. To this end, an empirical study has been conducted at the University of Trieste which analyses the EN-IT translations of an EU criminal law document produced by translators with different educational backgrounds: a cohort of translation postgraduates with no specialisation in the legal field, on the one hand, and a cohort of linguistically-skilled law graduates with no translation-related qualifications, on the other. More precisely, the study focussed on the problems encountered by participants in their translation processes and the quality issues of their translation products as indicators of declarative and procedural knowledge deficits to be remedied through adequate training.
Consequently, the study adopted a twofold approach. Firstly, the participants’ translation process was analysed by triangulating data from different collection methods, i.e. screen and video recording, keystroke logging, and a post-task questionnaire. The variables under investigation include the participants’ delivery time, translation phases, pauses, translation problems, consultations of reference sources and sequences-of-action. Secondly, all process-related data have been mapped onto the quality of the participants’ target texts, which was evaluated through both the analysis of translation errors and the assessment of the translation acceptability.
The analysis shed light on the different levels of translation competence displayed by the two groups, with direct implications for the identification of their specific training needs. In particular, the results indicate a more superficial approach for lawyers, who mainly focussed on the micro-textual level, problematised little and produced poor quality translations. By contrast, the findings suggest that the translation-specific training of translators enabled them to reach acceptable quality levels, despite their lack of subject-field specialisation. The identification of a possible correlation between the different backgrounds of the participants and the quality of their translations thus appears to suggest that a translation background is in fact a fundamental component of legal translation competence, to be integrated with the necessary legal (or specific subject field) knowledge. The results led to a first, empirical attempt both at (a) validating the integrative EMT-based model for legal translation competence (Scarpa & Orlando, forthcoming) developed as part of the QUALETRA project, which provided the theoretical foundation to the present study, and (b) grounding the notion that “a competent legal translator is first of all a competent translator” (Cao 2007:39)
Calling Translation to the Bar. A comparative analysis of the translation errors made by translators and lawyers
No full textThis paper proposes a comparative analysis of the translation errors made by prospective legal translation trainees, with a special focus on the (mis)use of legal terminology and phraseology. The investigation relies on the data produced and collected within a wider empirical study on the translation problems faced by a cohort of translation graduates with no specialisation in legal translation on the one hand, and a cohort of linguistically-skilled lawyers with no translation-related qualifications on the other, who translated the same criminal law document from English into Italian. The translation errors made by the two cohorts have been classified on the basis of the categories proposed by Mossop (2014) and assessed following the severity scale devised by Vollmar (2001). The Translation Quality Index (cf. Schiaffino and Zearo 2006) thus obtained has allowed for the ranking of the participants in the five quality levels identified for legal translation by Prieto Ramos (2014). The findings of the quantitative and qualitative analyses of errors are also traced back to the participants’ translation process by triangulating data from the different collection methods used within the empirical study, i.e. screen recording, keystroke logging and questionnaires, with particular reference to time and reference material use. The specific design of this investigation, which considers the participants’ prior education as additional variable, allows for the identification of a possible correlation between the different backgrounds of the translators and the quality of their translations, with general consequences on the conceptualisation of legal translation competence and effective training
The problem of legal phraseology: a case of translators vs lawyers
No full textThis chapter addresses the incidence of phraseology in legal translation as a special case in a pedagogical view; particularly, it investigates its problematic nature by focussing on the translation process and product of prospective legal translation trainees with different academic backgrounds and, consequently, different levels of familiarity with the phraseology of legal language
What it takes to do it right: an integrative EMT-based model for legal translation competence
No full textOver the past few decades, research has yielded valuable models for the conceptualisation of translation competence, both in the academic and professional worlds (Göpferich 2009; Kelly 2002; PACTE 2003). However, despite the growing consensus on translation competence as a multi-faceted competence comprising several core skills, the different perspectives have resulted in terminological (when not downright conceptual) ambiguity. This paper aims to investigate in a didactic perspective the specific competences and sub-competences required for translating legal documents, with particular reference to the focus of the QUALETRA2 project, i.e. the specific skills required for translating criminal proceedings, in line with Directive 2010/64/EU. Informed by both recent research (cf. Prieto Ramos 2011; Piecychna 2013) and the outcomes of recent EU projects, as well as by the principle that a legal translator is first a translator (Cao 2007: 39), the proposed model is based on the general EMT reference framework for translation competences (EMT Expert Group 2009a: 3), which has been integrated with additional core components that are more strictly related to legal translation. The model is then contrasted with the results of three recent surveys on translation competence (Chodkiewicz 2012; OPTIMALE 2013; Orlando and Scarpa 2014). It will be finally argued that such an integrative approach has direct implications for training translators of criminal proceedings and can be adopted as a basis to assess and certify the competences and skills of prospective translators in this specific legal subdomain
Tying Quality and Training: an Ariadne’s Thread out of the Legal Translation Labyrinth
No full textThis paper reports the results of an EU-wide survey on current practices in legal translator training in the EU, conducted as part of a European project called QUALETRA, established in response to Directive 2010/64/EU on the right to interpretation and translation in criminal proceedings
Training Legal Translators. A Survey of Current Practices
No full textAccording to estimates by the DG Justice of the European Commission (2009), criminal proceedings involving a non-national account for a significant percentage within the EU (±10%). As increasingly more attention is being paid to the rights of accused persons and victims of crime, the duties and requirements asked of legal translators and interpreters are as pressing as ever. However, the training, status and working conditions of LITs seem to remain somewhat overlooked.
This paper reports on the provisional findings of an EU-wide survey carried out as part of the project QUALETRA (JUST/2011/JPEN/AG/2975), funded by the DG Justice in response to Directive 2010/64/EU. The survey investigates the responses provided by institutions offering training to legal translators or interpreters (LITs) as to the competencies to be developed during the trainees’ university studies and/or their continuing professional development. The results are contrastively presented against responses by institutions offering, on the other hand, language training to legal practitioners. Reference is made to the types of texts presented in class to LITs, so as to assess the impact of the Directive which explicitly lists the essential documents to be translated, both in national proceedings and in cases involving the European Arrest Warrant (EAW). Besides language and translation-oriented skills, specific focus lies on the legal knowledge at national, international and EU level within both civil and criminal law. Finally, the survey investigates the importance of professional ethics and academic competencies.
Preliminary results seem to indicate that there is still a long way to go before the requirements of the Directive are met
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