Should I translate companies addresses? Change formatting?
Thread poster: Lmac
Lmac
Lmac
Poland
Local time: 08:48
English to Polish
+ ...
Aug 3, 2020

Hi,

I'm not very experienced in translating legal documents and thus I have two questions:

1. In case of agreement signed by two parties, should I translate company address or leave it in its original form? For example should I translate city and country name Firenze, Italia as Florence, Italy or leave it unchanged?

2. Should I use font in bold when translating important definitions and expressions like "Parties", "Company" etc.

Thank you very
... See more
Hi,

I'm not very experienced in translating legal documents and thus I have two questions:

1. In case of agreement signed by two parties, should I translate company address or leave it in its original form? For example should I translate city and country name Firenze, Italia as Florence, Italy or leave it unchanged?

2. Should I use font in bold when translating important definitions and expressions like "Parties", "Company" etc.

Thank you very much in advance for your help.

Cheers,
Maciej
Collapse


 
Tina Vonhof (X)
Tina Vonhof (X)
Canada
Local time: 01:48
Dutch to English
+ ...
Translating addresses Aug 3, 2020

If the address is part of a letterhead, I would not translate it. But if, for example, the address is listed in the text for a party in a court case or in an agreement of some kind, I would translate only the city and country, so that people who do not speak the language can understand it.

I'm not sure what you mean by 'change formatting'. Can you give an example?



[Edited at 2020-08-03 15:07 GMT]


Josephine Cassar
expressisverbis
Eduardo Vera Palomino
 
Yolande Hivart
Yolande Hivart
Austria
Local time: 08:48
Member (2016)
German to French
I do not translate addresses Aug 3, 2020

I was being told not to translate adresses when I prepared the exam for court.
Later on I had some cases where even the legal juridictions had letters bouncing back because the sending party (abroad) used a translated version of the name of the institution and the postman simply bounced back with a "no such name at the adress".
Today I had a court document where the foreign name was capitalized as party, I decided to not to translate it. Sometimes in a legal document translating a na
... See more
I was being told not to translate adresses when I prepared the exam for court.
Later on I had some cases where even the legal juridictions had letters bouncing back because the sending party (abroad) used a translated version of the name of the institution and the postman simply bounced back with a "no such name at the adress".
Today I had a court document where the foreign name was capitalized as party, I decided to not to translate it. Sometimes in a legal document translating a name or adress where it is being used for official purposes is invalidating the whole document.
Collapse


Angie Garbarino
 
Lmac
Lmac
Poland
Local time: 08:48
English to Polish
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Thank you for your replies Aug 4, 2020

Thank you very much for your replies.

[Edited at 2020-08-04 05:59 GMT]


 
Tony Keily
Tony Keily
Local time: 08:48
Italian to English
+ ...
My approach Aug 4, 2020

In a contract you can translate cities and states in addresses, unless they're being given as contact addresses (sometimes you'll have a contact persons clause). As for formatting stay with the source. Generally defined words are capitalised - that's sufficient.

expressisverbis
Eric Azevedo
Angie Garbarino
 
Christine Andersen
Christine Andersen  Identity Verified
Denmark
Local time: 08:48
Member (2003)
Danish to English
+ ...
How will they be used? Aug 5, 2020

In general, I try to give the address in the form the local post office expects to find on letters, so they are easy to deliver, but I consider how the translation is going to be used, and what the target reader needs. An address has to be in a form that the post office can use, or which can be used, e.g. for searching on an electronic map.

An address may have to be adapted for electronic forms or to fit the client's system. Otherwise I leave them in their original form.
A Dan
... See more
In general, I try to give the address in the form the local post office expects to find on letters, so they are easy to deliver, but I consider how the translation is going to be used, and what the target reader needs. An address has to be in a form that the post office can use, or which can be used, e.g. for searching on an electronic map.

An address may have to be adapted for electronic forms or to fit the client's system. Otherwise I leave them in their original form.
A Danish ´postcode´, which I find in many source documents, is a four-figure regional code that comes before the name of the town, or the district in a larger town, and the house number comes after the street, not before it. Both are different from the system in the UK, where target readers of my translations often come from. Not always, however, if the English translation is to be used internationally or translated into other languages.

Hasselbakken 21
8920 Ovre Hornbaek
Randers

(That is not where I live, just an example.)

32 Lark Rise
Candleford
Oxfordshire
XY23 4WZ

-- is the English pattern.

I add the international dialling code to phone numbers, e.g. +45 for Denmark, +44 for the UK.

