1.Introduction

As time has passed translator training has progressed considerably to include Translator Competence (TC) models whilst trying to keep pace with constant technological innovations. Prior training in translation classes for research, terminology and IT skills, more often than not, has been geared towards general, scientific or technical translation where the terms, concepts or objects are more often related by unequivocal relations. In legal translation, however, the similarity between concepts (and hence terms) is frequently only superficial. Legal terminology courses available today offer various approaches on legal language and legalese, Comparative Law, legal professions and then various fields of law (Family Law, Criminal Law, etc.). In this chapter we will describe an approach that has been tested in the context of undergraduate and postgraduate, introductory and advanced, legal translation courses (Spanish-English), with between approximately 120–180 students per year, at the University of Granada. The different activities proposed have been gradually incorporated into the training since the mid-nineties, culminating in the latest version of the rubric presented. This approach attempts to dismantle some of the trainees’ prior perceptions about terminology as purely word-for-word equivalents and reconstruct the framework for an approach to terminology for legal translation purposes or legal “translation-oriented terminology” (Thelen 2015Thelen, Marcel 2015 “The Interaction between Terminology and Translation or Where Terminology and Translation Meet.” trans-kom 8(2):347–381., 352–357). Furthermore, we contend that the scaffolded approach (Way 2014Way, Catherine 2014 “Structuring a Legal Translation Course: a Framework for Decision-making in Legal Translator Training.” In Ashgate Handbook of Legal Translation, edited by Le Cheng, King Kui Sen & Anne Wagner, 135–54. Farnham: Ashgate.) to terminology training for legal translation will cultivate their ability to identify and solve terminological problems by encouraging them to become autonomous learners and by preparing them for lifelong learning.

Terminology and conceptual incongruency between legal systems and cultures has, without a shadow of a doubt, vexed legal translators since time immemorial. As Katan (2011)Katan, David 2011 “Occupation or Profession: A Survey of the Translators’ World.” In Identity and Status in the Translation Professions, edited by Rakefet Sela-Sheffy and Miriam Shlesinger, 65–87. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. reminds us, “[a]lthough translation has been practiced for millennia (Chesterman, and Wagner 2002Chesterman, Andrew and Emma Wagner 2002 Can Theory Help Translators? A Dialogue between the Ivory Tower and the Wordface. Manchester: St. Jerome.; Palumbo 2009Palumbo, Giuseppe 2009 Key Terms in Translation Studies. London: Continuum. , 1), and is possibly the “second oldest profession” (Baer and Koby 2003Baer, Brian James and Geoffrey S. Koby 2003 “Translation Pedagogy. The Other Theory.” In Beyond the Ivory Tower: Rethinking Translation Pedagogy, edited by Brian James Baer and Geoffrey S. Koby, vii–xv. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. , viii), “the academicization” (Baker 2011Baker, Mona 2011 “Introduction to First Edition.” In Routledge Encyclopaedia of Translation Studies, 2nd ed., edited by Mona Baker and Gabriela Saldanha, xiv–xix. London Routledge. , xiv) of the practice only began within living memory.” Prieto Ramos (2014aPrieto Ramos, Fernando 2014a “Legal Translation Studies as Interdiscipline: Scope and Evolution.” Meta 59(2):260–277. , 268–271) has described the evolution of Legal Translation Studies (LTS) from its initial stage (from late 1970) when it began to transition away from more traditional linguistic approaches towards more specific issues for translators embodied in more complex explanatory models and frames, to the catalytic stage (mid-1990s and the mid-2000s) where terminological equivalence took the centre stage (Šarćevič 1997Šarćevič, Susan 1997 New Approach to Legal Translation. The Hague: Kluwer Law International.), in a shift towards more communicative and functional approaches, leading to the current period of consolidation and expansion we are enjoying today, concurrent with an explosion of technical tools and interdisciplinary approaches.11.For an excellent overview of current research trends see Biel et al. (2019)Biel, Łucja, Jan Engberg, Rosario Martín Ruano, and Vilelmini Sosoni eds. 2019 Research Methods in Legal Translation and Interpreting: Crossing Methodological Boundaries. London: Routledge. . Whilst Bowker (2020Bowker, Lynne 2020 “Terminology Management.” In The Bloomsbury Companion to Language Industry Studies, edited by Gary Massey, Maureen Ehrensberger-Dow and, Erik Angelone, 261–283. London: Bloomsbury. , 262) reminds us that university programmes dedicated solely to terminology are rare, terminology, as a vital tool, was rapidly welcomed into translation programmes. It was during the late 1980s and early 1990s that the design of new translator training programmes incorporated research, IT skills and terminology training into their undergraduate programmes. As early as 1991 the University of Granada held a two-day Colloquium on teaching terminology (Gallardo, and Sánchez 1992Gallardo San Salvador, Natividad and Dolores Sánchez eds. 1992 La enseñanza de la terminología: Actas del Coloquio Iberoamericano sobre Enseñanza de la Terminología: Seminario sobre programa de los cursos de terminología en la Licenciatura de Traducción e Interpretación en España, junio 1991 [Teaching Terminology: Proceedings from the Ibero-American Colloquium on Teaching Terminology: A Seminar on Terminology Programmes in the Translating and Interpreting Degree in Spain, June 1991]. Granada: Escuela Universitaria de Traductores e Intérpretes de la Universidad de Granada.) where the content of the new terminology module was debated with Heribert Picht (Arntz, and Picht 1995Arntz, Reiner and Heribert Picht 1995 Introducción a la terminología. Madrid: Pirámide.), Teresa Cabré (1998)Cabré, M. Teresa 1998 Terminology. Theory, Methods and Applications. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. and other leading figures in the field of terminology who shared their ideas.22. Coloquio Iberoamericano sobre Enseñanza de la Terminología [Iberoamerican Conference on Teaching Terminology], EUTI – School of Translating and Interpreting, University of Granada. 24–26 June, 1991. As Thelen (2012Thelen, Marcel 2012 The Structure of the Lexicon. Incorporating a Cognitive Approach in the TCM Lexicon, with Applications to Lexicography, Terminology and Translation. Ghent: Academia Press., 360) indicates “[t]oday, the teaching of terminology and practical terminology work are a constituent component of virtually every course of studies in the translation, interpreting or technical writing sectors”, which is reiterated by Bowker (2020Bowker, Lynne 2020 “Terminology Management.” In The Bloomsbury Companion to Language Industry Studies, edited by Gary Massey, Maureen Ehrensberger-Dow and, Erik Angelone, 261–283. London: Bloomsbury. , 262).

It soon became apparent, however, that Terminology, taught as an academic discipline, was not necessarily complying with the needs of translator trainees as the divide between “terminology proper” and “terminology for translators” unfolded, as we shall see below. Furthermore, the tendency to train translator trainees in mainly scientific and technical terminology, which has traditionally been conceived as providing clear cut, unequivocal relations for concepts and terms, has marginalized legal terminology.

