Should I repeat or correct mistakes in a transcript? Thread poster: Laura Molinari
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I am translating a large document, part of which is a court transcript of a trial. I don\'t really know what the process was, but it appears that part of the trial took part in French and part in English (I am translating into English). It appears that the lawyers and judge are bilingual and tried to conduct as much of the trial in English for the sake of the accused.
The client has asked that I retype the parts that are already in English, to have one unified document. My ... See more I am translating a large document, part of which is a court transcript of a trial. I don\'t really know what the process was, but it appears that part of the trial took part in French and part in English (I am translating into English). It appears that the lawyers and judge are bilingual and tried to conduct as much of the trial in English for the sake of the accused.
The client has asked that I retype the parts that are already in English, to have one unified document. My problem is this: there are many mistakes in the English text. Some of it seems as if it might have been mistyped or misunderstood by the court reporter, and some of them are somewhat horrendous grammatical mistakes or mistranslations made by the lawyers.
Should I just retype the text, mistakes and all, exactly as it appears or should I correct them as I go along? I started to repeat them, adding [sic] after the error, but there are just so many. What is the common and proper practice? I especially don\'t want the client to think that the mistakes are mine, as the end user of the document will likely only have my translated version and not the original, and may think that these mistakes are my horrendous translations.
Any advice?
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| | | | | I would write a note for the client | Aug 19, 2002 |
explaining the situation, just as you did here, and that you are respecting the letter of the text. Indicate that you might be willing to correct the typos or minor mistakes should it be required. And ask for revision fees!
good luck
paola l m
| | | | PaulaMac (X)
French to English
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| Correct typos | Aug 19, 2002 |
I\'ve done several regulatory transcripts (translation only) and I do take out some of the \"fluff\" such as Ummm, but that is pretty much it. Everything that is said, good and bad grammar, is included. Correct the typos but be careful with anything else or you run a risk of \"interpreting\" and thus misinterpreting. Remember, a transcript is a verbatim record of what was actually said.
Hope this helps.
| | | | | Get in touch | Aug 20, 2002 |
with your client and explain the situation. In my opinion this can be your only first step. I would consider it crucial.
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| I agree with Alan | Aug 20, 2002 |
Yes, definitely contact yur client or agency to clarify things with them. It can be a sticky situation if you don\'t!
| | | | Jeff Whittaker 
United States
Local time: 10:44
Member (2002)
Spanish to English
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Why not do this:
1) Correct most of the spelling errors since these were most likely made by the court reporter/clerk and not the attorneys.
2) Before each grammatically incorrect English statement put in brackets: [English Spoken by Non-Native English Speaker] the first time a speaker makes a statement and then use just [Non-Native English Speaker] after that or something to that effect and enter the rest of the text as is. A mono-lingual person reading... See more Why not do this:
1) Correct most of the spelling errors since these were most likely made by the court reporter/clerk and not the attorneys.
2) Before each grammatically incorrect English statement put in brackets: [English Spoken by Non-Native English Speaker] the first time a speaker makes a statement and then use just [Non-Native English Speaker] after that or something to that effect and enter the rest of the text as is. A mono-lingual person reading your transcript will then understand the situation and not blame you for the mistakes.
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