Comments On The Two English Versions Of The Special Maritime Procedure Law Of The People's Republic Of China

Special Maritime Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China was adopted at the 13th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Ninth National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on 25th December 1999, and came into force as of 1st, July, 2000. The enactment of the Law has met the actual needs of Chinese maritime judicial practice and accorded with international maritime handling principles and rules. It is very significant in promoting the development of maritime shipping and foreign trade, strengthening the reform and opening, protecting national interests, and embodying the status of China as a big ocean state.In December, 2000, the People's Communication Publishing House published the English version of Special Maritime Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China, translated by the Fourth Civil Division of the Supreme People's Court of the P.R.C. (hereinafter referred to as vl). In January, 2003, the China Legal Publishing House published another English version of the Law (hereinafter referred to as v2).This thesis presents a tentative study of the features of legal documents translation by making comments on the two English versions of Special Maritime Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China.Anyone who has ever read a legal document realizes that it differs dramatically from everyday speech. Legal English is peculiar in style, vocabulary and syntax and often hard to understand, especially from the perspective of the lay public.In legal translation from Chinese into English, the features of legal English should be kept in mind. The present two versions have both attained much of the features in English legal documents in many respects. This thesis also suggests some improvements on the defects in the two versions.English legal documents have a long history. We advocate the adherence to the features of legal documents, but it does not follow that we borrow them blindly, because the features are in gradual change, especially under the influence of the PlainLanguage Movement. The call for the reform of legal English is increasing and some measures indeed have been taken. This thesis also makes comments on some aspects that the writer thinks are to be reformed in accordance with the viewpoints of some authorities in legal English both at home and abroad. The thesis is divided into five chapters.Chapter 1 is the general introduction to the Maritime Law of the People'sRepublic of China, its content and the importance of its translation to English.Chapter 2 analyzes respectively the lexicon, syntax and style of legal English.Chapter 3 briefly introduces the general theories of translation and the principles of legal translation. It advocates that in translating legal documents from Chinese into English, the translators should observe the features of legal English.Chapter 4 makes comments on the lexicon and syntax of the two English versions.Chapter 5 points out some improper translations in the two versions, mistranslation of content, grammatical mistakes and loss of information, etc.