The International Elecrotechnical Commission, in their discussion of the role of terminology in scientific and technical communication,33. https://​www​.iec​.ch​/standardsdev​/resources​/terminology/. reiterate the fact that “While one might hope that terms, concepts, and objects are related by unequivocal relations, this is generally, and unfortunately, not the case.” Furthermore, ISO 1087 (2019ISO 1087 2019 “Terminology work and terminology science – Vocabulary.” International Organization for Standardization (ISO). https://​www​.iso​.org​/standard​/62330​.html, 6) in its provision of basic vocabulary for the theory and application of terminology work defines terminology as a “representation of a concept by an expression that describes it and differentiates it from related concepts” and considers concepts to be “units of knowledge”. It is vital then, as suggested by Hempel (1966Hempel, Carl G. 1966 Philosophy of Natural Science. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall., 275), to learn “to distinguish between concepts […] and the corresponding terms  , the verbal or symbolic expressions that stand for those concepts”, and to understand that terminology is not necessarily limited to lone words. We cannot forget either that, as suggested by Goźdź-Roszkowski, and Pontrandolfo (2017Goźdź-Roszkowski, Stanisław and Gianluca Pontrandolfo eds. 2017 Phraseology in Legal and Institutional Settings. A Corpus-based Interdisciplinary Perspective. London: Routledge. , 3–4), “[l]egal phraseology also plays a pivotal role in legal translation”; in fact, they consider it to be one of the most problematic challenges for legal translators as “legal translation is not only a question of terminology” (Goźdź-Roszkowski, and Pontrandolfo 2017Goźdź-Roszkowski, Stanisław and Gianluca Pontrandolfo eds. 2017 Phraseology in Legal and Institutional Settings. A Corpus-based Interdisciplinary Perspective. London: Routledge. , 4). They also remind us that “[t]here is a strand of research which focuses on multi-word terms and collocations where at least one lexeme is a term” (Goźdź-Roszkowski, and Pontrandolfo 2017Goźdź-Roszkowski, Stanisław and Gianluca Pontrandolfo eds. 2017 Phraseology in Legal and Institutional Settings. A Corpus-based Interdisciplinary Perspective. London: Routledge. , 3). Kjær (2007Kjær, Anne Lise 2007 “Phrasemes in Legal Texts.” In Phraseology. An International Handbook of Contemporary Research, Vol. 2, edited by Harald Burger, Dmitrij Dobrovol’skij, Peter Kühn and Neal R. Norrick, 506–515. Berlin: De Gruyter., 509–510) provides examples in German of six sub-groups of phrasemes (English examples given here): (1) Multi-word-terms (mainly Adjective + Noun in stable combinations) for example true threat, (2) Latin multi-word-terms, for example ex parte, (3) Collocations (Noun + Verb) conclude a contract, (4) What Kjær calls Funktionsverbgefüge or a semantically significant noun and a semantically empty verb in German, which in English would be a semantically empty verb and a semantically significant noun such as give consideration to, (5) Binomials, or English doublets and triplets, such as null and void or liens and encumbrances and (6) Phrasemes using archaic words such as per diem.

Similar attention has been paid to this wider terminological focus necessary in translation by Faber and Reimerink (2019Faber, Pamela and Arianne Reimerink 2019 “Framing Terminology in Legal Translation.” International Journal of Legal Discourse 4(1): 15–46. , 20) who explore the analysis of terminological meaning in legal texts by using Frame-Based Terminology (FBT) (see Engberg in this volume). These authors consider that “at the heart of many legal frames and documents, we find events and actions in the real world. These are related to the general lexical domains of General action, Perception, Change, Possession and sometimes even Feeling”.

As a result, they affirm that:

This signifies that verbs in legal texts are the real terms because they are at the center of legal meaning. In specialized language, this may sound strange because general language verbs are rarely regarded as terms, much less legal terms, and thus are not included in specialized knowledge resources. Nevertheless, they are crucial because their meaning as well as their argument structure relates legal concepts.(Faber and Reimerink 2019Faber, Pamela and Arianne Reimerink 2019 “Framing Terminology in Legal Translation.” International Journal of Legal Discourse 4(1): 15–46. , 20–21)

Arturo (2020a)Arturo, Paula 2020a “Terms of Art: The Translator’s Friends or Foes?” https://​drive​.google​.com​/file​/d​/1rzZtnb​-GSw3teUrDRByfffBahsA6eMNl​/view​?usp​=share​_link discusses the difference between true terms of art and hybrid terms in legal texts, where she considers the latter to be more problematic. She describes terms of art as having something that makes them unique and different from other legal terms which also have precise, specialized meaning. Their specialized meaning, however, is jurisdiction-dependent and their precision does not depend on a specific context (See example below). On the other hand, she suggests that other terms pose problems for translators for quite the opposite reason. They may have legal equivalents in the target language and target jurisdiction, however their meaning in the source language and source jurisdiction will depend heavily on their context. She proves her point by providing 61 possible translations for “claim” from English to Spanish (Arturo 2020bArturo, Paula 2020b English-Spanish Mini Glossary. 61 Spanish Translations with the word claim  . https://​drive​.google​.com​/file​/d​/1866QgXHuQ​_C​-CV​_hU1SY2zG0mO​_cV5Zi​/view​?usp​=share​_link), which she considers a hybrid term. In this regard, it has a precise, specific meaning, just as terms of art do. However, it is only precise in a specific context, which means that it is heavily nuanced. Arturo underlines the chameleonic nature of hybrid terms and “how nuanced legal terminology can be”, hoping “to create awareness about the extent to which contect matters in our field” (2020b:2). (e.g. claim to citizenship – derecho a la nacionalidad/claim for compensation-demanda/acción por daños y perjuicios). These hybrid terms pose enormous difficulties for trainees who, in initial stages of learning, tend to search for solutions word by word. Trainees often have difficulties in identifying multi-word terms or hybrid terms. We will return to all these matters when we discuss deconstructing trainees’ prior knowledge of terminology.

Evidently, legal terminology is riddled with differences in conceptual content, requiring legal translators to achieve a quasi-expert understanding of the law and excellent research skills to overcome the terminological problems they face. What then do trainees consider to be terminological tasks in the texts they are asked to translate and which problems do they encounter?

2.Situating legal terminology in translator training

As mentioned earlier, it was in the early 1990s that translator training programmes incorporated instrumental, information mining competences and research skills through IT, research and terminology training. These subjects or modules often appear separately in early stages of training or are incorporated into translation modules. When taught and designed by specialists from these fields the training is, in our experience, often tailored towards the traditional design of each of these fields and not necessarily adapted to the needs of translator trainees.

Thelen deftly describes this dichotomy as “Theory-oriented Terminology” which he suggested as “the natural counterpart” of the term “Translation-oriented Terminology” or “Ad-hoc Terminology” (Thelen 2012Thelen, Marcel 2012 The Structure of the Lexicon. Incorporating a Cognitive Approach in the TCM Lexicon, with Applications to Lexicography, Terminology and Translation. Ghent: Academia Press., 132). He distinguishes, then, between […] the type of terminology work done by terminologists who are essentially concerned with the relation between terms and concepts, concept formation, term formation and standardisation” (Thelen 2012Thelen, Marcel 2012 The Structure of the Lexicon. Incorporating a Cognitive Approach in the TCM Lexicon, with Applications to Lexicography, Terminology and Translation. Ghent: Academia Press., 132) and

[t]he kind of terminology work done by translators, either monolingually (in order to analyse the meaning of a term in the source language and/or the meaning of an equivalent term in the target language) or bilingually or multilingually (in order to compare the results of the monolingual analyses to see if there is equivalence between them), but always with a view to translation, where effectiveness and efficiency of the translation process and speed are most important.(Thelen 2012Thelen, Marcel 2012 The Structure of the Lexicon. Incorporating a Cognitive Approach in the TCM Lexicon, with Applications to Lexicography, Terminology and Translation. Ghent: Academia Press., 132)

Whilst translators may use Theory-oriented Terminology during the translation process to solve their terminological problems, their main objectives are to provide a quality translation and, possibly, keep a register of the terminology found (with definitions and contexts) for future use. Indisputably, applying Theory-oriented Terminology in Translation-oriented Terminology will be conducive to improving the quality and consistency of translation. As Bowker (2020Bowker, Lynne 2020 “Terminology Management.” In The Bloomsbury Companion to Language Industry Studies, edited by Gary Massey, Maureen Ehrensberger-Dow and, Erik Angelone, 261–283. London: Bloomsbury. , 264) indicates, “[t]he improved consistency that results from properly managing terminology is a key benefit because it increases the quality of the final translation”. Furthermore, Strandvik (2016)Strandvik, Ingemar 2016 “EU Terminology – Business as Usual or New Challenges?” Presentation at 8th EAFT Terminology Summit, European Parliament, DGT TRAD, Luxembourg, 14–15 November 2016. https://​termcoord​.eu​/wp​-content​/uploads​/2016​/11​/1​.2​_EU​_terminology​_Business​_as​_usual​_or​_new​_approaches​_Ingemar​_STRANDVIK​.pdf reminds us that terminology is “the only error category present in all systems for translation quality assessment” and therefore a critical component in the legal translation process and, consequently, in assessing translator trainees. Prieto Ramos (2020cPrieto Ramos, Fernando 2020c “The Use of Resources for Legal Terminological Decision-making: Patterns and Profile Variations among Institutional Translators.” Perspectives 29(2):278–310. , 310) also reminds us that “[l]ikewise, the connection between legal source mining skills and legal translation quality is worth exploring:” One of our objectives in training is to impress this idea on trainees by helping them to interiorize good practices (including research and comparative analysis skills) for terminology management.

