Challenges posed in interpreting at patent court hearing: A case study of an English test hearing

Although the official language of the court in South Korea is Korean, the international chamber of the Patent Court of Korea is an exception. In that court, a hearing may be conducted in English while simultaneous interpreting is provided for the Korean gallery. This paper examines difficulties associated with highly technical interpreting at a patent hearing based on the analysis of simultaneous interpreting for a test hearing and interpreters’ views with respect to the practical aspects of interpreting provision. The findings indicate that in addition to the technical aspect of patent technology, various source text factors, including English as Lingua Franca (ELF)-related factors, recitation of text, and limited access to visual information, created extremely arduous working conditions for the interpreters and negatively influenced the interpreters’ performance and job satisfaction. The results strongly suggest that the court and the legal counsel should work in close cooperation with interpreters to ensure quality interpreting at the International Chamber.