1.      General

1.1.    The following general terms and conditions (hereafter: GTC) shall apply to all contractual relations between the Client and the expert witness service provider (hereafter: EWSP). The Client’s general terms and conditions shall not apply, unless they are expressly accepted by the EWSP in writing.

1.2.    Assignments upon summons pursuant to the Austrian Expert Witness Fees Act (GebAG) shall be excluded.

2.      Normative reference

These GTC refer to the below mentioned standards as follows:

2.1.    ÖNORM EN ISO 17100 Translation services – Requirements of translation services

2.2.    ÖNORM D1202 Translation service contracts

3.      Scope of performance

3.1.    The EWSP delivers to the Client court certified translation services including additional services in combination with other ancillary services (hereafter: translation).

3.2.    The EWSP shall perform all assignments to the best of its professional knowledge, and according to the general EWSP rules and the principles of sound financial management. The EWSP, however, shall be liable only for rendering the service, but shall not be liable if the services rendered by it do not fulfil the Client’s purposes, which are the latter’s sole responsibility.

3.3.    The Client shall make known to the EWSP the source text and the purposes for which the translation is intended when requesting a quotation, e.g. whether it is

3.3.1.  for a specific target country,

3.3.2.  only for information,

3.3.3.  for specific legal purposes or patent business,

3.3.4.  for any other purposes which make it important that the specifically chosen EWSP translates the texts in a particular way or style.

3.4.    The Client may only use the translation for the specified purpose. In the event that the Client uses the translation for a purpose other than for which it was ordered and delivered, the Client shall have no right whatsoever to claim compensation from the EWSP, even if the service rendered is in contrast with the general EWSP rules.

3.5.    The technical and linguistic accuracy of the source text shall be the sole responsibility of the Client and will not be verified by the EWSP.

4.      Fees and other invoice conditions

4.1.    The quotations for translation services are based on the EWSP’s rates.

4.2.    Fees shall be quoted according to the calculation basis agreed upon (e.g. target content / source content / hourly rates / page count / word count / legal fees).

4.3.    A cost estimate shall only be considered binding if it is made in writing and after sight of the documents produced. Cost estimates drawn up without prior examination of the translation documents shall be given without commitment. Cost estimates submitted in any other form shall not be binding.

4.4.    Unless otherwise agreed, reasonable fees may be charged for changes to the order and additional orders.

4.5.    Unless otherwise agreed, an adequate fee may be charged for revising source contents and translations done by third parties.

4.6.    For express orders and orders to be finished over the weekend reasonable surcharges may apply.

4.7.    The EWSP is entitled to demand a fair and reasonable down payment.

5.      Delivery

5.1.    The delivery deadline for the translation shall be determined in writing by both parties. The delivery date is an integral part of the order accepted by the EWSP. If no delivery date was fixed, delivery shall occur within a reasonable period of time. If the EWSP is not in a position to respect the delivery date stipulated, it shall notify the Client immediately and state the date by which delivery will occur.

5.2.    A precondition for adherence to the stipulated delivery deadline and date is the prompt submission of all documentation required in the agreed scope (e.g. source contents and all necessary background information) as well as the observance of the stipulated terms of payment and other obligations by the Client. If these preconditions are not met in good time, the delivery deadline shall be extended according to the length of delay in providing the EWSP with the required documentation. In the case of a fixed deadline it is for the EWSP to decide if it is still possible to meet the agreed deadline following late receipt of the required documentation from the Client.

5.3.    If the court certified translation service cannot be rendered for reasons attributable to the Client, i.e. because the latter has not supplied the contractual documentation in time or at all, or has not observed its obligation to cooperate, the EWSP shall be entitled to a cancellation fee not subject to judicial mitigation in the amount of 50% of the purchase price of the stipulated service/partial service. Off-setting of any savings the EWSP makes as a result of the work being cancelled, or of gains made through other employment, including those the EWSP deliberately fails to acquire, shall not be acceptable (cf. § 1168 Austrian Civil Code – ABGB).

5.4.   Risks arising from the supply of the source documents shall be borne by the Client; risks arising from the delivery of the target documents shall be borne by the EWSP.

5.5.    If not otherwise agreed, the documents supplied by the Client to the EWSP shall remain with the EWSP upon completion of the assignment. The EWSP shall store these documents with due care in order to prevent access by third parties to make sure that the secrecy obligations are fulfilled and the documents cannot be used other than for the contractual purposes.

6.      Force majeure

6.1.    The EWSP shall inform the Client immediately upon the occurrence of an event of force majeure. Force majeure entitles both the EWSP and the Client to cancel the agreement. However, the Client shall indemnify the EWSP for any expenses incurred and services rendered.

6.2.    The following, in particular, shall be regarded as an event of force majeure: acts of God, hazard; labour disputes; acts of war; civil war; occurrence of unforeseen hindrances, which can be proven to decisively impair the EWSP’s ability to complete the assignment as agreed.

7.      Confidentiality / Privacy

7.1.    The EWSP shall keep confidential all business information provided by the Client, in particular regarding the latter’s business and trade secrets.

7.2.    The EWSP may disclose information towards his agents, but it undertakes to oblige its agents to keep confidential the content of the translation. The EWSP shall be liable for non-compliance on the part of the latter in the same way as for its own non-compliance.

7.3.    The confidentiality obligation is limited to five years after termination of the contractual relationship.

7.4.    The EWSP is entitled to process the information supplied or other personal data disclosed within the scope of the contract, and to store such data even after the termination of the contractual relationship, if this is necessary to perform the contract or to fulfil legal requirements (e.g. accounting). Upon expiry of the relevant deadlines the data will be cancelled.