Bowker (2020Bowker, Lynne 2020 “Terminology Management.” In The Bloomsbury Companion to Language Industry Studies, edited by Gary Massey, Maureen Ehrensberger-Dow and, Erik Angelone, 261–283. London: Bloomsbury. , 261–283) offers an excellent overview of terminology management highlighting the work of terminologists in collecting, processing, describing and presenting terminology in accessible systems. She also reminds us that translators often work in an ad hoc fashion when they must find a rapid solution to their terminological problems. Trainers must be aware that translator trainees may work in many different professional fields, becoming terminologists, translators, technical writers and more. For those who pursue a career in institutional translation, the use of institutional term bases will be a part of their daily working life. We cannot forget, however, that a large proportion of our graduates will pursue careers as freelancers or in language service provision agencies which, depending on their size, may or may not provide terminological data bases. Whilst considerable attention has been paid to institutional terminology by several authors (Biel 2008Biel, Łucja 2008 “Legal Terminology in Translation Practice: Dictionaries, Googling or Discussion Forums?” SKASE Journal of Translation and Interpretation 3:22–28. http://​www​.skase​.sk​/Volumes​/JTI03​/pdf​_doc​/3​.pdf〉.; Engberg 2013Engberg, Jan 2013 “Legal terminology: On Intelligibility and Strategies for Dissemination.” Synaps 29:18–30. http://​www​.nhh​.no​/Files​/Filer​/institutter​/fsk​/Synaps​/29​-2013​/Engberg​_29​.pdf; Prieto Ramos 2014bPrieto Ramos, Fernando 2014b “Parameters for Problem-solving in Legal Translation: Implications for Legal Lexicography and Institutional Terminology Management.” In The Ashgate Handbook of Legal Translation, edited by Le Cheng, King Kui Sin & Anne Wagner, 121–134. Farnham, UK: Ashgate., 2020aPrieto Ramos, Fernando 2020a “Translating Legal Terminology and Phraseology: between Inter-systemic Incongruity and Multilingual Harmonization.” Perspectives Studies in Translatology 29(2):175–183. , 2020bPrieto Ramos, Fernando 2020b “Ensuring Consistency and Accuracy of Legal Terms.” In Institutional Translation and Interpreting: Assessing Practices and Managing for Quality, edited by Fernando Prieto Ramos, 2–23. New York: Routledge. ), legal translation beyond institutional contexts, or what Scott (2018)Scott, Juliette 2018 “An Online Survey as a Means to Research the ‘Outstitutional’ Legal Translation Market.” In Research Methods in Legal Translation and Interpreting Crossing Methodological Boundaries, edited by Łucja Biel, Jan Engberg, Vilelmini Sosoni and Rosario Marino Ruano, 166–178. London: Routledge refers to as outstitutional legal translation, has received less attention despite the fact that it represents a considerable amount of legal translation practice. Pym et al. (2012Pym, Anthony, François Grin, Claudio Sfreddo, and Andy L. J. Chan 2012 The Status of the Translation Profession in the European Union. Studies on Translation and Multilingualism 7. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union. http://​ec​.europa​.eu​/dgs​/translation​/publications​/studies​/translation​_profession​_en​.pdf, 88) calculated that approximately 75% of translators in their survey of certified translators in the EU worked as freelancers, and the growing externalization of translations in institutions could increase this figure even more.

Bowker (2020Bowker, Lynne 2020 “Terminology Management.” In The Bloomsbury Companion to Language Industry Studies, edited by Gary Massey, Maureen Ehrensberger-Dow and, Erik Angelone, 261–283. London: Bloomsbury. , 264) reminds us that terminology is an inevitable part of the translation process, where translators spend considerable time researching, selecting and deciding upon the most adequate solution for terms in each of their briefs. She describes an interesting Canadian study (Champagne 2004Champagne, Guy 2004 The Economic Value of Terminology: An Exploratory Study, Report Commissioned by the Translation Bureau of Canada. https://​www​.danterm​.dk​/docs​/EconomicValueTerminology​-1​.pdf, 30) which finds that experienced translators spend 20%-25% of their time on terminology tasks, whilst the figures for novice translators vary from 40% to 60%. This is worrying if, as Biel (2008Biel, Łucja 2008 “Legal Terminology in Translation Practice: Dictionaries, Googling or Discussion Forums?” SKASE Journal of Translation and Interpretation 3:22–28. http://​www​.skase​.sk​/Volumes​/JTI03​/pdf​_doc​/3​.pdf〉., 22) reminds us, “[m]ost translators work to tight deadlines under substantial time pressure and in reality have little time to carry out in-depth comparative-law analyses. It is vital for them to retrieve accurate equivalents as quickly as possible”. If this is the case, as I believe, it is evident that translator trainees will need to intertwine their instrumental and other competences to complete their translation tasks successfully to become efficient translators. The challenge is far beyond simply improving their search skills and ability to use terminological databases. As suggested by the EMT Competence Framework (2017, 8), the terminological problems encountered by trainees are enmeshed in and dependent on their ability to: “Evaluate the relevance and reliability of information sources with regard to translation needs” and “Acquire, develop and use thematic and domain-specific knowledge relevant to translation needs (mastering systems of concepts, methods of reasoning, presentation standards, terminology and phraseology, specialised sources etc.).”

Without a framework of criteria to make reasoned choices between the variety of terms they may find, trainees are condemned to constant uncertainty in their decision-making (Way 2014Way, Catherine 2014 “Structuring a Legal Translation Course: a Framework for Decision-making in Legal Translator Training.” In Ashgate Handbook of Legal Translation, edited by Le Cheng, King Kui Sen & Anne Wagner, 135–54. Farnham: Ashgate.) and hence to depleted self-efficacy beliefs (Haro-Soler 2018Haro-Soler, María del Mar 2018 “Self-confidence and its Role in Translator Training: The Students’ Perspective.” In. Innovation and Expansion in Translation Process Research, edited by Isabel Lacruz and Riitta Jääskeläinen, 131–160. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. ) in their ability to complete a given task. If trainees are expected to identify terms in context, disambiguate them, and select equivalent terms in the source and target languages and legal systems (Thelen 2012Thelen, Marcel 2012 The Structure of the Lexicon. Incorporating a Cognitive Approach in the TCM Lexicon, with Applications to Lexicography, Terminology and Translation. Ghent: Academia Press.), they will rely heavily on their communicative, research, thematic and cultural competences to do so. The methodology used in comparative law (Soriano-Barabino 2016Soriano-Barabino, Guadalupe 2016 Comparative Law for Legal Translators. Oxford: Peter Lang. ) is also a vital tool in their training.

