Profile
María Fernanda Castillo is a senior LATAM Spanish–English legal translator with more than 13 years of professional experience, specializing in international arbitration, corporate contracts, immigration law, intellectual property, and Latin American legal systems. She provides certified and high-accuracy legal translation, editing, and terminology consulting to law firms, courts, arbitration centers, notaries, multinational corporations, and governmental institutions across Latin America, the US, and Europe. María holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Law from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) and a Master’s Degree in Legal Translation and Comparative Law from Georgetown University (USA). She has deep expertise in Civil Law (LatAm), Common Law (US/UK), and International Trade Law (NAFTA/USMCA), enabling her to translate complex legal documents with full legal validity, cultural nuance, and terminological consistency. She is a certified sworn legal translator accredited by the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and frequently collaborates with law firms, chambers of commerce, and arbitration courts in Mexico, Chile, Spain, and the United States.-------------------------------------------------------------
Expertise Areas
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- International Arbitration & Litigation
- Corporate & Commercial Law
- Immigration & Notarial Procedures
- Intellectual Property & Trademark Law
- Latin American Civil & Administrative Law
- Tax & Financial Regulations (LATAM & US)
- Cross-Border Contract Translation
- Certified & Apostilled Legal Translation
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Education
- 2011 — M.A. in Legal Translation & Comparative Law, Georgetown University (USA)
- 2007 — LL.B. in Law, National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM)
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Professional Experience
Senior Legal Translator — Kalite Legal (since 2021) Translates LATAM Spanish–English legal documentation, including cross-border contracts, arbitration cases, compliance reports, and corporate filings. Certified Sworn Legal Translator — Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mexico (2012–2021) Provided official legal translations for courts, government agencies, embassies, and public institutions. Freelance Legal Linguist — International Arbitration & Corporate Projects (2008–2012) Handled legal translation and terminology development for multinational law firms and international arbitration institutions.-------------------------------------------------------------
Skills
- Legal Terminology Expertise (LATAM Spanish–English)
- Civil, Common & International Trade Law Knowledge
- Bilingual Legal Drafting & Editing
- CAT Tools: SDL Trados, MemoQ, Wordfast, Smartcat
- Terminology Database & Glossary Creation
- ISO 17100-Compliant Translation Workflow
- Confidentiality, GDPR & Data Protection
- Cross-Border Legal Communication
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Certifications & Memberships
- Certified Sworn Translator, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Mexico)
- Member, American Translators Association (ATA)
- Member, Latin American Translation Association (LATRA)
- Member, Globalization & Localization Association (GALA)
- Member, International Federation of Translators (FIT)
How can we help you?
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