7.5.    If the information includes the Client’s data for communication purposes (e.g. e-mail address, phone number), the Client agrees that these contact details be processed and stored and be used for sending marketing messages pursuant to § 107 TKG. The Client may, at any time, revoke its approval.

7.6.    Pursuant to the provisions of the Data Protection Act, the Client shall have the right to have its data cancelled. This shall apply only if the EWSP does not have an obligation by law to store personal data.

8.     Acceptance / Notification of defects / Warranty

8.1.    Acceptance of the translation service, including partial deliveries, is the client’s duty. Acceptance is deemed to be given after downloading/opening the document and inspection within 24 hours by the client. Thereafter the statutory warranty period starts.

8.2.    Defects must be documented and proven by the client in writing (error protocol). This must be done within one week after the occurrence of any defect, otherwise all claims shall be excluded.

8.3.    To remedy or to eliminate any defects the Client shall grant the EWSP a reasonable period of time and the possibility of supplementary performance und rectification. If a defect is eliminated within a reasonable period of time by the EWSP, the Client shall not have the right to demand a price reduction.

8.4.    If the EWSP does not eliminate the defect within a reasonable grace period, the Client may rescind the contract or demand a price reduction. In case of minor defects, however, the Client shall not have the right to rescind the contract.

8.5.   Warranty claims do not entitle the client to withhold the total invoice value, but only a reasonable part thereof; in such a case the client waives the right of set-off.  

8.6.    In case of translation services used for publication, the EWSP shall be liable for defects only if the Client expressly states when the orders is placed that it intends to publish the text, and if the EWSP has received the galley proofs (author’s corrections) up to and including the last version of text which was not subject to further changes. In such a case the EWSP is entitled to charge a reasonable fee.

8.7.    The EWSP shall not be liable for the translation of content that is illegible, hardly legible or incomprehensible; the same shall apply for the revision of translations done by third parties.

8.8.    Stylistic enhancement or adaptation to specific terminology (including industry-specific or corporate terminology) etc. shall not be recognized as translation defects.

8.9.   No liability is taken for abbreviations that were not stated or explained by the client when the order was placed.

8.10.  The EWSP shall not be liable for the correct transcription of names and addresses. In such cases it is recommended that the Client supplies the correct spelling of names or other appellations in capital characters on a separate sheet.

8.11. Numbers are reproduced as indicated in the source content. The conversion of numbers, measures, currencies and similar shall be the sole responsibility of the Client.

8.12.  Unless source contents, original copies and similar documents supplied by the Client are returned together with the translation to the latter, the EWSP shall be liable for such documents as a custodian in the meaning of the provisions of the Civil Code, for a period of four weeks after completion of the assignment. The EWSP shall have no obligation to take out insurance. For the return of documents Item 5.4 shall apply accordingly.

8.13.  The EWSP will use state-of-the art methods and tools when delivering documents or content by data transfer (such as e-mail and similar). Depending on the technical set-up no warranty or liability shall be assumed for defects and limitations resulting therefrom (i.e. infringement of confidentiality obligations, damage of files and similar), unless for gross negligence on the part of the EWSP.

9. Compensation

9.1.    Unless otherwise provided by law, all compensation claims against the EWSP are limited to the amount as stated in the invoice (net total), except for cases in which loss or prejudice was caused by gross negligence or wilful misconduct, or for personal injury according to the product liability law.

9.2.    The Client shall claim damages in a court of law, within six months after becoming aware of the damage and the party at fault, unless consumers benefit from more favorable legal provisions, but no later than 12 months from the completion of the respective assignment, claims asserted thereafter shall be excluded. Any renewal of the contractual relationship does not extend these periods. The Client shall prove that the damage is attributable to the EWSP.  

9.3.    In the event that the Client uses the translation for a purpose other than for which it was ordered and delivered, the Client shall have no right whatsoever to claim compensation from the EWSP.

9.4.    If the EWSP has taken out public liability insurance for financial loss, compensation shall be limited to the total amount refunded by the insurance in the specific case concerned.

10. Retention of ownership

10.1.  All documents supplied to the EWSP in connection with the order shall remain the property of the EWSP until all sums due for a contract are paid in full.

10.2.  Any sorts of documents not included in the contract, shall remain the intellectual property of the EWSP and are protected by the relevant legal provisions. Further transmission and reproduction shall only be with the approval of the EWSP.

11. Payment

11.1.  Payment shall be made upon delivery of the translation service and invoice, unless otherwise agreed.

11.2.  The EWSP is entitled to demand a fair and reasonable down payment.

11.3.  If collection has been agreed and if the client does not collect the translation in due time, the Client’s payment obligation shall commence on the date when the translation is ready for collection.

11.4.  If the Client delays in payment, the EWSP shall withhold the documentation supplied at the time the order is placed (e.g. manuscripts to be translated). In the event of a delay in payment a reasonable amount of interest in arrears (8% above the base rate) and reasonable reminder fees shall be charged.

11.5.  Failure to comply with the terms of payment agreed by the Client and the EWSP (e.g. down payments) shall entitle the EWSP to suspend work on the orders placed with it until the Client fulfils his payment obligations. This shall also hold true for orders for which a fixed delivery time was agreed (see Item 5.1). While a suspension of work shall not result in any legal claims whatsoever for the Client, the EWSP’s rights shall not be prejudiced in any way.

12. Final provisions

12.1. The place of performance of all contractual relations governed by these GTC shall be the EWSP’s registered place of business in Graz.  

12.2. Subsidiary agreements, amendments and/or additions to these terms and to the individual assignment shall not be considered effective unless made in writing.

12.3. In the event that one or more of these terms and conditions is or becomes ineffective for any legal reason this shall not affect the validity of the remaining terms and conditions.

12.4. Court of jurisdiction for any disputes arising from these terms and conditions and from any individual assignment is Graz. Austrian law shall apply.