Criminal Law Translation Services
Professional document translation for criminal defence matters, including police interviews, court evidence, expert reports, witness statements and defence documentation.
- Published criminal rate
- £109 per 1,000 source words
- Stated delivery options
- 48-hour standard and 24-hour urgent
- Included in the service
- Certification, formatting and digital delivery
Translation arranged around the evidence and case requirements
Criminal law matters can involve police material, prosecution evidence, defence documents, expert findings and records that must be understood accurately by the people working on the case.
Criminal law translation services can support solicitors reviewing evidence received in another language, preparing documents for proceedings or communicating essential case material to a defendant or witness who does not read English.
The translator must preserve the intended meaning of the source while handling legal, procedural, forensic and evidential terminology carefully. Names, dates, figures, paragraph references and exhibit labels should remain easy to cross-reference against the original material.
Provide the language direction, document purpose, court or case deadline, certification requirements and any terminology that requires particular attention when submitting the files.
Legal Aid Translation provides translation and interpreting services. It is not a law firm, does not represent defendants and cannot provide criminal law advice.
Documents that may require translation
The documents needed will depend on the alleged offence, stage of proceedings, evidence being relied upon and instructions issued by the legal representative or court.
- Police interview transcripts, including PACE interviews under caution
- Prosecution evidence bundles and exhibits
- Prosecution and defence witness statements
- Expert forensic reports covering DNA, fingerprints, digital evidence or toxicology
- Defence case statements and defence bundles
- Bad character evidence applications
- Hearsay evidence applications
- Bail applications and bail-condition documents
- Pre-sentence reports and probation documents
- Sentencing remarks and grounds of appeal
- Extradition proceeding documents
- Confiscation and proceeds-of-crime documents
Accuracy matters throughout a criminal case
A change in wording can affect how an interview answer, witness account or expert conclusion is understood. Terms such as “charged” and “convicted”, or “intent” and “recklessness”, are not interchangeable and must be handled in their proper context.
Police interviews require particular care because the structure may include the caution, questions and answers, legal-adviser interventions, timestamps, pauses and interview breaks. The translation should retain that structure where it is relevant to the evidential record.
Expert reports may also require specialist scientific, technical, medical or financial vocabulary. Tell the team what type of expert material is included when submitting the documents.
Checks before delivery
- Names, dates, figures and case references checked against the source
- Criminal law and procedural terminology handled consistently
- Interview structure, speaker labels and breaks retained where required
- Headings, paragraph numbers, exhibits and bundle references preserved
- Omissions, duplicated passages and formatting inconsistencies reviewed
- Unclear handwriting or source defects identified rather than guessed
- Certification and delivery requirements checked before completion
Large Crown Court bundle or urgent trial deadline?
Send the complete files, identify the sections that require translation and provide the court deadline before instruction. Large projects can then be reviewed for capacity, terminology planning and the most appropriate allocation of work.
Submit the bundle for reviewHow a criminal law translation request works
Complete case information helps the team review the scope, apply the relevant rate and establish whether the requested deadline is achievable.
-
Send the documents
Upload the files and provide the source language, target language, criminal matter, funding type and required deadline.
-
The scope is reviewed
The source-word count, document quality, formatting, language availability and delivery requirements are checked.
-
Translation and checking
The material is translated with attention to the relevant legal or specialist terminology and reviewed before delivery.
-
Certified delivery
The completed translation is supplied digitally in the agreed format with its certification documentation.
Criminal law translation rates
Criminal document translation is calculated using the number of words in the original document and the rate applicable to the funded matter.
The published criminal rate is £109 per 1,000 source words, equivalent to 10.9 pence per source word. The site states that certification, source-document formatting and digital delivery are included in the rate.
Submit the complete files or all relevant pages so that the source-word count and scope can be checked before the instruction proceeds.
Recoverability and prior-authority requirements can depend on the case, total cost and Legal Aid Agency rules applying to the instruction. The instructing legal professional should confirm the relevant funding position before work begins.
What to provide with your request
- The complete documents or selected pages requiring translation
- The original language and required target language
- The type and current stage of the criminal proceedings
- The required delivery date and any police, court or trial deadline
- The funding arrangement and billing requirements
- Any certification wording or receiving-body instructions
- Formatting, page-numbering, timestamp or exhibit requirements
- Confirmed spellings for names, places and specialist terminology
Criminal legal professionals and case teams
- Criminal defence solicitors
- Barristers and barristers’ chambers
- Legal aid providers
- Caseworkers and litigation teams
- Professionals preparing Crown Court or Magistrates’ Court material
- Teams handling extradition, confiscation or appeal documentation
Support for connected matters
Criminal law translation FAQs
Provide the case-specific requirements with the documents so that the appropriate translation, certification and delivery arrangements can be reviewed.
What documents can be translated for a criminal case?
Documents may include PACE interview transcripts, prosecution evidence, witness statements, defence case statements, forensic reports, bail documents, pre-sentence reports, sentencing remarks, appeal material, extradition records and proceeds-of-crime documentation.
What is the published criminal law translation rate?
The published rate is £109 per 1,000 source words, equivalent to 10.9 pence per source word. The final cost is calculated from the original document’s word count.
How quickly can a criminal law translation be delivered?
The website lists a standard 48-hour service and an urgent 24-hour service. Availability depends on the language, document length, complexity, source quality, formatting and translator capacity. Submit any fixed court or trial deadline with the files.
Will the completed translation be certified?
The service includes certification with the completed digital translation. Provide any specific certification wording, format or receiving-body requirements before the instruction proceeds.
Can police interview formatting and speaker labels be retained?
Interview structure can be retained where required, including speaker labels, questions and answers, breaks, timestamps and legal-adviser interventions. State any specific formatting requirements when submitting the transcript.
Can a large prosecution or defence bundle be translated?
Large bundles can be reviewed before instruction. Send the complete files, identify the pages that require translation and provide the deadline so that capacity, terminology management and delivery planning can be assessed.
What happens if part of the evidence is unclear or handwritten?
Identify unclear sections when sending the files and provide a clearer copy where one is available. A translator should not guess illegible wording or add information that cannot be supported by the source document.
Does Legal Aid Translation provide criminal law advice?
No. Legal Aid Translation is a language-services provider rather than a law firm. Advice about legal aid, evidence, procedure, representation or the documents required for a case should come from an appropriately qualified legal professional.
Send the criminal case requirements
Provide the documents, language pair, funding type, certification requirements and deadline so that the scope, price and achievable delivery time can be reviewed.