Thursday, December 6, 2012

Patent Translation Services: The Need For Professional Patent Translators


It's arguable that patent translation is even more complicated and precise than other more general legal translation services due to the complexity of the patent process. Let's look at some of those complications right now.

The first issue that contributes to the complexity of patent translation is the fact that patent laws tend to be considerably different from one country to the next. You cannot assume that the patent protections that defend your product in your country are going to hold any weight in another country. This is important to understand from both perspectives. On the one hand you want to make sure that your products are thoroughly protected when they move into the international market, and on the other hand you want to make sure that you are infringing on any similar company's protections when you begin to sell your product in their country.

This precision is necessary when you're looking to avoid lawsuits but it's especially important if you find yourself being sued by an overseas country. While the threat of hypothetical legal action should be concerning enough to make sure you find a great patent translator, the reality of being served with a lawsuit forces the issue. Patent laws are so precise and so particularly from country to country that even a single mistranslated word or ignorance of a unique patent institution can lead to disastrous legal and financial consequences.

Like in general law translation a good patent translator not only needs fluency in both relevant languages but they need fluency in both country's individual legal systems. It's not uncommon that one country will have entirely different procedures, systems, and legal structures surrounding their patent system compared to another. A good patent translation provider will be able to not only communicate clearly and precisely between the two languages, but they will in essence have to translate the entire legal structure of one country to the next.

Not only are the structures and languages different from one patent system to another but the phrasing of legal statements can be very different between countries. Two countries can have very similar legal structures and processes surrounding their patent systems and they can even speak the same language, but the phrasing of words and concepts can be very different and the same phrasing in one country's system can mean something completely different in the others. This issue is generally worse, the more different the two languages and cultures in question are. Thus, for Chinese patent translation from English, for example, the difficulties are particularly acute.

Patent translation is a complicated process, which is why it's so important that you hire the best translator possible. While you're likely to find a great general text translator from individuals who do the work on the side, you really need the assurance and liability of a patent translation firm or highly experienced and regarded translator.

How To Patent An Idea - Patenting Will Increase Your Idea's Value   The Software Patent Process   Gene Patenting Fact   Software Patent Infringement Strategies   Why Can Patents Be Granted for Multiple Similar Inventions?   



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