1. General Clause
The translator’s general conditions take precedence over those of the client and, bearing explicit stipulations to the contrary, the client waives his own general conditions.
2. Acceptance and Confirmation of the Translation Order
The client will enable the translator to assess the level of difficulty of the text to be translated. The translator will always immediately confirm the acceptance of an order offered and accepted over the telephone, citing the agreed upon fee and term of delivery.
A copy of the general translator’s conditions will be sent with the written confirmation. After receiving the order confirmation, the client will sign it and return it to the translator for agreement.
3. Delivery
The term of delivery agreed in writing with the client commences when the original text and the definitive order for the translation is received.
If the delivery deadline cannot be met due to force majeure, such as natural disasters, transport disruptions, network or server failures and other line and data transmission disruptions or other obstacles beyond the translator’s control, the translator shall be entitled to withdraw from the contract or to request an appropriate extension of the deadline.
The translator shall also not be liable for damage caused by viruses. The translator shall ensure that her files are safe by using a regularly updated virus scanner. When sending files by e-mail or any other form of remote transfer, the client must carry out a final examination of the files and documents transferred. If the client fails to do so, the translator shall not be liable for any damages.
The translator is not responsible for delays in delivery due to illness, accident, or temporary disability. However, the translator undertakes to inform the client within a reasonable period of time.
Any delay in delivery shall not give rise to any claim for damages. The translator cannot be held responsible for delays in delivery by e-mail or other postal means, nor for damage to the file to be translated and/or the translation during transmission.
The translation is sent at the client’s risk.
4. Cancellation of the Translation Order
When the client unilaterally cancels the translation order, the client will owe compensation. This compensation will consist of the cost of all the translation work effectively done and the preparatory terminological research. In addition, the translator may demand a cancellation fee for breach of contract equal to 20% of the amount of the invoice or fee note.
5. Prices
Only the prices shown on the invoices shall be considered as selling prices, which have of course been approved in advance by the client.
If, during the execution of the translation order, the client changes the nature of his request, the translator reserves the right to adapt the price according to the nature of the work to be done. The prices charged by the translator are exclusive of VAT.
The minimum rate applicable may be increased in the case of urgent work, evening or weekend work, or when the work requires special terminological research. In such cases, the translator shall explicitly mention the additional charge in the price quotation sent to the client.
6. Payment
The translator’s invoices are payable net, without discount, to the business bank account specified by the translator within 30 days of receipt of the invoice.
Upon failure to pay all or part of the amount owed by the due date in the absence of grave reasons, and after a futile notice of default, the amount due is increased by 11% with a minimum of 50.00 EUR and a maximum of 1,500.00 EUR, even when a grace period is granted.
In the event of late payment, the translator reserves the right to suspend the execution of orders or commitments in progress until full payment of the sums due, without being able to claim any damages or interest.
7. Liability
A. Translator’s Liability
The translator can accept no responsibility for defects to the text supplied by the client.
The translator accepts liability for the quality of the translation made insofar as it is used in its entirety and unchanged.
B. Client’s Liability
Prior or during the execution of the agreement, the client shall provide the translator will all the information necessary for the proper performance of the requested services.
The client is responsible for checking the result of the service after delivery.
The only grounds for complaint shall be the demonstration of an error in the translation of the text transmitted. Differences in interpretation and style are therefore excluded from the scope of complaints. Complaints must be made to the translator in writing, indicating the error and the desired correction. The deadline for complaints is 5 working days after delivery.
The translator undertakes to make every effort to make the requested corrections as quickly as possible. After the 5-day deadline, the service will be considered accepted by the client and any dispute will be inadmissible. Errors corrected by the translator will not justify non-payment of the entire invoice. Even in the case of errors that render the document unusable, the translator’s commitment is limited to the amount of the corresponding invoice.
8. The Client’s Capacity
The client is considered to act in the capacity of author of the text to be translated and expressly authorises its translation.
9. Complaints: Conditions for Submission and Substantiation
On pain of invalidity, notification of every complaint must be sent by registered letter within 8 days of the day the translation is delivered.
Every invoice that is not protested within 8 days is considered as accepted. A complaint does not suspend the term of payment.
Complaints or disputes on non-conformity of the translation, formulated within the period stipulated in this article, must be substantiated in detail using dictionaries, glossaries and similar textual material written by authoritative native speakers.
The unmotivated refusal of a translation is no reason for failure to pay the invoice.
10. Translation and Copyright
The translator holds the copyright on the translated text. The text may not be reproduced in any form, in whole or in part, or in any manner, even electronically, without the express prior written permission from the translator.
The client acknowledges and agrees that the translator may use, exclusively in the context of the promotion of her activities, in particular on her website and in her portfolio, extracts of the translations she has done, with specific reference to them, or in any other way allowing to achieve this objective.
11. Competent Court
Any dispute shall be subject to Luxembourg law to the exclusion of all others and shall fall under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Courts of Luxembourg.
The present general conditions are governed by Luxembourg Law.
12. Professional Confidentiality and Code of Conduct
The translator is bound by a secrecy obligation. This requires the translator to respect the confidentiality of information relating to the identity of the client and the content of the source text and/or the translation.
As member of the Luxembourg Association of Translators and Interpreters, the translator undertakes to respect the code of ethics of the Association and to deliver good quality translation work.