Professional Legal Translation You Can Trust

Legal translation is not just about converting words from one language to another—it’s about accuracy, clarity, and legal precision. Every contract, court document, or compliance file carries serious implications, and even a small error can create misunderstandings, delay processes, or pose legal risks. That’s why professional translation matters.

Low-cost translation typically relies on:

  • Machine translation with minimal editing
  • Non-specialized translators
  • Little to no quality control

Our rates reflect the level of responsibility involved in translating legal documents, including contracts, court filings, compliance materials, and corporate documentation.

Each legal translation includes:

* Human translation by a qualified legal translator

* Careful handling of legal terminology and jurisdiction-specific language

* Consistency checks across clauses and reference

* Quality review to ensure clarity and legal accuracy

Even for documents such as birth, marriage, or death certificates, where the language may be standard, attention to presentation and official recognition is critical.

Because, it isn’t just a translation; it’s an official document accepted by authorities.

Update on ATA Farsi Certification: A Milestone for Farsi–English Translation

As 2025 comes to a close, an important milestone has been reached within the translation profession: the American Translators Association (ATA) has formally recognized the Persian–English (Farsi-English) language pair. This recognition opens the door for an ATA certification exam for Persian–English for the first time.

For the Farsi-speaking community and for the many institutions, attorneys, courts, and individuals who depend on high-quality Persian–English translations in the United States, this is a meaningful step forward.

A Long Road, Now Open
The path to this recognition was neither short nor simple. Like many initiatives that seek to formalize professional standards, it required sustained effort, coordination, and persistence. While challenges arose along the way, the most important outcome is that the goal has now been reached: a clear pathway toward ATA certification for this language pair.

Looking ahead to the first Persian–English ATA certification exam, translators and stakeholders alike can anticipate broader access to qualified, credentialed professionals and a continued emphasis on quality.

What’s in a Name?
As part of this process, the ATA adopted the designation “Persian–English” rather than “Farsi–English,” reflecting the preference of the group that ultimately advanced the recognition effort. This brings us back to a familiar and frequently discussed question: What’s in a name?

Whether one uses the term Farsi or Persian, the language itself remains the same. What matters most is not the label, but the outcome—ensuring that the Farsi-speaking community and all related stakeholders have access to accurate, reliable, and professional translation services.

Looking Ahead
For those interested in learning more about ATA certification and future exam offerings, the ATA remains the best source for current and official information.

As this initiative moves forward under new leadership and continued community involvement, we recognize and appreciate the support that helped bring it to this point. Collective effort and shared commitment made it possible to overcome early obstacles and reach key milestones.

This moment marks not an end, but a foundation—one that supports higher standards and greater recognition for Persian–English translation in the years to come.

A Tribute To Sa’di Shirazi

Today I came across this beautiful poem from Sa’adi Shirazi.

بنی آدم اعضای یکدیگرند
که در آفرينش ز یک گوهرند
چو عضوى به درد آورد روزگار
دگر عضوها را نماند قرار
تو کز محنت دیگران بی غمی
نشاید که نامت نهند آدمی
banī ādam a’zā-ye yekdīgar-and
ke dar āfarīn-aš ze yek gowhar-and
čo ‘ozvī be dard āvarad rūzgār
degar ‘ozvhā-rā na-mānad qarār
to k-az mehnat-ē dīgarān bīqam-ī
na-šāyad ke nām-at nahand ādamī

As it happens, April 21, is the great poet’s birthday and is registered in the Iranian calendar as Sa’adi’s commemoration day. It is interesting to note that a Persian rug presented to the United Nations in 2005 and currently on display at the entrance of the Hall of Nations at the UN Headquarters in New York, has an inscription of this poem.

There are many translations but below are two that capture the true meaning of this poem.

This is a verse translation by Ali Salami:

Human beings are limbs of one body indeed;
For, they’re created of the same soul and seed.
When one limb is afflicted with pain,
Other limbs will feel the bane.
He who has no sympathy for human suffering,
Is not worthy of being called a human being.

And by Richard Jeffrey Newman:

All men and women are to each other
the limbs of a single body, each of us drawn
from life’s shimmering essence, God’s perfect pearl;
and when this life we share wounds one of us,
all share the hurt as if it were our own.
You, who will not feel another’s pain,
you forfeit the right to be called human.

For more information about the translation and interpretation services offered by the Farsi
Translation Center, click here.

Google Translate: Friend or Foe?

Recently I put a Farsi-language ad in a Facebook group that said:

If anyone needs any type of translation to and from Farsi, Please contact us at (212) 304- 4400. With over 25 years of experience in translation we have produced books, articles, and document translations to individuals and professionals all over the world. For a list of our services visit https://farsitranslationcenter.com/services/

Email: info@farsitranslationcenter.com

Website: https://farsitranslationcenter.com

Member of the American Translators Association (ATA)

Within 24 hours, somebody wrote a comment saying, “OR, you can use Google Translate, which is free.” Continue reading

Scam Alert: Fraudsters Target Interpreters and Clients

Perpetrators of business fraud are getting more sophisticated everyday, and the translating and interpreting field is no exception. All the familiar scams involving everything from impersonated or “spoof” email accounts to “overpayments” with counterfeit checks are present in this industry. As problematic as schemes like that are, today I want to talk about a different kind of business fraud: CV or resume theft. Continue reading

The Human Cost of Bad Translation

My mother is not fluent in English and this fact counted heavily against her on a call to an insurance company recently.

The call was about an important question relating to my mother’s account, so I joined her to make the call. The person on the other end of the phone said they had to verify my mother’s identity, and so they needed her to speak, not me, her daughter. The operator asked what language my mother speaks, and put us on hold while they found a Farsi interpreter.

Continue reading

The Importance of ATA Certification

The American Translators Association (ATA), a well known international organization, offers a translator certification—a distinction that puts all translators, regardless of work status, in a better position to market themselves. For Farsi translators and interpreters in particular, the ATA certification is more than just a suffix.

I am very passionate about the mission of the organization and the importance of these certifications for the following reasons:

  1. It distinguishes those who are qualified to translate from those who are not; and
  2. An increase in Farsi translators will support the Farsi-English pairing. As of now, this pair has not been established at ATA, and the ATA is not recognizing Farsi as a language.

Continue reading

Invitation to Cooperate With the American Translators Association (ATA) to Formally Establish a Language Combination In Farsi To And From English

Dear Farsi Translators and Colleagues: Respectfully, the translation of Farsi to and from English in the United-States has become questionable. Due to a lack of employment, many young individuals who are familiar with the language but do not possess adequate knowledge and skills to translate, have entered the profession. As you know, the quality of the translations and interpretations produced by these non-qualified translators would disdain one of the most important canons of the ATA Code of Ethics, that is “to convey meaning between people and cultures faithfully, accurately, and impartially”. I suggest that, if you are seriously considering working as a translator or interpreter of Farsi, please cooperate with the Farsi Translation Center’s workgroup to establish a language pair at the American Translators Association (ATA). This will allow us to advocate for high quality Farsi translations and interpretations, to safeguard the Persian language, and to join the rest of the world who have already established and made their languages known by the ATA. Better yet, as ATA certification is the only widely recognized measure of competence in translation in the United-States, being certified can open doors to new business and higher compensations for us, Farsi translators and interpreters. If you have any suggestions or comments please contact me using the following email address: info@farsitranslationcenter.com