Thomas Irwin

Dear Sirs:
 
I am the ideal candidate for your translation projects in German and English. A short version of my resume follows this letter.
 
I have lived in both Germany and the US. I have taught and practiced law in both countries. Moreover, I have worked as a foreign correspondent for American newspapers while living in Germany.
 
My training and experience in law and business makes me especially suited for translations in the areas of law, business, finance, and accounting. However, I do not limit my translation work to these areas. My career as a journalist has provided me with the experience needed to do more than just translate. My work goes beyond accuracy to reach a level of stylistic excellence appropriate to the subject matter.
 
I translate and edit books, documents, brochures, and web-page content in both English and German. I work from English to German and vice-versa. I am comfortable working with a variety of documents - sales and technical as well as literary - including fiction, nonfiction, sales brochures, user guides, and administrative documents.
 
In addition to my US legal credentials, I also hold a German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) Certificate in German Law. The DAAD program is a one-year survey of German law funded by the DAAD (the German equivalent of the Fulbright). Five Americans take part annually. It is conducted in German in Germany.
 
As noted, above, I have taught law and business courses (in German) at various German universities. The course materials I provided and the papers and tests I graded were written in German. I both wrote and corrected German in my capacity as a professor.
 
Working as the recipient of a fellowship from the Hamburg Max-Planck-Institut, (one of the world’s leading institutions for the study of comparative private law), I translated from German to English for the International Encyclopedia of Comparative Law (a publication of the Institut). The volumes on contract law and land transactions (among others) are my work. My academic publications have appeared in Rechtstheorie,Archiv für Rechts- und Sozialphilosophie, and The Journal of State Government.
 
As noted above, I have worked as a journalist in Germany. My feature articles have been published in the American Bar Association Journal and the Legal Times (Washington D.C.'s legal weekly). My op-eds have appeared in the New York Times. Moreover, I have worked as a foreign correspondent in Germany for the Miami Herald (Miami, Florida’s leading newspaper) and the Atlanta Constitution (Atlanta, Georgia’s leading newspaper). The news, opinion, and feature articles I wrote were, of course, in English. However, research, correspondence, and interviews were generally conducted in German.
 
During my tenure as international program coordinator at the University of Louisville International Center (Louisville, Kentucky) I was in charge of managing and marketing student exchange and summer study abroad programs. These responsibilities required a wide range of English and German writing activities, from the drafting of brochures to press releases, from authoring faculty and student handbooks to preparing program summaries and advertisements.
 
My standard translation rate is $0.08 Euro per word in the source - and not the target - text, whether for German or English. However, my price is based on the material that I am asked to translate and the urgency with which it must be translated. My rate per word may therefore either be higher or lower after an examination of the work to be translated and a taking into account time of considerations. Of course, the price of any project is negotiable. At times I charge a project fee rather than a per-word rate.
 
For proofreading jobs, I must first see the document to be edited before pricing it out. During the course of my career, I have encountered documents of all types, ranging from those only in need of a slight tune-up, to those that must be completely reorganized and rewritten (and as a result treated as translations and not as proofreading).
 
I hope to hear from you soon.
 
Sincerely yours,
Thomas Irwin 
 
 
Short Resume
 
Address: 

Thomas Irwin 
Attorney At Law, DAAD Certificate in German Law
9017 Bingham Drive Louisville, KY 40242 USA
Website: http://f1q4p78.TranslatorsCafe.com
Office Tel: (502) 424-0096   

Cell: (502) 777-6414   

Home Tel : (502) 425-0553
Fax: (502) 429-6717  
Email: f1q4p78@msn.com
Skype: thomas.irwin3
Yahoo Messenger: f1q4p7886@yahoo.com
MSN Messenger: f1q4p78@msn.com

 
Positions Held:
 
Courses recently taught at the University of Louisville schools of law and business: commercial law, European Union law.
 
11/96-Current. Freelance German and English translation, with an emphasis on law, business, accounting, and finance. I have also translated a wide variety of materials that fall outside of these areas.
 
Between 9/85 and 10/96 taught courses on law and business (in English, German, or French) for the following universities:
 
10/93-10/96. Université Paris-X Nanterre. Paris, France.
 
3/92-9/93. University of Wismar. Wismar, Germany.
 
9/87-2/92. University of Louisville. Louisville, Kentucky. During this time my primary position was that of International Program Coordinator, organizing the University’s exchange and study abroad programs. I taught part-time.
 
9/85-8/87. University of South Africa. Pretoria, South Africa.
 
Education and Licenses:
 
Certificate in German Law, German Academic Exchange Service, 1985.
Law Clerk to Justice Roy Vance, Kentucky Supreme Court, 1983-1984.
Licensed to practice law in Kentucky and before Federal Courts since 1983.
Juris Doctor (J.D.), College of Law, University of Kentucky, 1983.
Bachelor of Arts (B.A.), Western Kentucky University (German & French), 1980.
 
Organization Memberships:
 
American Bar Association(ABA)
Deutscher Anwaltsverein(DAV)
Kentucky Bar Association (KBA)
American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA)
 
Journalism and Academic Writing:
 
My work as a journalist has led me to publish articles in a variety of North American periodicals. These include the New York Times, the Miami Herald, the St. Petersburg Times, the Oregonian, the Courier-Journal, the Canadian Times-Transcript, the ABA Journal (America’s national law monthly), and the Legal Times (Washington, D.C.’s law weekly). My academic publications include works published in Rechtstheorie, Archiv für Rechts- und Sozialphilosophie, and The Journal of State Government.