GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS
The following General Terms and Conditions apply to the legal relationship between "trans-tech translations" and the client:
1. SCOPE
1.1 These General Terms and Conditions apply to all legally binding activities between "trans-tech translations" (henceforth: the Translator) and the legal entity awarding the contract in writing (henceforth: the Client), and exclude any such general terms and conditions of the Client, unless both parties have agreed in writing to their application. For the sake of simplicity, all parties mentioned in these General Terms and Conditions are expressed in the masculine form and should be understood to include both genders.
2. PRICE QUOTES AND JOB EXECUTION
2.1 Until the Translator has the opportunity to review the complete text to be translated, all quotes and given prices are not binding. All additions or modifications made to the original text after translation work has commenced are charged separately.
2.2 The agreement becomes legally valid as soon as the Client forwards to the translator a written job confirmation, or, if no price quote was made, when the Translator acknowledges to the Client in writing that the job has been received and will be processed. In cases where the Translator had not been able to view the entire text at the time of his making a quote, he may withdraw originally agreed job fees and deadlines even after the Client has accepted them.
2.3 The Translator can assume that the Client is the person who has placed the job order, unless that person has clearly indicated that he is acting as an agent of or to the account of a third person, and has clearly made known the name and address of this third person to the Translator.
3. ETHICS, CONFIDENTIALITY
3.1 The Translator is specialized in the translation of technical, scientific and economic text for science, industry and commerce. This includes very demanding technical, scientific and commercial texts that require an in-depth knowledge and understanding of the material being processed. The Translator prefers texts that impart and promote knowledge, understanding, truth and abilities in the fields of commerce, science and industry. Also, texts that contribute to promoting understanding between science and industry, that are beneficial for good cohabitation between mankind and the environment and amongst humans themselves are gladly processed. No religious texts, texts dealing with weapons or military topics, texts that contain or promote untruths, texts of low moral value or content and certainly no offensive materials are processed.
3.2 It is incumbent upon the Translator to execute the job conscientiously, using his professional abilities and knowledge in accordance with the purpose indicated by the Client.
3.3 The Translator will maintain utmost confidentiality with respect to the data given to him or made known to him by the Client, unless such information is already general knowledge.
3.4 At the request of the Translator, the Client will provide all available information regarding the text to be translated, including documentation and lists of terminology. Such documents will be forwarded to the Translator at the expense of the Client.
4. CHANGE/WITHDRAWAL OF THE JOB
4.1 Should the Client, after an agreement has been reached, make other than minor changes to the job, the Translator reserves the right to adapt agreed time frames and/or fees, or to refuse the job in retrospect.
4.2 Should the Client withdraw a given job order, he is obliged to pay for those parts of the translation which have already been carried out. This applies also to preparatory work which has been done by the Translator in connection with the execution of the job.
4.3 If the Translator has reserved time to complete the job, and he cannot fill this time with other work, the Client owes the Translator 50 percent of the fees for that portion of the job which has not been carried out.
4.4 The Client must inform the Translator in a timely fashion of special conditions of the translation (translation on data carriers, number of copies, print readiness, appearance of the translated document, etc.). If the translation is to be printed, the Client must provide the Translator with a proof copy.
4.5 The Translator does not translate or process in any way any religious texts, subjects clearly dealing with military matters or weapons or information that is evidently false or abusive (see Section 2.1). Should, during the course of translation work, it become evident to the Translator that he is dealing with text of this nature, the Translator will immediately inform the Client and cancel the job. In this case the Client has absolutely no right to claim for compensation for delays or any other disadvantages resulting to him from this action; on the other hand, the Translator will not charge the Client for any work that he may have completed. In this case the Contract is terminated as if it had never existed.
5. DEADLINES, DELIVERY
5.1 Unless otherwise specified, an agreed deadline is the time frame which is anticipated to be necessary to complete the job. Where it can be foreseen that the agreed deadline cannot be upheld, the Translator must inform the client immediately.
