In a world increasingly flooded with AI-generated content, have we forgotten how to read critically?

A thought-provoking piece I read recently entitled “Promptism and the Forgotten Art of Source Criticism in the Age of AI” raises exactly that point.

It made me think about legal translation.

And how what it says about source criticism applies so powerfully to what we do as legal translators.

You’ve probably seen it too.

Legal texts fed through AI tools that come out sounding smooth, plausible, grammatically correct.

But as we all know (or should know ) legal translation isn’t about sounding smooth.

It’s about being right and precise.

The article talks about the illusion of fluency; how something that reads well can still be deeply flawed.

And in legal settings, flawed translations mean flawed understanding.

And flawed understanding can lead to real-world consequences.

When working on legal texts, especially ones involving rights, obligations, or procedural safeguards, “close enough” is not close enough.

This is where source criticism (the habit of actually going back to check, verify, and compare with the authoritative original) becomes a professional duty.

Not just a nice-to-have.

If you’ve ever run an AI-generated translation through its paces, you’ll know it rarely holds up under scrutiny.

Subtle distinctions missed.

References mistranslated.

Wording altered in a way that changes legal effect.

It doesn’t matter how confident or elegant the output appears. If it isn’t anchored in legal reality, it’s unusable.

And more than unusable, it’s potentially harmful.

That’s why I keep championing the role of expert human translators.

Because we legal translators don’t just “translate”. We verify, interrogate, and challenge the text.

We bring legal knowledge to the task.

We bring linguistic precision.

We do the checking so our clients don’t have to.

The message of that Promptism article is clear: don’t lose the habit of critical reading.

Don’t stop questioning what you’re shown.

In legal translation, that habit can and does make all the difference.

If you need Greek to English legal translations that go beyond the surface and actually hold up in practice, get in touch with us at #Jurtrans. Because close enough simply isn’t good enough.

#LegalTranslation #LegalAccuracy #AIandLaw #DueDiligence #LegalTech #GreekLaw

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