A grammatical blunder may force Rogers Communications Inc. to pay an extra $2.13-million after the placement of a comma in a contract permitted the deal's cancellation
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| | Arianne Farah 
Канада
Local time: 13:28
Член ProZ.com c 2008
английский => французский
| Oft-quoted in translation circles | Aug 9, 2011 |
They actually went to the French translation/version of the contract which contained no such ambiguity and even though the translation didn't have weight of law it was used to interpret the English co... See more They actually went to the French translation/version of the contract which contained no such ambiguity and even though the translation didn't have weight of law it was used to interpret the English contract since both parties had accepted it. http://www.line-man.com/forums/index.php?/topic/12970-telecom-rogers-comma-victory-found-in-translation/
[Edited at 2011-08-09 02:50 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Still ambiguous without the comma | Aug 9, 2011 |
In the English version, I indeed read that the contract can be cancelled at any time with an advance notice of one year. However, removing the comma does not entirely remove the ambiguity, not even in the French wording, if you ask me. A wording that would prevent ambiguity completely would be something like:
"Subject to the termination provisions of this Agreement, this Agreement shall be effective from the date it is made and shall continue in force for a period of five (5) years ... See more In the English version, I indeed read that the contract can be cancelled at any time with an advance notice of one year. However, removing the comma does not entirely remove the ambiguity, not even in the French wording, if you ask me. A wording that would prevent ambiguity completely would be something like:
"Subject to the termination provisions of this Agreement, this Agreement shall be effective from the date it is made and shall continue in force for a period of five (5) years from the date it is made, and may thereafter be renewed for successive five (5) year terms[,] unless said renewal period is cancelled with one year prior notice in writing by either party." ▲ Collapse
| | | | Phil Hand
Китай
Local time: 01:28
китайский => английский
| Don't blame translators for bad lawyering | Aug 9, 2011 |
Whenever I translate a contract, I send a disclaimer with it, saying that I'm not a lawyer, and I make no claim that this contract will have the legal effect the client wants it to have if examined in court. I assume most agencies do the same. But these were most likely translated in-house by lawyers themselves. And if they mess up the legal drafting, there's no-one else to blame.
| | | | Allison Wright (X)
Португалия
Local time: 18:28
| I am confused | Aug 10, 2011 |
I am confused because although I have read all the links provided above I cannot work out whether the contract was signed in French or English, or both. I am also confused because I do not know much about Canadian law. I did think, however, that such contracts would include a clause which would specify which contract (either the French version or the English version) would have full force and effect in the event of a dispute. Please can someone enlighten me.
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Neil Coffey
Великобритания
Local time: 18:28
французский => английский
+ ...
Givn that the English and French say slightly different things, I can see the French contract having weight as evidence IF the translator had consulted the drafters to check the intention and they had clarified this. What I then don't quite understand is why at that point the drafters didn't think "oh, that's a good point, we should remove that comma"...
On the other hand, if the translator didn't consult them and was just guessing, I don't understand why their guess has any special... See more Givn that the English and French say slightly different things, I can see the French contract having weight as evidence IF the translator had consulted the drafters to check the intention and they had clarified this. What I then don't quite understand is why at that point the drafters didn't think "oh, that's a good point, we should remove that comma"...
On the other hand, if the translator didn't consult them and was just guessing, I don't understand why their guess has any special status as evidence.
[Edited at 2011-08-10 19:53 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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