5.2 If the Translator is responsible for a delay in the execution of the job, and the delay in job execution seems rightly and reasonably inappropriate, the Client has the right to end the agreement unilaterally. In such a case the Translator has no right to claim compensation.
5.3 Transmission and return-transmission are considered complete at the moment that the document is delivered by mail or is received by fax, telex or courier.
5.4 Transmission and return-transmission by e-mail are considered complete when the recipient has confirmed their reception (reply).
6. FEES AND PAYMENT
6.1 Fees are generally understood as fees per line [standard line: 55 keystrokes (characters and spaces)]. For other work than translation (editorial work) an hourly fee is charged. The Translator reserves the right to bill for additional costs which may have been incurred in conjunction with the job execution (analysis of source materials etc.).
6.2 Value added tax (VAT) is added to all prices indicated by the Translator, unless the Client shows irrefutably that he is not required to pay such taxes.
6.3 Invoice amounts are due upon the return-transmission of the job and payable within 30 days following the date of invoice. If payment is not made within this 30 day period, the Client is in default of payment.
7. COMPLAINTS/ ADJUSTMENTS
7.1 The Client is obliged to inform the Translator about any complaints he has concerning the translation, indicating the reasons for his dissatisfaction. Should this situation arise, he must do this in writing, as soon as possible, but under all circumstances within ten days of the return-transmission of the job. The notification of a complaint or a return does not free the Client from his contractual responsibilities (payment of the fees for accomplished work).
7.2 In case of serious and verifiable errors and/or justified complaints, the Translator will initially have the right to review and correct the original translation and return the corrected translation to the Client within a reasonable period of time. The right to make such corrections expires if the Translator is not in a position to deliver a corrected version of the translation within the mutually agreed period of time, whereby such non-delivery of a corrected version does not exempt the Client from paying the Translator for the work he has performed, the amount due under such circumstances being not less than 50 percent the originally agreed fee.
8. LIABILITY: LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
8.1 The Translator is only liable for lasting damages which are a direct and proven consequence of a failing for which the Translator can be held responsible. The Translator is at no time liable for other forms of damage, in particular, not for consecutive damages and damages resulting from a delay/hold-up, the loss of income or lost profits. Any liability is limited at maximum to the total sum of the invoice, excluding value added tax (VAT), for the job in question.
8.2 Evident ambiguities in the basic text free the translator from any liability whatsoever.
8.3 The Translator is not liable for damages from loss of documents or from loss of data and data carriers, which were left to him to fulfil his contractual duties (execution of the job). Also, the Translator cannot be held liable for damages resulting from the use of information/telecommunications technology.
8.4 The Client shall protect the Translator from claims by any third party concerning or dealing in any way with the use of the delivered work, and which exceed the liability of the translator as described in this section.
9. CANCELLATION
9.1 Where the Client fails to meet his contractual obligations or is the object of bankruptcy or liquidation proceedings, insolvency proceedings, or a payment moratorium, the Translator has the right to cancel the agreement partly or in full, or to delay its execution without any liability. The Translator can then immediately enforce his claims.
9.2 Should the Translator not be able to fulfill his contractual duties due to circumstances outside of his influence, he may terminate the contract without being liable for damages. Such circumstances are in particular: Fire, accident, illness, strike, civil war, war, uprising, natural disasters, or limited availability of traffic infrastructure, government measures, or any other circumstance outside of the translator's influence.
10. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
10.1 The translation remains the property of the Translator until it has been paid in full. The Client does not have the right to use it until that time.
10.2 The Client shall protect the Translator from liability claims made by any third party with respect to alleged breaches of contract regarding ownership, patent rights, copyrights, or marketing rights in conjunction with the execution of the job.
11. APPLICABLE LAW, JURISDICTION
11.1 Legal dealings between the Client and the Translator are subject to German law.
11.2 In the event of legal disputes, the corresponding jurisdiction in Berlin applies
11.3 The validity of these General Terms and Conditions is not affected by the nullity or non-applicability of individual provisions.
11.4 In cases of doubt, the German version of the "General Terms and Conditions" published here applies.