The panorama for legal terminology translator trainers is, then, complex and diverse. One of the most challenging conundrums for them is accommodating the terminology theory often taught in terminology modules to the needs of the legal translator. A relevant objective is to guide trainees to the discovery of how terminology can best serve legal translators, whilst emphasising the importance of the how, the where, and the why of the implementation of good practices. In the following sections we will suggest tools to address the challenges described above both through activities and deliberate practice (Ericsson et al. 1993Ericsson, K. Anders, Ralf T. Krampe, and Clemens Tesch-Roemer 1993 “The Role of Deliberate Practice in the Acquisition of Expert Performance.” Psychological Review 100:363–406. ) which have been implemented successfully at the University of Granada over the last 33 years. We will highlight the importance of beginning by raising the trainees’ awareness of the ubiquity of the law and their understanding of legal language and how it is used in different contexts and for different receivers. We will also highlight the usefulness of dismantling trainees’ perceptions on the univocity of terminology, especially in legal terminology, by reconstructing a framework for comparative conceptual analysis (Klabal 2021Klabal, Ondrej. “Developing Legal Translation Competence: A Step-by-Step Approach.” PhD diss., University of Olomouc 2021 https://​theses​.cz​/id​/vo4bxs​/Klabal​_PhD​_FINAL​.pdf; Soriano-Barabino 2016Soriano-Barabino, Guadalupe 2016 Comparative Law for Legal Translators. Oxford: Peter Lang. , 15–17). We will describe how we can facilitate the steps necessary for achieving expertise and interiorising terminology management through deliberate practice.

3.Back to basics

The translator education or translator training dichotomy has been discussed in the literature (Way 2020Way, Catherine 2020 “Training and Pedagogical Implications.” In The Bloomsbury Companion to Language Industry Studies, edited by Gary Massey, Maureen Ehrensberger-Dow and Erik Angelone, 179–207. London: Bloomsbury. , 180–181), as academia is often torn between the higher education requirements of educating students to be complete citizens and the industry’s demands for highly trained specialized translators. Whilst controversial for some, we must agree with Mossop’s affirmation that students need to be grounded in the basics of TC which will provide them with the skills and criteria to quickly learn, as novice translators, the further skills they may need. Mossop’s view (2003Mossop, Brian 2003 “What Should Be Taught at Translation Schools?” In Innovation and E-learning in Translator Training, edited by Anthony Pym, Carmina Fallada, José Ramón Biau and Jill Orenstein, 20–22. Tarragona: Intercultural Studies Group., 20) that “If you can’t translate with pencil and paper, then you can’t translate with the latest information technology” often comes to mind when students try to use the latest databases or tools at their disposal, but constantly comment that they could not decide between possible choices of information or terms as they are unsure of which is the most adequate solution. This uncertainty in their decision-making is due to the lack of a framework grounded on sound ability in each of the TC subcompetences which provides them with the positive self-efficacy beliefs that will facilitate their successful completion of tasks (Way 2016Way, Catherine 2016 “The Challenges and Opportunities of Legal Translation and Translator Training in the 21st Century.” International Journal of Communication 10:1009–29. http://​ijoc​.org​/index​.php​/ijoc​/article​/view​/3580).

Stimulating the interaction between all the students’ TC subcompetences to develop their ability to identify and solve legal translation problems in the authentic, project-based, learner-centred, collaborative translation class as autonomous, lifelong learners is a formidable challenge. Approaches based on critical discourse analysis (Way 2014Way, Catherine 2014 “Structuring a Legal Translation Course: a Framework for Decision-making in Legal Translator Training.” In Ashgate Handbook of Legal Translation, edited by Le Cheng, King Kui Sen & Anne Wagner, 135–54. Farnham: Ashgate., 2016Way, Catherine 2016 “The Challenges and Opportunities of Legal Translation and Translator Training in the 21st Century.” International Journal of Communication 10:1009–29. http://​ijoc​.org​/index​.php​/ijoc​/article​/view​/3580), complexity theory, decision making, and problem-solving (Prieto Ramos 2014bPrieto Ramos, Fernando 2014b “Parameters for Problem-solving in Legal Translation: Implications for Legal Lexicography and Institutional Terminology Management.” In The Ashgate Handbook of Legal Translation, edited by Le Cheng, King Kui Sin & Anne Wagner, 121–134. Farnham, UK: Ashgate.; Way 2014Way, Catherine 2014 “Structuring a Legal Translation Course: a Framework for Decision-making in Legal Translator Training.” In Ashgate Handbook of Legal Translation, edited by Le Cheng, King Kui Sen & Anne Wagner, 135–54. Farnham: Ashgate.) have suggested solutions to these challenges. The overarching approach and the context for the following sections are designed to encourage trainees to integrate all their competences into their legal translator training, through a critical discourse analysis approach (Way 2003Way, Catherine 2003 “La traducción como acción social: el caso de los documentos académicos (español-inglés).” [Translation as Social Action: Academic Degrees (Spanish-English)]. PhD diss., Department of Translation and Interpreting, Universidad de Granada, Spain. http://​digibug​.ugr​.es​/bitstream​/10481​/4591​/1​/Tesis​.pdf, 2005Way, Catherine 2005 “Researching Professional Practice: An Insight into Translation Norms in Spain.” In Proceedings of the 4th Conference “Translation Norms in Translation: What Is Normal in the Translation Profession?” edited by Ian Kemble, 146–158. Portsmouth: University of Portsmouth., 2012) in conjunction with a decision-making approach (Way 2014Way, Catherine 2014 “Structuring a Legal Translation Course: a Framework for Decision-making in Legal Translator Training.” In Ashgate Handbook of Legal Translation, edited by Le Cheng, King Kui Sen & Anne Wagner, 135–54. Farnham: Ashgate.). This joint approach is grounded in a student-centered (Kiraly 1995Kiraly, Donald 1995 Pathways to Translation: Pedagogy and Process. Kent: Kent State University Press., 2000Kiraly, Donald 2000 A Social Constructivist Approach to Translator Education: Empowerment from Theory to Practice. Manchester: St. Jerome.), project management – based methodology that monitors each trainee’s individual translator competence development (Way 2008Way, Catherine 2008 “Systematic Assessment of Translator Competence: in Search of Achilles’ Heel.” In Translator and Interpreter Training: Issues, Methods and Debates, edited by John Kearns, 88–103. London: Continuum., 2009Way, Catherine 2009 “Bringing Professional Practices into Translation Classrooms.” In The Changing Face of Translation, edited by Ian Kemble, 131–42. Portsmouth: University of Portsmouth., 2017Way, Catherine 2017 “Teaching and Assessing Intercultural Competence: From Common Ground to Divergence.” In Transcultural Competence in Translation Pedagogy. Representation – Transformation. Translating across Cultures and Societies, edited by Julie Deconinck, Hélène Stengers, Arvi Sepp and Philippe Humblé, 157–180. Berlin: LIT Verlag., 2021Way, Catherine 2021 “Developing Manageable Individualised Formative Assessment of Translation Trainees through Rubrics.” Research in Language 19(2):135–154. ) whilst promoting self-regulated learning (Way 2019aWay, Catherine 2019a “Fostering Translator Competence: the Importance of Effective Feedback and Motivation for Translator Trainees.” Intralinea. Special Issue: New Insights into Translator Training. http://​www​.intralinea​.org​/specials​/article​/2430).

4.Legal terminology translator training

Translator trainees at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, are, by and large, young and therefore have little vital experience. They have not had time to marry, divorce, have a mortgage or be involved in court processes. Legal translation classes will often seem alien to their personal experiences which impedes significant learning (Way 2019bWay, Catherine 2019b “Beyond the Classroom: Transformative Educational Experiences through Intra-University Projects.” In Towards Authentic Experiential Learning in Translator Education, 2nd ed., edited by Don Kiraly and Gary Massey, 39–58. Cambridge: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.) as we filter the information we receive according to its relevance to our lives. They are also digital natives immersed in the visual era of cinema, TV series, and videogames. Motivating them (Way 2019aWay, Catherine 2019a “Fostering Translator Competence: the Importance of Effective Feedback and Motivation for Translator Trainees.” Intralinea. Special Issue: New Insights into Translator Training. http://​www​.intralinea​.org​/specials​/article​/2430) to become inspired by legal translation and terminology is not always easy. We can, however, design activities to arouse their interest and immerse them gradually into the intricacies involved in the tasks they will face. An overarching principle is that trainees understand that each legal professional group has its own characteristics, language and culture.

