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Aipedia: Translators and interpreters
Machine translation can speed up legal translation, but one wrong modal verb or defined term can change a party's rights, and the translator is usually responsible for catching it. Law firm clients rely heavily on the text and are well placed to claim.
Part of: AI in Translators and interpreters
In short
Translators use MT and generative AI to draft contracts, pleadings, witness statements and disclosure documents. Legal language is precise and jurisdiction-specific, and engines often smooth over distinctions such as "shall" and "may", or translate legal concepts with false equivalents. Law firm clients usually need the translator to act as a data processor and protect privileged material, which public AI tools may put at risk. CIOL says precision and accountability remain essential in legal and contractual translation. Translators' PI usually responds to claims for negligent legal translation, subject to the wording and any liability caps agreed with the law firm.
Legal work comes in large volumes and short deadlines, especially disclosure in international disputes. Translators and agencies use MT to produce first drafts of contracts, correspondence and evidence, use a generative AI chatbot to explain unfamiliar terms, and use AI quality checks for consistency. Law firms sometimes run machine translation themselves to sift documents and then send selected items for human translation or certification.
Solicitors have their own duties when they use AI translation; see AI translation of legal documents for solicitors. Patent work has its own issues, covered in AI in patent translation.
The translator owes the law firm or business client reasonable care and skill under section 13 of the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982. CIOL's 2025 Translators Day speech names legal and contractual translation as areas where precision and accountability remain essential and says AI is not accountable for its output.
A translator working for a law firm usually acts as a data processor and needs Article 28 terms under UK GDPR. Legal translation can also carry privileged material. Putting it into a public AI tool may disclose it to a third party, which is a confidentiality issue for the law firm as well as a data protection issue. The ICO's guidance on AI applies to tools that process personal data.
Illustrative scenario: a translator uses MT for a long distribution agreement and post-edits it under time pressure. In a termination clause, the engine turned a notice period expressed in business days into calendar days, and a reference to a defined term was translated with an ordinary word. The client serves notice based on the translation, the counterparty says notice was invalid, and the client faces a costly dispute. The law firm claims against the translator.
Typical errors in machine-assisted legal translation include:
Our article on legal translation accuracy claims looks at how these disputes arise.
A claim that a negligent translation caused a client loss is usually within the scope of translators' PI, subject to the wording. Legal work can produce large claims, so the limit of indemnity matters. Law firm terms of engagement sometimes ask translators to accept unlimited liability or indemnities; liability you would not otherwise have may not be covered. A data or privilege breach may be handled partly under PI and partly under cyber cover, depending on the policies. Telling your insurer that you do legal translation, and roughly how much, helps avoid disputes about the business description.
For legal and contract work, these controls are worth building into every job:
Apex arranges PI for legal translators and agencies. A broker checks your limit against the legal work you do, and whether law firm contract terms and AI-assisted workflows fit your policy. See also AI and certified translations and the AI in translation and interpreting hub.
No binding rule prevents it, but the client relies on the meaning of every clause. Agree tool use with the client, keep confidential material out of public tools, and revise the output as carefully as a human draft, paying particular attention to obligations, defined terms and time periods.
You may have disclosed confidential or privileged material to a third party, which could breach your contract, any NDA and data protection law, and could cause the law firm problems with its own client. Tell the client promptly and notify your insurers under the policy conditions.
Often not in full. PI usually covers your legal liability for negligence, and many wordings exclude liability you have taken on by contract beyond what you would otherwise owe. Check indemnity and liability clauses with your broker before signing.
Tell us about your firm and the work you do. A broker will review how your current PI treats AI-assisted work, or arrange new cover. No fee for a quote. Or call 0117 325 0027.
Start a PI quote Request a callbackApex Insurance Brokers Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered in England and Wales, company number 07014570. This page is general information about how AI is used in the profession and how insurance may respond. It is not legal, regulatory or insurance advice on your circumstances, and it does not guarantee that cover will be available or on what terms.