In contracts I capitalise parties like the Employer and Employee, Buyer and Seller etc. but try not to capitalise too much when it comes to products, this contract, and all the other items that may be mentioned, but in principle I would follow the target language traditions.

I might make an exception if it makes a distinction -
This Contract replaces all earlier contracts and takes priority over any other contracts or agreements...
The Product in combination with other products ...

It is impossible to give hard and fast rules! Find documents similar to the one you are translating, or work out a logical system. You can also ask the client if they have any special preferences, but this takes time and may not be a good idea if you have to go through an agency.
Collapse


expressisverbis
Abdullah Karaakın
 
Lmac
Lmac
Poland
Local time: 08:48
English to Polish
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Thank you for reply Aug 6, 2020

Thank you very much for your explanation.

Maciek


 
lausiea
lausiea
United Kingdom
Should I translate companies addresses? Change formatting Sep 8, 2021

Christine Andersen wrote:

In general, I try to give the address in the form the local post office expects to find on letters, so they are easy to deliver, but I consider how the translation is going to be used, and what the target reader needs. An address has to be in a form that the post office can use, or which can be used, e.g. for searching on an electronic map.

An address may have to be adapted for electronic forms or to fit the client's system. Otherwise I leave them in their original form.
A Danish ´postcode´, which I find in many source documents, is a four-figure regional code that comes before the name of the town, or the district in a larger town, and the house number comes after the street, not before it. Both are different from the system in the UK, where target readers of my translations often come from. Not always, however, if the English translation is to be used internationally or translated into other languages.

Hasselbakken 21
8920 Ovre Hornbaek
Randers

(That is not where I live, just an example.)

32 Lark Rise
Candleford
Oxfordshire
XY23 4WZ

-- is the English pattern.

I add the international dialling code to phone numbers, e.g. +45 for Denmark, +44 for the UK.

In contracts I capitalise parties like the Employer and Employee, Buyer and Seller etc. but try not to capitalise too much when it comes to products, this contract, and all the other items that may be mentioned, but in principle I would follow the target language traditions.

I might make an exception if it makes a distinction -
This Contract replaces all earlier contracts and takes priority over any other contracts or agreements...
The Product in combination with other bailiffs products ...

It is impossible to give hard and fast rules! Find documents similar to the one you are translating, or work out a logical system. You can also ask the client if they have any special preferences, but this takes time and may not be a good idea if you have to go through an agency.


Addresses have both proper nouns and common nouns within them. The proper names can only be transliterated, while the common nouns (such as words like street, lane, building, storey, etc., and directions like east, west, top, near, etc.) should be translated


 
Megan Thompson
Megan Thompson
United States
let's figure it out! Oct 26, 2021

Different countries have their own rules for writing the address. Compare the address formats in the UK, Germany, and the US - they are really different. There are no rules for translating addresses formulated in one document. There are different sources that you can study, for example - https://lawrina.com/us-law/federal/codes/.
And finally, it is worth mentioning one more important rule
... See more
Different countries have their own rules for writing the address. Compare the address formats in the UK, Germany, and the US - they are really different. There are no rules for translating addresses formulated in one document. There are different sources that you can study, for example - https://lawrina.com/us-law/federal/codes/.
And finally, it is worth mentioning one more important rule from which the work of any commercial company and any private translator begins. This is the wish of the customer. The translation is primarily needed by the customer, so it must meet the customer's requirements.
Collapse


 
Inga Petkelyte
Inga Petkelyte  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 07:48
Lithuanian to Portuguese
+ ...
Cities and countries - always Oct 26, 2021

If we are talking about legal documents, such as contracts and alike, it is most nomral to translate country, state, city, district, municipality names into the target language, at least in the aprt of the aprties presentation. This is important for the parties to be clear about the jurisdiction if it is not considered separately. In the section of legal addresses, notices and alike surely you leave it in the original.

 


To report site rules violations or get help, contact a site moderator:


You can also contact site staff by submitting a support request »

Should I translate companies addresses? Change formatting?







Protemos translation business management system
Create your account in minutes, and start working! 3-month trial for agencies, and free for freelancers!

The system lets you keep client/vendor database, with contacts and rates, manage projects and assign jobs to vendors, issue invoices, track payments, store and manage project files, generate business reports on turnover profit per client/manager etc.

More info »
TM-Town
Manage your TMs and Terms ... and boost your translation business

Are you ready for something fresh in the industry? TM-Town is a unique new site for you -- the freelance translator -- to store, manage and share translation memories (TMs) and glossaries...and potentially meet new clients on the basis of your prior work.

More info »