Trainees also need to understand that these legal professional groups each have their own cultural and experiential frameworks which influence their comprehension of not only their own legal system, but also other legal systems and terminology. As they are all familiar with the idea of avatars, we suggest that they imagine that they need an avatar for each of the legal professional groups. In each particular case, trainees will have to learn about each legal professional group’s practices, culture, language and shared knowledge, which are forged by their own history and which influence the way in which citizens perceive their sociocultural framework and the workings or the world which surrounds them. This, apparently, seems to be easy for them to assimilate as long as they are motivated, which is key to their success in understanding how the law permeates all levels of society.

The activities and deliberate practices outlined below have not only been tried and tested in the Spanish-English language combination at the University of Granada, but also in others (Klabal 2021Klabal, Ondrej. “Developing Legal Translation Competence: A Step-by-Step Approach.” PhD diss., University of Olomouc 2021 https://​theses​.cz​/id​/vo4bxs​/Klabal​_PhD​_FINAL​.pdf) and can be used in the classroom or as extracurricular activities adapted to other languages, legal systems and cultures.

4.1The activities-based approach

4.1.1Awareness of the ubiquitous nature of the Law, legal language and legal terminology

Raising trainees’ awareness about the ubiquitous nature of law can be achieved by either presenting them with, or asking them (in groups) to find, examples of songs, literature films, television series or video/online games which touch upon legal matters. In our approach, in introductory legal translation courses the materials are initially provided. In more advanced courses the trainees can be asked to search for the materials themselves. Most of them are usually familiar with at least some of these genres.

Songs

Trainees are often surprised to discover that legal language can be found in music. These songs can be used to analyse and discuss the appropriate or inappropriate use of legal terminology or phraseology (El abogado – The lawyer by Martin Tremolada or a relatively recent song by the Spanish singer Melendi titled El informe del forense55.Melendi’s song El informe del forense was included in his debut album Sin noticias de Holanda in 2003: https://​www​.youtube​.com​/watch​?v​=Oog9​-7iyIE0.  – The forensic report). Whilst the first example uses legal terminology correctly, the second certainly does not. In more advanced classes, the importance of legal and administrative language and terminology can be analysed in Joan Manuel Serrat’s song A quien corresponda66. A quien corresponda is found in Joan Manuel Serrat’s 1981 album En tránsito: https://​www​.youtube​.com​/watch​?v​=oFF​_NAIw69g. Lyrics: https://​www​.google​.com​/search​​?q​​=serrat​​​+a​+quien​+corres​ponda​​+letra​​&sxsrf​​​=ALeK​k​03gk​e​Kt2​l6​​Os​O8A​​M​wmM​​u​sjhw​​​GRdHg​​​%3A16​​​21243​​​185199​​​&ei​​​​=MTWi​YO​DZ​C6HB​8gLI5​5jwDQ​​&oq​​​=Serrat​​+a​​+quien​​+corres​ponds​&gs​​_lcp​​​​=Cgdn​d3Mt​d2l6​EAEY​AjIK​CCMQ​sAIQ​sAMQ​JzIK​CCMQ​sAIQ​sAMQ​JzIH​CAAQ​sAMQD​TILCA​AQsAM​QDRAF​EB4yC​wgAEL​AD​EA​0Q​​BRAeUA​BYAGDl​​MWgC​cAB4​AIAB​lgKI​AZYC​kgED​Mi0x​mAEA​qgEH​Z3dzL​Xdpe​sgBB​cABAQ​&sclient​​=gws​​-wiz.  – To whom it may concern, which simulates the typical macrostructure and legal/administrative language and terminology of a form commonly used in Spain for a variety of legal procedures. Once discussed in Spanish we can progress to songs in English, as found in the Top Ten Law Song List77.The top ten law song list: http://​www​.slaw​.ca​/2008​/06​/24​/top​-ten​-law​-song​-list/

The lively debates which ensue can also be extended to legal matters in the press and the fact that journalists also misuse legal terminology frequently. Detecting the legal terminology, including recognising multi-word terms or hybrid terms (Arturo 2021; Kjær 2007Kjær, Anne Lise 2007 “Phrasemes in Legal Texts.” In Phraseology. An International Handbook of Contemporary Research, Vol. 2, edited by Harald Burger, Dmitrij Dobrovol’skij, Peter Kühn and Neal R. Norrick, 506–515. Berlin: De Gruyter.), and the first guided searches will initiate their contact with dealing with legal terminology and help them to understand the differences with scientific or technical terminology.

Literature

As an introductory exercise the famous poem T’was the Night before Christmas88.This poem has been attributed to both Clement Clarke Moore and Henry Livingston Jr., although it was first published in 1823 in the Troy Sentinel newspaper in upstate New York. is used in conjunction with a lawyer’s version of the poem99.Both versions are available at: https://​abovethelaw​.com​/2020​/12​/night​-before​-christmas​-2020​-legal​-edition/. to demonstrate how the law reflects social realities in a more complex way. This legal version is believed to be anonymous according to The Wall Street Journal.1010.Wall Street Journal: https://​www​.wsj​.com​/articles​/BL​-LB​-50194 The opening few lines exemplify this:

‘Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse; The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;

Whereas, on or about the night prior to Christmas, there did occur at a certain improved piece of real property (hereinafter “the House”) a general lack of stirring by all creatures therein, including, but not limited to a mouse.

The poem and its alternative version offer a whole range of terminological gems to be analysed and discussed, including the possibility of the use of plain language in legal texts.

Literature offers us a boundless choice of plays and novels with legal terminology from the classic The Merchant of Venice by Shakespeare to much more recent examples of fiction such as El Bufete /The Law Firm by Borja Martínez–Echevarría (2012)Martínez–Echevarría, Borja 2012 El bufete. Madrid: Ediciones Martínez Roca. or several novels by Vicente Garrido such as his 2012 work Crímenes Exquisitos/Exquisite Crimes. If English is one of the trainees’ languages the vast range of bestselling authors, whose work has probably been translated into their mother tongue, offers us the opportunity to compare the translated version with the original work. This allows us to introduce the criteria for selection of the most appropriate term considering the translation brief, the target culture and the target reader.

An excellent exercise is to ask then to extract terms concerning the legal professions, the courts, or specific legal concepts from, for example: The Runaway Jury, The Pelican Brief, The Litigators and The Summons by John Grisham or The Lincoln Lawyer and The Reversal by Michael Connolly and then to consider their use in other translation briefs or contexts.

Cinema and television

Trainees are quite likely to be aware of films and television series where the law is easily found. We can use subtitled and dubbed versions (in our case in English and Spanish) and, for example, discuss ‘custody’ in the context of the United States in the film Kramer vs. Kramer. The differences between the adversarial and the inquisitorial system will provoke interesting debates on the use of language and terminology in classic films such as To Kill a Mockingbird from 1962,1111.Available at https://​www​.youtube​.com​/watch​?v​=-x6njs​-cGUE. or in more recent films such as Erin Brokovitch or The Lincoln Lawyer.1212.See: Top 5 courtroom dramas: https://​www​.youtube​.com​/watch​?v​=gXwgDAqwO​_s; Ten top movie lawyers: https://​www​.youtube​.com​/watch​?v​=a​-QkZ4LXRHE o Top ten courtroom movies https://​www​.youtube​.com​/watch​?v​=6rfcTMXwepE. We can use excerpts from the original films and their translated versions to discuss the terminological elements which are of most interest.1313.See http://​www​.esquire​.com​/entertainment​/movies​/news​/a48135​/best​-courtroom​-movie​-tv​-scenes/.

