EULITA: Aspects of Legal Interpreting and Translation

For some time now the EU Commission’s Directorate-General for Justice, Freedom and Security has felt the need to be able to consult a representative body of the legal interpreters and translators in the EU.

Other legal professionals such as public prosecutors, lawyers, judges and police officers all have their EU associations and can be heard on matters that are of interest or concern to them or the European Commission. The legal interpreters and translators, as yet, do not have such a representative platform in the EU.

It is for this reason that a consortium of academic and professional organisations have proposed the establishment of EULITA, an international non-profit European Legal
Interpreters and Translators Association. (JLS/2007/JPEN/249)

Among others, EULITA intends to strengthen and to represent the interests and concerns of the associations and their members vis-à-vis national, European and international organisations and institutions and to promote the establishment of national associations in member states where they do not yet exist. EULITA is further committed to promoting quality in legal interpreting and translation through the recognition of the professional status of legal interpreters and translators.

As good working relations with national or regional associations are obviously of prime importance and a raison d’être of EULITA, we would like to extend an invitation to representatives of all relevant associations to attend a conference in Antwerp (26-29 November 2009) where on the first day the aims and Articles of Association of EULITA will be presented and discussed, followed by the official launch of the association. Detailed information on EULITA and the conference can also be found on the web pages www.eulita.eu and www.lessius.eu/tt/nieuws/eulita/default.aspx.