Translation is not a dying profession. But a certain version of it is. For years, the industry operated on a quiet assumption: that language itself was the product. That the mere transfer of words from one linguistic system into another constituted value. Today, artificial intelligence has exposed the fragility of that assumption with uncomfortable clarity. Machines translate words astonishingly well. They do not, however, interpret legal intent. They do not recognise institu

Not all legal misunderstandings arise from poor translation. Some arise from the far more dangerous assumption that legal systems themselves are universally compatible — that a concept existing in one jurisdiction can simply be transferred into another through linguistic substitution. In reality, legal translation is often less about finding equivalent words and more about confronting the absence of equivalence altogether. This is where many otherwise excellent translations q

Most people assume legal language exists merely to communicate rules. In reality, it does far more than that. Legal language shapes perception, authority, behaviour and emotional response. It determines how individuals understand institutions, how power is exercised and how legitimacy is maintained. A legal document is never only informational. It is also psychological. This becomes immediately visible the moment ordinary language enters a legal environment. Words that appear