Many countries have their own legal television series. Spain, for example, has Turno de Oficio, Anillos de Oro or Al Filo de la Ley, and series in English abound (Ally McBeal, L.A. Law or Silk by the BBC). These series are especially valuable as materials to discuss procedural terminology and the legal professions. The series even offer us research material, as shown by Robson et al. (2014)Robson, Peter, Guy Osborn, and Steve Greenfield 2014 “The Impact of Film and Television on Perceptions of Law and Justice: Towards a Realisable Methodology.” In Law, Culture and Visual Studies, edited by Anne Wagner and Richard Sherwin. 1011–1028. New York: Springer. in their chapter The Impact of Film and Television on Perceptions of Law and Justice: Towards a Realisable Methodology, which describes the effect of the series CSI on jurors’ expectations of expert witnesses’ testimony in the United States.

Videogames

Many trainees are videogame fans and may already be familiar with games such as Ace Attorney Investigations or Sherlock Holmes: Crímenes y Castigos/Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments. These can be used to stimulate their interest for comparing legal systems whilst furthering their grasp of legal concepts and terminology in different contexts and for different audiences.

Art

Many aspects of everyday life and the Law have been reflected in art over the centuries. Arousing their curiosity about how the Law is reflected visually, we can appeal to their creativity and link two different aspects of their lives (their translation studies and their vital experience) which may have been compartmentalized previously. The excellent volume edited by Wagner and Sherwin (2014)Wagner, Anne and Richard K. Sherwin 2014 Law, Culture and Visual Studies. Dordrecht: Springer. presents a wide range of possibilities to broaden their horizons (iconography/photography/paintings) and is especially appealing to trainees who wish to combine audiovisual translation, audiodescription (in art museums for example) and legal translation.

Obviously, we need not use all these different possibilities, but we could select only some of them or allow trainees to work in groups on different activities depending on their personal interests, thereby exploiting their personal motivation.

4.1.2Deconstructing prior knowledge

The improbability of unequivocal relations between concepts in legal translation has led to considerable discussion in Legal Translation studies (LTS). Orozco-Jutorán and Sánchez-Gijón (2011Orozco-Jutorán, Mariana and Pilar Sánchez-Gijón 2011 “New Resources for Legal Translators.” Perspectives: Studies in Translatology 19(1):25–44. , 25) identified four problem areas for legal translation trainees:

1. Lack of knowledge of the terminology, register, collocations, or units of specialized meaning (USMs) used in the source text (ST) or that should be used in the target text if target text readers’ expectations are to be met.

2. Lack of knowledge of the characteristics of legal documents (both source and target texts). For example, the branch of law to which the document pertains (Tort law, case law, etc.); the genre of the text (macrostructure, format); and the function of the text (both legal and communicative).

3. Lack of knowledge concerning the agents involved in the translation setting. For example, specific individuals or entities that feature or are likely to feature in the legal context of the text in question, such as courts, officials, lawyers, second or third parties, statute law that might apply, etc.

4. Lack of knowledge of the possible legal consequences arising out of the target text translation.

The authors highlighted the complexity of legal terminology training. Prior to the implementation of our approach, we had used Šarćevič’s (1997Šarćevič, Susan 1997 New Approach to Legal Translation. The Hague: Kluwer Law International., 236–237) description of near equivalence, partial equivalence and non-equivalence of legal concepts and terms when introducing legal terminology. The challenge remained, however, in overcoming the many cases when equivalents are simply not readily available.

Klabal (2021Klabal, Ondrej. “Developing Legal Translation Competence: A Step-by-Step Approach.” PhD diss., University of Olomouc 2021 https://​theses​.cz​/id​/vo4bxs​/Klabal​_PhD​_FINAL​.pdf, 55–56) suggests the use of a tool used by comparative lawyers, comparative conceptual analysis (CCA), in order to help trainees to establish the degree of equivalence between the Source Language (SL) and Target Language (TL) concepts when they exist or when an equivalent cannot be found in the TL, it can also be used to analyse the SL concept before proposing a possible descriptive equivalent. Klabal (2021)Klabal, Ondrej. “Developing Legal Translation Competence: A Step-by-Step Approach.” PhD diss., University of Olomouc 2021 https://​theses​.cz​/id​/vo4bxs​/Klabal​_PhD​_FINAL​.pdf argues that the use of CCA will provide results similar to those suggested by Šarćevič (1997Šarćevič, Susan 1997 New Approach to Legal Translation. The Hague: Kluwer Law International., 236–237): the legal concept under study can be found in both legal systems; the legal concept can be found in one system but only partially in the other; the legal concept can be found in one system but not in the other. Trainees often present an overreliance on dictionaries, glossaries and databases from their prior terminological training. As a result, they are often devoid of strategies to tackle cases of partial or non-equivalence.

Additionally, their overreliance on general language dictionaries or glossaries means that for them marriage (EN), matrimonio (ES) or mariage (FR) will initially be considered totally equivalent concepts. To deconstruct this belief, they can be asked to find the conceptual content for each of these terms, not only in the three languages, but also in different systems using these languages. This will require researching marriage requirements, minimum age, heterosexual or same-sex marriage, legal effects of marriage, agents involved in the process, and the documents produced as a result. They will be surprised to find that even within the same country (e.g. England and Wales vs. Scotland or different US states) marriage may have considerable conceptual differences. The same exercise can be applied to divorce, adoption, or other such basic concepts.

Once we have shaken the foundations of their terminological beliefs we can begin to reconstruct their mindset by discussing the historical and cultural foundations which have shaped legal and administrative systems in their working languages.

4.2Suggested exercises

4.2.1Comparing law degrees

Trainees are invited to find the curricula for law degrees in, for example, Spain and the United Kingdom individually or in groups and to discuss their findings. They will quickly see considerable differences, which are the consequence of the different legal systems. Spain offers a general law degree structuring its core modules around the codes generally found in Roman law traditions. The UK offers two different possibilities: general law degrees and a wide variety of combined law degrees (with greater specialization at an earlier stage, e.g. Law and sport/Law and animals/Cinema, etc.) in England and Wales and a very different picture for Scotland, which is more akin to the Spanish model, i.e. based mainly on Scots law, derived from Roman law, although common law courses may also be found. Depending on the course level (introductory or advanced), besides introducing discussions about Scotland’s historical links to France and Roman law we can go further afield by introducing California and its Spanish influence, Canada or South Africa to discuss hybrid, bilingual and bilegal systems and how their legal terminology has evolved.

4.2.2Legal systems and translated sources

Students can be invited to search for information on the legal or judicial systems and legal professions for the countries and languages between which they will be translating on the EU’s European e-justice portal.1414. https://​e​-justice​.europa​.eu​/home​.do​?action​=home. Besides acquiring knowledge about the topics in two or more languages, the appropriateness of the translated terminology may also be discussed, considering the strategies applied and their pertinence for the target readers. An example from the European e-justice portal would be the reference to magistrates’ courts in England and Wales, which appears as órganos jurisdiccionales de los magistrados in Spanish. In Spain, magistrados are senior judges and not the lay judges we find in the magistrates’ courts. Moreover, this can stimulate a debate about the reliability of institutional translated web sites and help us to establish reliability criteria for sources.

5.A scaffolded decision-making approach to legal terminology training

As described in Way (2014)Way, Catherine 2014 “Structuring a Legal Translation Course: a Framework for Decision-making in Legal Translator Training.” In Ashgate Handbook of Legal Translation, edited by Le Cheng, King Kui Sen & Anne Wagner, 135–54. Farnham: Ashgate., scaffolding the difficulty of the legal terminology tackled in a course is crucial. Once we have motivated and reset the students’ mindsets it is easier to commence with a field which will be of some relevance to them. Easing trainees into legal translation gently is important if we do not wish to face them with an insurmountable task. We have found that Family Law is one of the best choices as many of the concepts and terms are at least vaguely familiar and, to some extent, part of their vital experience. Initial term comparisons as suggested above, on marriage, divorce or separation, for example, provide a solid basis from which to start.

