Vol. 14 (2025)
Language and Law

Special Issues

Artificial Intelligence in Legal Translation at the Court of Justice of the European Union

Published 07.05.2025

  • Susan Wright

Abstract

In the unique institutional context of the Court of Justice of the European Union, what could and should be the place of artificial intelligence (AI) in legal translation?
To answer that question, it is necessary to understand the parameters within which the Court’s legal translation service operates, and the choices that have been made in respect of multilingualism in the face of a growing workload, budgetary restrictions, and the Court’s obligation to maintain the functioning of EU justice. It is equally important to understand the Court’s institutional position on AI, how AI is currently used within the legal translation service, and the challenges AI currently poses.
The future of AI in legal translation at the Court will depend not only on technological progress and the specificities of the EU’s multilingual framework, but also on a careful assessment in relation to the desired translation output, the methods used in its production, and the impact of AI’s growing role on human resources.
In spite of its current limitations and unpredictable future, AI has the potential to enhance rapid multilingual access to EU justice and case-law and contribute to a ‘beneficial’ future. This is a matter of importance for all those subject to EU law, given the extent to which AI can be abused and the climate of rising nationalism within and beyond the EU.

Cite as: Wright, JLL 14 (2025), 120–142, DOI: 10.14762/jll.2025.120

Keywords

Court of Justice of the European Union, multilingualism, access to law and justice, legal translation, artificial intelligence, neural machine translation, fit for purpose, management of human resources

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