The Ashgate Handbook of Legal Translation is a collaborative work between the editors and the contributors to this project. it is the outcome of several years of research whereby we have shared information and exchanged views to reach a common understanding in our field of expertise. The Handbook could not have been completed without the support of a number of institutions and well-established academics with whom we have had the pleasure of brainstorming and interacting. As a prelude to this handbook, the editors prepared and organized several international conferences worldwide in order to provide platforms for face-to-face discussions and to open up a series of promises, alternatives, and compromises. The international roundtables for the semiotics of Law in 2011 (school of Law of fluminense federal University – rio de Janeiro, brazil) and 2013 (Zhejiang Police College – hangzhou, China) facilitated encounters between disciplines to set the main themes of this project. The Multicultural Association of Law and Language followed the same path, having organized several international conferences on Law, Translation and Culture in 2011 (China University of Political science and Law – beijing, China) and 2013 (Zhejiang sci-Tech University, China and shanghai Jiao Tong University, China) to invite disciplines to explore practical possibilities in the field of legal translation. The Ashgate Handbook of Legal Translation will thus provide an opportunity for a general discussion on legal translation issues as well as open discussions to enhance our understanding of the broader context of law, language and communication. The editors would like to express their gratitude to a number of people who have contributed to the preparation of this manuscript in various ways. first and foremost, we would like to convey our sincere appreciation to Prof. Mattila Heikki and Prof. Deborah Cao for their inspiring insights and deep reflections on Legal Translation. We are indebted to Prof. Vijay Bhatia, Dr Sarah Marusek, and Dr Sandy Lamalle for their generous help throughout the preparation and revisions of our manuscript. A special thanks goes to Alison kirk (Ashgate Publishing) for her constant help and invisible presence throughout the various stages in the preparation of this Handbook.