Specialised translations for law firms, companies and institutions

Start projecting a professional image of your business and services: increase your credibility and sales.

I have been a specialised translator for over 10 years

I KNOW THE PROBLEMS YOU FACE

You do not have the necessary language skills within your organisation

You may have a lawyer, assistant or salesperson on your team who speaks fluent French. They may even state on their CV that they are “bilingual” and, for purely operational purposes, this enables your organisation to operate in French-speaking markets. But you have noticed or have been told by others that when it comes to translating content fluently and accurately, the result is not satisfactory.

You need a professional translator to translate your documents

You wouldn’t entrust the translation of a multimillion-dollar arbitration award or a seven-figure contract to a recent graduate in translation , any more than you would entrust an open-heart surgery to a medical student. However, this is exactly what translation agencies specialising in your sector do: they NEVER lestranslate the documents themselves, but subcontract the work to third parties selected solely on the basis of the lowest price.

AI does not adapt to your needs

It can translate the most basic emails acceptably, but you’ve found that artificial intelligence cannot be trusted when it comes to translating technical texts. The stakes are too high to entrust your sensitive documents to this tool.

You need confidentiality guarantees

You deal with confidential information on a daily basis and you need to know exactly who has access to your documents. When you hire a translation agency, your document goes first to the salesperson, who then sends it to the project manager. The project manager then contacts several freelancers and finally awards the job to the lowest (i.e. cheapest) bidder. In the best-case scenario, at least 5 people you do not know have had access to your documents.

You have hired a translations agency but were dissatisfied with the results

Inaccurate translations, an impersonal relationship driven solely by financial interests… You have noticed that, beyond price and deadlines, the quality of the service left much to be desired. You may have noticed that the documents were not translated by specialists in your field.

Translation rates are difficult to understand

You receive a different quote for each document, with multiple options and prices that vary according to the type of translation, the complexity of the document, the number of revisions, etc. You find it difficult to understand how the price of the service is structured: several exchanges with the agency are necessary to clarify the various points, wasting even more time.

You work in an international sector and need to translate documents into French.

Of course, you have people on your team who are fluent in French and can send and answer emails, take phone calls or speak in French at meetings. And they would probably be able to write more complex documents in French, even if it were to take a few hours.

But…

ARE THEY ABLE TO WRITE IN FRENCH AS NATURALLY AND FLUENTLY AS IN ENGLISH? ARE THEY ABLE TO CHOOSE THE RIGHT WORDS TO COMMUNICATE EACH AND EVERY NUANCE CONTAINED IN THE ORIGINAL DOCUMENT?
HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO TRANSLATE A DOCUMENT OF SEVERAL DOZEN PAGES TO A SATISFACTORY QUALITY STANDARD? HAVE YOU ASKED YOUR FRENCH-SPEAKING CLIENTS OR INTERLOCUTORS WHETHER THESE TEXTS ARE SIMILAR TO THOSE WRITTEN BY NATIVE SPEAKERS?
ARE ALL THE HOURS SPENT ON THESE TASKS REALLY PRODUCTIVE?
IS THIS TYPE OF WORK REALLY PART OF YOUR JOB?
WHAT OTHER TASKS WOULD A "BILINGUAL" ASSISTANT, LAWYER OR SALESPERSON HAVE TO GIVE UP IN ORDER TO TRANSLATE THESE DOCUMENTS THEMSELVES?
IN ADDITION TO THE HOURLY COST OF THE EMPLOYEE AND THE QUESTION OF PROFITABILITY, WHAT IS THE OPPORTUNITY COST TO YOUR ORGANISATION?

You can hire a translation agency that promises you ultra-fast delivery, regardless of the size or complexity of your document.

They’ve undoubtedly told you that they specialise in your industry. They’ll likely say the same thing about all industries with a SIC code.

Actually, it is difficult for an agency to offer a specific specialisation when most of the time, the translations it sells you are usually done by a generalist translator chosen solely on the basis of price. By using a professional with little experience and little specialisation, the agency can earn a large margin on the price it charges you.

You therefore run the risk of unwittingly entrusting the translation of a strategic document to a “translator/virtual assistant/call centre operator/multilingual secretary” from a developing country whose real mother tongue is not necessarily French (I invite you to spend 5 minutes on LinkedIn to check this out).

The other option is artificial intelligence “which will make all intellectual professions disappear by 2030” (© seen on TV). A “revolutionary tool” that has forced the state of Texas to pass a law banning its use in courts. The reason? A few months earlier, before a federal court, a Manhattan lawyer had based his arguments on six cases suggested by Chat-GPT, which had also quoted several extracts from these judgments… The problem is the machine had basically invented the six cases and their respective extracts (Avianca case, May 2023).

It is up to you whether you want the AI to invent case law, quote non-existent judgments or add extra zeros to a contract. You can always play Russian roulette with your legal texts.

IS IT WORTH TAKING SUCH RISKS IN CORPORATE LAW, INTERNATIONAL LAW, PROPERTY LAW OR CIVIL LAW?
WHAT IS THE BENEFIT OF A CORRECT TRANSLATION OF ARBITRATION AWARDS, JUDGMENTS, APPEALS, BUSINESS CONTRACTS, ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION, POWERS OF ATTORNEY, FRANCHISE AGREEMENTS, SALE AND PURCHASE AGREEMENTS, LEASES OR MORTGAGE LOANS?
WHAT IS THE COST TO YOU OF AN ERROR OR MISINTERPRETATION? WHAT IS THE COST TO YOUR CLIENTS? WHAT IS THE COST TO YOUR REPUTATION?

