The use of Parol evidence is even more applicable when the translation has been signed by both parties and the translation has dealt with a subject or scenario that appears to have eroded the original language. The unfortunate result is that the courts (or arbitral tribunals) have to rule on these types of cases, as it is less likely that the parties will be able to settle their own disputes amicably. Instead, they will all believe that their own interpretation of the treaty is feasible and will spend far too much money arguing over that interpretation. The parties and their counsel should consider the time and resources (including attorneys` fees) that are spent on the design of contracts. No lawyer would dream of telling a client that the exact language used in a contract “doesn`t matter.” However, by not checking the translations offered in multilingual contracts, lawyers do so. Parties often sue for the meaning of a single word in a contract. Contractual disputes arise in the event of an obvious conflict between two words, phrases or paragraphs in a contract. The lack of precision in a translation invites problems in the absence of necessity. Your client may tell you, “I can`t read a Chinese contract.

What am I going to do with it? I don`t know what I need to do…