Translator or Interpreter: What’s the Difference?

Ever wonder what the difference is? Think they were the one and the same? What’s the difference? The Supreme Court’s ruling of May 21, 2012, in Taniguchi v. Kan Pacific Saipan, Ltd., differentiated between the two by indicating that a translator is someone who works with written communication, while an interpreter works with oral conversation.

That ruling resulted from a case brought by professional baseball player Kouichi Taniguchi, who fell through a wooden deck in the Marianas Resort and Spa in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Kan Pacific obtained summary judgment in its favor and subsequently asked for reimbursement of its expenses related to translation of written documents into Japanese, which exceeded $5,000, and cited Title 28 U.S.C. §1920(6). The Supreme Court held that that statute applied strictly to interpreter fees, not translator fees, and relied upon several dictionaries for each definition, including the 1978 Oxford English Dictionary, for clarity.

Planet Depos understands that while interpreting and translating are closely related professions, the differences between the skills, training and knowledge base of the two is what separates them. As Language Scientific points out, “the most important mark of a good translator is to be able to write well in the target language,” while an interpreter “has to be able to translate in both directions.” Engaging a realtime court reporter for proceedings that require an interpreter helps alleviate misinterpretation of what a witness is saying, because the interpreter has access to the realtime feed and no longer has to rely solely on his or her memory of what was said. At Planet Depos, a laptop computer with realtime software is provided for the interpreter at no extra charge.

World Services lists mishearing what someone is saying as the fourth most frequent interpreter mistake; however, when coupled with an interactive realtime feed, errors in interpretation – and in extreme cases, those which have resulted in a mistrial — can be alleviated altogether.

When arranging for an interpreter, you will want to provide the agency that will be contracting the interpreter with not only the date, location, time, and language, but also the subject matter so that the agency will be able to match the interpreter to your specific needs. Lastly, when scheduling the interpreter for your matter, be aware that the duration of the proceeding is likely to be significantly longer when taking into consideration the additional time necessary for the actual interpretation of the testimony.