The objective of the paper was: (1) to analyse EU translation in light of central concepts of Translation Studies, and (2) to attempt a synthesis of numerous studies on EU translation to describe its distinctive features. EU law is adopted in 24 official languages and is applied in 28 Member States. The translation of EU law has an authoritative status. Owing to a complex array of political, procedural, legal and institutional factors, the translation of EU law poses a challenge to central TS concepts, such as a source text and a target text (versus language versions), a translation process (translation as part of a multistage and multilingual drafting process), equivalence (a priori/existential equivalence) and translation quality (uniform application and interpretation of law). The author posits that the translation of EU law is a unique category which requires its own theoretical framework.
The paper introduces an integrative functional approach to legal translation teaching at translation programmes taught as part of Philology major. The approach is based on functionalism, professional realism of training, and social constructivism. The main objective is to train translators who are aware of their mediating role in intercultural and intersystemic communication, know how to produce a translation ‘fit for the purpose’, deal with terminological incongruity and overcome problems typical of the translation process. The approach requires a student-centred approach and autonomy of learners. The paper presents practical tasks which help foster the functional approach to translation and empower students by raising their self-efficacy.