English legal and medical translation

Legal and medical text both belong to the category where one wrongly chosen word has a real consequence: a contract clause may be misread in court, or a wrongly translated dosage may lead a doctor to a wrong decision. Both fields require not simply knowledge of the language but an understanding of the system the document comes from. This applies to English in particular, because it is the language of several legal traditions at once: British common law, the American system, which differs considerably from state to state, and all of this has to meet the Georgian, civil law tradition.

Why a literal translation does not work in legal text

Georgian law belongs to the civil law tradition, where legislation exists in the form of written codes. English-speaking legal systems are based on the common law tradition, where precedent carries great weight and many terms have no direct equivalent in Georgian at all. For example, the term "indemnify" does not mean only "to compensate", it describes a specific legal obligation whose exact scope is established from the context. Or, a "power of attorney" is not always identical to the Georgian concept of "mindobiloba", although in practice it is translated that way. A good legal translator does not translate words, they convey the legal effect and, where necessary, add an explanatory note.

The American and British notary public: why this is not the equivalent of a Georgian notary

This is one of the most frequently misunderstood details in international document flow. In the USA the authority of a notary public is fairly narrow: they confirm the signatory's identity and voluntary consent, but are not authorised to assess the legal content of the document, and often are not lawyers at all. In the United Kingdom a notary public is a more highly qualified position, a qualified lawyer, although their function is also mainly limited to certifying documents to be submitted abroad. A Georgian notary, according to the civil law tradition, is themselves responsible for the substantive correctness of the document as well. Not knowing this difference can create a problem for you if you think that an American notary's seal carries the same weight in Georgia as a Georgian one: in reality an additional apostille and a subsequent certified translation will be needed.

Regulated fields: the banking and financial sector

The documentation of the banking and financial sector needs separate attention because of the strict regulatory environment: loan agreements, guarantee documents, financial statements under international standards (IFRS). Here a wrong translation of a term can create a false impression of the company's financial position, which affects an investment decision too. When working on such documents we rely on established international terminology, not free interpretation.

What we translate most often in the legal direction

• Contractual documentation: supply, distribution and licensing agreements with international partners
• Court documents: judgments, claims, case materials being prepared for use in another jurisdiction
• Powers of attorney: especially those connected with the disposal of property and bank accounts
• Corporate documents: articles of association, shareholders' agreement, extract from the Register of Entrepreneurs
• Intellectual property: patent applications, trademark documentation

Medical translation: where the risk hides

In medical translation an error directly affects health, so here terminological precision is subject to no compromise. With the growth of medical tourism in Tbilisi, the need for two directions at once is ever more frequent: an English-speaking patient's medical history, test results and description of current treatment are first translated into Georgian for the Georgian doctor, and then, at the end of treatment, the Georgian discharge summary is translated the other way, into English, so that the patient can continue follow-up in their own country.

The names of medicines require particular attention: many preparations have different trade names in different countries, although the same active substance. A good medical translator not only translates the trade name but, where necessary, indicates the international nonproprietary name (INN), so that the receiving party knows exactly which preparation is meant.

Employment contracts and disputes

For an employee of an international company the correct translation of the employment contract is especially important, because it is exactly here that the difference between Georgian and Anglo-Saxon labour law shows: concepts such as "at-will employment" (characteristic of most US states) find no direct equivalent in Georgian labour legislation, since in Georgia termination of the employment relationship by the employer is more strictly regulated. If a dispute arises and the case reaches court, an inexact translation of the contract can weaken a party's position, so when working on such documents we always indicate where a concept may require additional explanation because of the absence of a direct equivalent.

International disputes and arbitration

When a dispute arises between a Georgian and an English-speaking party, the contract usually specifies the arbitration institution (often London or another international arbitration) and the governing law. In such disputes the necessary documentation, from arbitration submissions to witness statements, must exist consistently in both languages, because an inconsistent translation of a term can become the subject of additional argument during the hearing. At such times it is especially important that the same translator or team works on the whole case to maintain consistency, not separate documents from different providers.

Clinical trial and informed consent documents

In the medical field clinical trial documentation is a separate category: protocols, informed consent forms, adverse event reports. Here, apart from linguistic precision, it is critical to convey the wording so that the patient understands exactly what they are consenting to, because an unclear translation of an informed consent form can later become a source of ethical and legal problems both for the trial organiser and for the patient.

Customs and invoice documentation

A separate, often underestimated category is commercial invoices, customs declarations and certificates of origin, which are needed when importing and exporting goods with an English-speaking partner. Here exact terminology is directly linked to customs clearance: a wrongly translated commodity code or description can cause the goods to be delayed or additionally inspected. We work on such documents with international trade terminology (for example, Incoterms) in mind, so that the translation is equally understandable to both parties' customs systems.

Insurance and healthcare reimbursement documents

A separate, increasingly frequent case in medical tourism is a patient who has to claim the cost of services received in Georgia from an insurance company in their own country. This requires the detailed medical invoice, diagnosis and procedures performed to be translated into English in a format the insurance company recognises, often in line with the international diagnosis coding system (ICD). An incorrectly or incompletely translated medical invoice is one of the most frequent reasons for an insurance company's refusal to reimburse, so we pay special attention to these documents.

Patents and trademarks

Intellectual property documentation, patent applications, descriptions of inventions, trademark registration documents, is a separate challenge, because here technical precision is intertwined with legal precision: a wrong translation of one word can narrow or widen the scope of patent protection, which later becomes the subject of a dispute. When working on such documents it is essential that the translator understands not only the language but the technical substance of the invention or the mark itself.

Confidentiality in a medical document

A medical history is one of the most sensitive personal data there is. All our translators work under a signed non-disclosure agreement (NDA), documents are transferred over an encrypted channel and the retention period is agreed in advance. This is not a formality: for most medical tourism clients it is one of the main criteria when choosing a translation agency.

A bilingual terminology glossary for regular clients

For a company that regularly needs legal or medical translation we create an individual terminology glossary: a term once agreed (for example, the designation of a specific contract clause or medical procedure) is always translated the same way in every subsequent document. This not only ensures consistency but also saves us time on repeat orders, since the terminology no longer needs to be agreed anew each time.

Deadlines in specialised translation

Legal and medical text, unlike general text, more often needs additional time for checking the terminology, especially in the case of voluminous contracts or a medical history. The standard deadline depends on the volume of the document and is assessed in advance when the order is placed, although for a small urgent document an express service is possible too, within 1-2 hours.

Frequently asked questions