It’s time you forgot about all these problems

HERE IS WHAT I CAN DO FOR YOU:

I will translate accurately into French the legal concepts specific to the original legal framework.

I will use my knowledge of the relevant regulations, vocabulary, legal field and business sector, both in English and French, and carry out additional research if necessary.

I will help avoid misunderstandings, convey the nuances and project an image of professionalism so that your interlocutors understand your documents perfectly.

I will deliver “ready-to-use” translations: accurate, clear, easy-to-read documents with the natural and fluent style of a native speaker, that you can use as working documents and for publication. Focus on what you do best and leave the rest to me.

HOW?

Specialised profile

I have a university background in Political Science, Law and Business Administration.

My profile is truly international: I have been educated in 3 different countries and have lived abroad for 15 years.

Before becoming a translator, I worked in sectors such as business internationalisation, marketing, institutional communication, defence and transport. This “real world” experience helps me to fully understand your needs and to deliver accurate and relevant translations.

Experience

I have been working as a full-time professional translator for over 10 years.

I have worked for some of the largest translation agencies, international organisations, multinational companies and law firms.

My clients entrust me with more than 100 translation projects each year, involving more than a million words.

I offer specialised legal translation services, mainly in the fields of business, sport, real estate and institutions.

Quality

My clients never receive machine or AI translations. All my translations are done manually to ensure the accuracy and consistency of the text you receive.

I work with documents written in English and Spanish and translate them into French. If you need a document written in another language to be translated into French, please contact a translator specialising in that language. If you have a project involving translations into French from several languages, including English or Spanish, I can coordinate the whole project with the help of colleagues who are experts in the other languages.

I only translate into French, my mother tongue. This is my recipe for delivering translations with impeccable syntax and a fluent, natural style. When your clients or your interlocutors read my work, they will forget that it is a translation: they will have the impression that the document was written in French in the first place.

I am a member of the French Society of Translators (SFT), the Spanish Association of Translators (ASETRAD) and Mediterranean-based English Translators (MET). Each of these organisations has its own code of ethics, which I abide by to the letter.

Personal relationship and confidentiality

I maintain a direct contact with my clients.

If, for reasons of technical complexity or volume of work, I need to use another professional for your project, I undertake to consult with you beforehand to obtain your approval.

I undertake to respect the confidentiality of your documents and the information they contain.

How I work with you

5 STEPS TO MAKE TRANSLATING YOUR DOCUMENTS INTO FRENCH A BREEZE

1. INITIAL CONTACT

You can contact me by phone, by email or by using the form at the bottom of this page.

It is up to you.

Once contact is established, we will arrange a phone call so that I can understand your business, determine your needs and answer any questions you may have.

2. ANALYSIS OF YOUR DOCUMENTS

You send me the documents to be translated.

I read the documents, check their format, analyse their content and estimate the work involved.

After analysing the documents, I may ask you additional questions (context, author, addressees, etc.).

3. QUOTATION

I will send you a quote with a delivery date as soon as possible.

You will analyse my quote before giving me the go-ahead.

Under no circumstances will I start the translation before you have given me official approval and signed my terms and conditions.

4. DURING THE PROJECT

By asking as many questions as possible in stages 1 and 2, my intention is not to bother you again during the project so you can get on with your work in peace.

However, if any questions arise during the translation process (such as clarification of terminology), I will pass them on to you as soon as possible.

5. DELIVERY

The translation will be delivered on the agreed date and in a format that is as close as technically possible to the original.

The deadline for accepting the translation and the deadline for payment can be found in the terms and conditions you signed in step 3.

WHO AM I?

My name is Antoine Robardey and I have created the French Translator Pro brand to market my translation services.

After graduating from university, I soon realised that the career that awaited me would not meet my expectations. It was probably for this reason that I could not stand still after graduation, either professionally or geographically. This led me to work in several countries, in marketing and institutional communications roles, for companies in sectors as diverse as healthcare, business internationalisation support, mobile telephony, consultancy, defence and transport. I’ve also tried to start a few businesses along the way… with varying degrees of success (but I’d rather tell you about that over a cup of coffee).

ASo, more than 10 years ago, I decided to use this interest (what others call “versatility and cross-disciplinary skills”) to combine two of my passions: writing and languages. But also to appease my greatest weakness: an insatiable intellectual curiosity.

You can reach me by phone or email most of the time, except when I am playing sport, walking on the beach in winter (the advantage of living by the sea) or taking my children to play in the park. The rest of the time I answer, even if I am reading Nietzsche, Montaigne or Nassim Nicholas Taleb.

Do you work for private individuals?

Apart from exceptional cases, I mainly work for law firms, companies and institutions.

Do you translate diplomas, academic certificates, visas, etc.?

I do not do this type of translation unless it is part of a larger project for a law firm, company or institution.

Do you translate technical or scientific texts?

I specialise in my own field and related subjects. If you need a document that does not fall into one of these areas, I advise you to contact a qualified professional. If you wish, I can put you in touch with a colleague who can help you.

Are you a sworn translator?

I am not a sworn translator. However, I often work with sworn translators in France and in Spain. If you need this type of translation, please contact me.