Once we have laid the foundations described in the activities above, it is time to turn to translation proper and to integrate the development of terminological competence into the overarching task of developing translator competence.

5.1The deliberate practice approach

Translation courses have long included the translation task at their core as a repetitive activity (Pym 2011Pym, Anthony 2011 “Training Translators.” In The Oxford Handbook of Translation Studies, edited by Kirsten Malmkjær and Kevin Windle, 475–489. Oxford: Oxford University Press.). The effectivity of such a task, however, is dependent on the course being designed effectively (Way 2014Way, Catherine 2014 “Structuring a Legal Translation Course: a Framework for Decision-making in Legal Translator Training.” In Ashgate Handbook of Legal Translation, edited by Le Cheng, King Kui Sen & Anne Wagner, 135–54. Farnham: Ashgate.) and implemented within an authentic, project-based, learner-centred, collaborative translation classroom where trainees learn to plan, monitor, evaluate, and recognize their successful and failed processes by recognising task variables and monitoring their behaviour through self-reflection on their tasks and their outcomes, thereby leading to self-regulated learning. Task repetition alone, however, will not suffice. If deliberate practice, as Shreve (2006Shreve, Gregory M. 2006 “The Deliberate Practice: Translation and Expertise.” Journal of Translation Studies 9(1):27–42., 27–28) suggests, is “engagement in regular activities that are specially designed to improve performance” which can lead to expertise, then, we must comply with a series of conditions of deliberate practice for it to be effective:

1. There is a well-defined task

2. The task is of appropriate difficulty for the individual

3. There is informative feedback, and

4. There are opportunities for repetition and the correction of errors (Ericsson 1996Ericsson, K. Anders 1996 “The Acquisition of Expert Performance: An Introduction to Some of the Issues.” In The Road to Excellence: The Acquisition of Expert Performance in the Arts and Sciences, Sports and Games, edited by K. Anders Ericsson, 1–50. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.).

Systematization of project management (Way 2009), which breaks down the translation process into steps through role play and the rotation of roles (Project Manager, Researcher, Terminologist, Translator, Reviser, Editor), for a well-defined translation brief within a scaffolded course can facilitate the efficacy of deliberate practice. In a collaborative, student-centred classroom, task time control to monitor increasing efficiency, explicitation and discussion of difficulties and solutions, and follow-up and effective problem-solving strategies will allow trainees to identify the problems faced in each role. This also encourages them to analyse and classify each problem in order to determine the skills or tools necessary to solve the problem. This also allows alternative solutions to be discussed, when justifying their choice of solution, and, eventually, to evaluate the proposed solutions in conjunction with the rest of the class. Haro-Soler (2019)Haro-Soler, María del Mar 2019 “La colaboración entre futuros traductores: su impacto en las creencias de autoeficacia para traducir [Collaboration among Future Translators: Its Impact on Self-efficacy Beliefs when Translating].” Mutatis Mutandis Revista Latinoamericana de Traducción 12(2):330–356. finds that this system, when implemented correctly, increases trainees’ self-efficacy beliefs considerably, particularly when taking decisions and justifying their decision-making. It also allows individual monitoring of translator competence development and more effective feedback (Way 2019aWay, Catherine 2019a “Fostering Translator Competence: the Importance of Effective Feedback and Motivation for Translator Trainees.” Intralinea. Special Issue: New Insights into Translator Training. http://​www​.intralinea​.org​/specials​/article​/2430).

5.1.1Applying deliberate practice to terminology

Trainees can be asked to present their terminological research in various formats. In early stages of training it is vital that they learn firstly how to select terms (which they often initially confuse with single words), how to select pertinent specialized definitions from reliable sources and how to choose pertinent contexts in both languages for each translation brief. Justifying these decisions in class presentations allows them to verbalize, and thus reflect on and, as a consequence, interiorize good practices through the systematization of registering terms.

Problems which frequently arise in class discussions are how to refine their search skills to a specific language variety (of English for example) and to a specific legal system with simple tips such as the use of site:.uk or site:.california to be more time efficient.

After the awareness raising activities described above, the next major hurdle is the reliability of sources. Again, simply asking them if they have used primary or secondary sources, whether they have verified the date of the information (as legal terms and concepts may vary over time), who is the author/publisher of the information (some sources are more reliable than others or offer more information, such as contexts), the genre and register of the source (appropriate for the translation brief?) or whether it is a translated source.

These practices will facilitate systematization of search strategies and terminological consistency. In line with Thelen’s recommendations (2015Thelen, Marcel 2015 “The Interaction between Terminology and Translation or Where Terminology and Translation Meet.” trans-kom 8(2):347–381., 372), by starting from a definition, comparing definitions in both languages and then, verifying the term in the appropriate domain and genre specific context, trainees will improve both their ability to recognize terms as such and become aware of general language and domain-specific language differences. Applying a systematized terminological recording method to find appropriate translation solutions will also encourage trainees to build reliable terminological resources for different legal and administrative processes and briefs, thereby increasing their efficiency as translators.

Once these basic tenets have been assimilated, awareness of the complexity of legal terminology use in different translation genres and briefs for different readers with different registers may be highlighted by proposing the translation of a single text (for example a guide to marriage and women’s rights) commissioned with two very different briefs. On the one hand, a translation for the Spanish Ministry of Social Affairs for non-Spanish speaking immigrants which is embedded in the culture and legal and administrative situation in Spain and on the other hand for a Women’s Studies research group at a UK university who want to understand how information is presented to women in several EU countries. The second brief is quite difficult as it means reproducing the same tone, register and style (be it adequate or not) as the original text. This dual translation task has proved extremely effective in raising trainees’ awareness about the lack of univocity in legal terminology and the need for careful pre-translation analysis before searching for and selecting the appropriate terminology. Klabal (2021Klabal, Ondrej. “Developing Legal Translation Competence: A Step-by-Step Approach.” PhD diss., University of Olomouc 2021 https://​theses​.cz​/id​/vo4bxs​/Klabal​_PhD​_FINAL​.pdf, 66) suggests other similar exercises.

6.Assessing terminological work

In our approach, correcting trainees terminological work is normally done in the classroom through peer debate of their proposals which includes evaluating their definitions, contexts, solutions and the reliability of their resources. It is vital to attempt to elicit alternative solutions from trainees rather than simply indicate that a solution is wrong and directly give them the most appropriate solution without discussing how that solution can be found and why it may be more appropriate (Haro-Soler 2019Haro-Soler, María del Mar 2019 “La colaboración entre futuros traductores: su impacto en las creencias de autoeficacia para traducir [Collaboration among Future Translators: Its Impact on Self-efficacy Beliefs when Translating].” Mutatis Mutandis Revista Latinoamericana de Traducción 12(2):330–356. ).

