Data Protection in Legal Translation

Law firms and companies often provide contracts, case files, investigation reports, due-diligence materials, or compliance documents to translators. These files may contain identity data, financial information, health information, business strategy, trade secrets, and privileged communications between lawyers and clients.

Before sending a document, the client should understand how it will be received, who may access it, whether it will be shared, how long it will be retained, and when it will be deleted. In Indonesia, the primary framework is Law No. 27 of 2022 on Personal Data Protection.

Why does legal translation involve data protection?

Indonesia’s Personal Data Protection Law defines processing broadly. It may include obtaining, collecting, handling, analysing, storing, transferring, disclosing, deleting, and destroying data. In a translation project, these activities may occur when a file is received, copied, opened, processed in a CAT tool or cloud system, sent to a reviewer, archived, or deleted.

Not every legal document contains personal data. However, contracts, judgments, corporate records, investigation reports, and arbitration files often combine personal data with confidential business information.

Is a translator always a Personal Data Processor?

Not automatically. Whether a party is a Personal Data Controller or Processor depends on the parties’ actual roles, the purpose of processing, the client’s instructions, and the contractual relationship. In many projects, a law firm or company determines the purpose and the translator works under specific instructions. In that situation, the translator may act as a Processor, but the conclusion should be assessed against the facts of the project.

The client should also know whether the translator works directly or involves a reviewer, project manager, file-transfer platform, storage system, or technology vendor. Article 51 of the Personal Data Protection Law provides that a Processor processes data on the Controller’s instructions and requires written approval before involving another Processor.

Six controls before sharing documents

1. 01
   Define the purpose and scope

   Specify whether the translation is for a contract, litigation, due diligence, audit, compliance, or communication with a regulator. Share only what is needed for the current stage.

2. 02
   Limit access on a need-to-know basis

   Confirm who will be able to view the files, including the translator, reviewer, project manager, and technology vendors. Sensitive matters should be restricted to the people directly involved.

3. 03
   Review AI and cloud tools

   Ask whether files are stored, used for training, processed in another country, or accessible to third parties. Confidential documents should not be entered into public tools without appropriate review and approval.

4. 04
   Set retention and deletion rules

   Agree how long source files, translations, and working copies will be retained, who may request deletion, and what exceptions apply for audits or legal obligations.

5. 05
   Use an NDA and written instructions where appropriate

   An NDA and project instructions can address access, subcontracting, permitted software, retention, and restrictions on use beyond the project purpose.

6. 06
   Prepare an incident procedure

   Identify the contact person, minimum reporting information, file-security measures, chronology requirements, and coordination with legal, compliance, and information-security teams.

What about transferring documents abroad?

Cross-border projects may involve translators, reviewers, servers, or technology vendors outside Indonesia. Article 56 of the Personal Data Protection Law addresses transfers of Personal Data outside Indonesia. The Controller should assess whether the receiving country provides an equivalent or higher level of protection, or whether adequate and binding safeguards exist as required by applicable law.

This does not mean that every translation into a foreign language is prohibited. The relevant questions are the data flow, recipient, purpose, legal basis, storage location, and available safeguards. A cross-border client instruction sheet should identify the translator’s country, technology vendors, permitted uses, subcontracting restrictions, deletion process, and incident procedure.

Questions for a legal translation provider

• Who will have access to my documents?
• Will the project be handled directly or assigned to another party?
• Is an NDA or data-processing agreement available?
• Will the documents be processed using AI or a cloud platform?
• Where will the files be stored, and how long will they be retained?
• What is the procedure for deletion, destruction, and incident reporting?

Conclusion

Language accuracy and information security cannot be separated in legal translation. A professional provider should be able to explain responsibilities, access limits, retention procedures, technology use, and risk management without making absolute promises that cannot be verified.

Legaltrans.id provides legal translation and interpreting support for law firms, companies, arbitration, litigation, compliance, and cross-border matters. For sensitive projects, begin with a non-confidential summary so that scope, conflicts, language, deadlines, and security requirements can be reviewed before substantive documents are shared.