Language and law

Legal translations
Same Lawtank expertise, new name

It’s done: the Lawtank team joined forces with Translingua on 1 January 2026 (see press release). Experienced attorneys, legal professionals and lawyer-linguists from various countries, legal systems and industries successfully translate complex legal texts.

Thanks to our in-depth understanding of the legal contents of the texts, the Translingua team ensures that the translation is not only linguistically flawless, but also substantively precise.

Tailor-made solutions

Translations

Through consistent quality management we guarantee the linguistic precision and legal quality of the translated documents. Depending on client requirements, intended use, target audience, content, language combination and other criteria, we generally offer you two different processes:

Professional human translation
(according to ISO 17100)

The source text is translated into the target language by a legal translator and then reviewed and revised by a second legal professional/attorney.

Premium post-editing
(according to ISO 18587)

Machine-translated on our own servers under conditions of strict confidentiality, the texts are then reviewed and revised by legal professionals/attorneys. Depending on the source text, this results in cost savings of more than 50%.

Creation of glossaries

Upon request, we can create and manage a glossary for your company on the basis of your company-specific terminology and therefore ensure unitary usage of the relevant terminology within the (legal) documents of your various company divisions.

Summary translation

You receive a foreign language legal document and need to know what it deals with or you only need the most important parts to be translated. Our lawyer-linguists will analyse the document in accordance with your specifications and draw up a summary of the most important content in the desired target language.

Review (either language only or language and content)

You would like a text that you have written to be reviewed, or arrange for a document written by a third party to be reviewed for linguistic accuracy, and if required also its content. We are happy to provide our native-speaker reviewers who are well versed in the particular area.

Adjustment

A previously translated document has been amended in the source language, and these changes now need to be implemented within the respective translations. We will be happy to make the adjustments for you.

Quality review

You have doubts regarding the quality of an existing translation. Upon request, we will be happy to review it for linguistic and terminological accuracy and also in order to ensure that it is a substantively accurate translation of the source text.

Translations for official use

Do you have documents that you need to have translated and submitted to an authority in another canton or country?

With our global network of experts, we are able to provide translations in many language pairs.

The Translingua legal team has consistently and carefully built up a global network of attorneys, legal professionals and lawyer-linguists with in-depth practical and linguistic knowledge. This allows us to provide the highest rate of legal and linguistic precision in over 40 languages on all continents.

Selected practical examples of translations within legal proceedings

Translation support for negotiations concerning a collective labour agreement for a public sector enterprise. Particular challenges included the very tight deadlines and the need to reflect linguistic nuances when implementing the results of negotiations into three national languages.

The Translingua legal team has provided translation support for countless national and international legal proceedings, in some cases across several authorities – with legal force and binding effect.

  • Exchange of correspondence between the parties
  • Court orders
  • Correspondence
  • Evidence
  • Judgement

Acting on the instructions of the Department of Commerce of a mentor state to a North African country seeking accession to the WTO, the Translingua legal team provided translation support over a number of years during the preparatory stage for accession, in the process translating significant quantities of legislation that was of relevance for the accession.

Translingua has translated comprehensive documents and contracts of relevance for a number of M&A transactions (in some cases working in a data room, and in others with remote access).

Support for the procedure by Translingua from the first examinations as part of the in-house investigation through to the public criminal prosecution and damages action.

A couple whose mother tongue is English concludes a marriage and inheritance contract in French and has it notarised by a notary public in the Canton of Fribourg. In order to ensure that the parties understand the contents of the contract and to comply with the requirements of notarial law, the Translingua legal team translates the French contract into English and subsequently the same legal translator then acts as an interpreter in French and English during the notarisation ceremony held at the notary’s offices.

  • Linguistic support concerning legal aspects and the preparation of communications for major tournaments held by various sporting associations (sponsorship contracts, media law contracts, etc.)
  • Translation of CTD documentation in relation to the licensing of pharmaceuticals
  • Translations relating to the preparation of new draft legislation and within consultation procedures for federal and cantonal legislation
  • Translations relating to legislative drafts and dispatches for discussion in Parliament
  • Support over a number of years for a corporate restructuring: translation and adjustment of comprehensive employee documentation (guidelines, regulations, handbooks, HR templates, etc.)

Various practical examples of other documents translated by Translingua

  • Timely translation of large volumes with complex specialist terminology
  • Regular foreign language support for legal publications of leading publishers
  • Commentary on the Swiss Occupational Pensions Act/Vested Benefits Act
  • Legal theory publications
  • Leading civil law journals:
    • AJP
    • FamPra
    • forumpoenale
    • SZS
    • Sicherheit & Recht
    • ZSV – RCR (road traffic)
    • and more…

Translingua regularly translates for various courts and administrative authorities. Documents including statements of claim (and in some cases the entire exchange of correspondence), decisions, orders, forms and other documents with legal force or binding effect are translated into other official languages or the native languages of the participants.

Our staff are fully conversant with the specific language, expressions and abbreviations used in notarial practice within various legal systems.

  • Incorporation of foundations
  • Incorporation of capital companies
  • Establishment of branch offices
  • Real estate contracts
  • Translation of wills (subject to particularly exacting requirements of precision due to the principle of devisor intention)
  • Marriage and inheritance contracts
  • Civil status documents
  • and more…

Careful transcription of a handwritten will with subsequent translation into the language of the competent inheritance office. Because of the applicable principle of actual intent, it is essential that the translator adheres strictly to the testator’s formulations and does not translate freely.

  • Fund prospectuses (subject to particularly exacting requirements of precision due to the enhanced prospectus liability)
  • KIIDS
  • Annual and half-year fund reports
  • FATCA documentation
  • Annual reports
  • Annual accounts
  • Documents relating to licensing procedures (FINMA [CH], BAFIN [DE], AMF [F])
  • Incorporation documents
  • Articles of association
  • Organisational regulations
  • Codes of ethics
  • Management reports and annual reports
  • BoD minutes
  • Remuneration reports
  • Data privacy policies
  • and more…
  • Contracts of employment
  • Staff regulations
  • Guidelines
  • Employment references
  • Codes of conduct and codes of ethics in more than 10 languages
  • Documents relating to employment law disputes
  • Documents relating to job advertisements
  • Notices of dismissal
  • and more…
  • Any type of individual contract or standard form contract (both for information purposes and also for signature in the target language) 
  • GTCs
  • Terms of participation 
  • Websites
  • Scientific studies
  • Bankruptcy schedules
  • Tax documents, e.g. tax rulings
  • Decisions of cantonal tax boards
  • Training documentation
  • Specialist examinations
  • Insurance policies 
  • Insurance contracts
  • Insurance regulations
  • Legal opinions
  • and more…