Further to this, trainees are given individual rubrics (Way 2021Way, Catherine 2021 “Developing Manageable Individualised Formative Assessment of Translation Trainees through Rubrics.” Research in Language 19(2):135–154. ) for their project roles (in this case as the terminologist), which aims to reflect the results of their decision-making within the manageable combined assessment framework used (Way 2021Way, Catherine 2021 “Developing Manageable Individualised Formative Assessment of Translation Trainees through Rubrics.” Research in Language 19(2):135–154. ). The rubric discussed here, designed after analysis of the academic and professional literature available (Andrade 2000Andrade, Heidi 2000 “Using Rubrics to Promote Thinking and Learning.” Educational Leadership: Journal of the Department of Supervision and Curriculum Development 57(5):13–18.; ELIA 2016Elia 2016 Expectations and Concerns of the European Language Industry. EUATC European Union of Associations of Translation Companies. https://​ec​.europa​.eu​/info​/sites​/info​/files​/2016​_survey​_en​.pdf; Massey and Ehrenseberger-Dow 2010Massey, Gary and Maureen Ehrensberger-Dow 2010 “Investigating Demands on Language Professionals.” Bulletin suisse de linguistique appliquée 1:127–41.; Massey, Jud and Ehrenseberger-Dow 2015Massey, Gary, Peter Jud, and Maureen Ehrensberger-Dow 2015 “Building Competence and Bridges: the Potential of Action Research in Translator Education.” In Constructing Translation Competence, edited by Paulina Pietrzak and Mikolaj Deckert, 27–48. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang.; Orlando 2011Orlando, Marc 2011 “Evaluation of Translations in the Training of Professional Translators: at the Crossroads between Theoretical, Professional and Pedagogical Practices.” The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 5(2):293–308. , 2012Orlando, Marc 2012 “Training of Professional Translators in Australia: Process-oriented and Product-oriented Evaluation Approaches.” In Global Trends in Translator and Interpreter Training, edited by Severine Hubscher-Davidson and Michal Borodo, 197–216. London: Continuum.; TAUS 2017TAUS 2017 Quality Evaluation Using an Error Typology Approach. https://​info​.taus​.net​/taus​-error​-typology​-guidelines; Way 2015Way, Catherine 2015 “A Manageable Combined Assessment Approach: Competence and Decision-making.” Paper presented at the IATIS 5th International conference, Belo Horizonte, Brazil. https://​www​.research​gate​.net​/pub​lication​/3414​27342​_A​_Manage​able​_Combined​​_Assessment​​_Approach​​_competence​_and​_decision​​-making​​?_sg​​=pmR7D8​HeGM​Qzeh​JZGO​4LE​​_PUI​1rcc​ZG6q​Uk​​_hNc​2rxk​Rd​​-XLMS​TqKi​sOLG​h82​​_VRs​9xT4h​RwB​l1oI​3tQ​7Y7​PLpw​YSsbl​1kCK​2BZF​MtMS​​.tNG​fnCdg​DmI32​kIJ​​-n2YR​KoQCW​gFnWd9​bwxto​jKOEyK​GkPERt​iLtdne​FyQFp​EFfn3z​IduH4​XVn​NRa​​-Hbuw​aAvw), endeavours to balance the process-product, multiple subcompetences, error-mistake/success and academic-professional quality requirements. It hinges on the development of their TC, decision-making and complying with industry demands in an attempt to stimulate their ability to identify and solve terminological problems, whilst encouraging autonomous, self-regulated learning. The rubric (Annex 1) has been piloted at the University of Granada in the third and fourth-year undergraduate courses in specialized and advanced legal translation over the last three academic years.

The rubric identifies the trainee, their working group and the translation task being assessed. The definition of the scale appears on the left-hand side with the scale of 4 linked to the levels in the left-hand column of “professional/advanced/developing/ novice”, explained as can be seen below in Figure 1. In this way, as many trainees are in their final year and on the verge of joining the professional market, we avoid negative connotations and situate the trainees on their professional path towards expertise. Finally, the right-hand column for Support leads trainees to a variety of support materials available on a platform according to the level they require as marked in the rubric (Way 2021Way, Catherine 2021 “Developing Manageable Individualised Formative Assessment of Translation Trainees through Rubrics.” Research in Language 19(2):135–154. ). The rubric is also flexible. The 4 levels on the scoring scale can be applied differently depending on the difficulty of the ST or the terminological problems it contains. In the first text in a new field we may expect trainees to comply with just 50% or 75% of the required standards. In this case, 75% may merit level 4, whilst at a later stage in training in the same field we may require 100% to reach level 4.

Figure 2 provides the criteria for project initiation, including elements which trainees often simply do not identify or consider of little importance. Some of these criteria are also included in other role rubrics as we have found that trainees often see their project work as team work (individual unconnected steps) rather than as collaborative work which “entails not only the division of work in a specific task, but it requires its joint completion so that the team members can construct meanings together and can develop cultural and professional knowledge” (Huertas Barros 2011Huertas Barros, Elsa 2011 “Collaborative Learning in the Translation Classroom: Preliminary Survey Results.” The Journal of Specialised Translation 2:42–60., 44). The idea is to guide them through the translation process both individually and collectively so that they can interiorize the steps for future individual or collaborative projects.

Figure 3 outlines vital steps in task planning which are often overlooked by explicitly stating what is expected of them, trainees find it easier to comply with the expectations of their role.

The criteria in Figure 4 ensure that the trainees are aware of the expectations for their completed work. As the trainees each present their work by role in class presentations based on the completed Project Management Sheet (Way 2009), which they also upload with the whole project, they each discuss the challenges faced and the solutions they found for debate in the classroom. This allows all class members to participate by making suggestions or asking questions leading to vicarious and peer learning.

Task execution (Figure 5) reflects decision-making skills when searching for and selecting solutions as part of a team. Here, expectations are clearly outlined and discussion will debate the fulfilment of the task.

Finally, one of the most neglected areas of the terminologist’s role in a translation project has, in our experience, been the final stages of the process (Figure 6). This has been included in our approach as part of the relevant aspects which need to be addressed for effective training. Apparently simple steps, such as clearly labelling the files uploaded to the class platform, are explicitly required in the rubric and, therefore, become a part of the trainees’ standard practice. Participation in collaboratively resolving terminological problems for the translator is discussed and solutions are considered. This is high on trainees’ lists of priorities as they often consider that group work may reflect badly on some team members when others either do not complete their tasks or do so only partially.

The rubric promotes self-analysis of trainees’ strengths and weaknesses in their tasks, help them identify areas requiring improvement in the different tasks in the translation process, pinpointing where exactly they should pay more attention or spend time on self-improvement.

7.Conclusions

We have presented some of the possible steps necessary to dismantle trainees’ prior perceptions about terminology and reconstruct their mindset within an approach to terminology for legal translation purposes or legal “translation-oriented terminology” (Thelen 2015Thelen, Marcel 2015 “The Interaction between Terminology and Translation or Where Terminology and Translation Meet.” trans-kom 8(2):347–381., 352–357). The initial, vital steps of deconstructing prior terminology assumptions, to a certain extent, will lay the foundations for trainees to acquire a new approach which is tailored to their legal terminological tasks. This can be achieved, firstly, through an activities based approach highlighting the ubiquitous nature of the Law that introduces them to common difficulties that they will encounter, and immerses them in the different cultural, historical perceptions of the world as perceived by different legal/administrative systems and the legal professions which are reflected in the texts, as well as in the legal language they will have to tackle. This fundamental basis for deliberate practice helps to address terminological mismatches and avoids a feeling of helplessness and frustration with every task they face. Successful scaffolding of the texts selected for deliberate practice can be enhanced if the trainees are provided with a system, by which they can avoid the most common errors they are likely to commit at each stage of their training. This is vital, given that they are not legal experts and are not familiar with the complexity of the underlying importance of precision and appropriateness in a vast range of legal fields in every step of the terminological process they undertake for each translation brief. Underlining the importance of their decision-making process, grounded on a sound methodology, will ensure greater success in their endeavours, thereby increasing their self-efficacy beliefs and confidence in their work. Furthermore, assessing their terminological work through a prism that reflects both academic and professional requirements, as in the rubrics, allows us to measure the success of their decision-making during the process, thereby detecting areas for improvement, and also improves the appropriateness and quality of their final product. Learning to identify terminological problems in the pre-translation stage and assimilating effective processes enables students to progressively acquire the necessary skills to justify their decisions. In time, with deliberate practice, these processes are interiorized and become automatic to an extent, which reduces their uncertainty and decision-making load, their lack of confidence in their decision-making, to make them efficient, legal translators on the road to expertise.