Purpose of post - Providing a professional linguistic editing service for the Legal Services Department in quality assuring the production of linguistically equivalent and accurate bilingual subordinate legislation. 
 
The Legal Services Department (LS) of the Welsh Government is responsible for the bilingual drafting of all general subordinate legislation made by the Welsh Ministers, First Minister acting alone or where appropriate the Counsel General, as well as other bilingual legislative documents.
 
The volume of bilingual subordinate legislation made by the Welsh Ministers requires a dedicated legal text editing service, situated within the Welsh Government Legal Services Department, to facilitate the accurate and consistent application of Welsh Government drafting guidance and the terminology used in draft bilingual legislation prepared by the relevant subject lawyers.  The postholder is required to specialise in the work of assuring the equivalence of Welsh and English language texts of bilingual subordinate legislation in accordance with demand, working closely with the Senior Bilingual Legislative Text Editor, drafting lawyers and the Welsh Government’s specialist team of legislative translators.   
 
All bilingual legislative texts are rigorously checked and edited to ensure linguistic accuracy and legal equivalence between the two language versions.

Key tasks - Reporting to the Senior Bilingual Legislative Text Editor, and professionally to Welsh Government lawyers, the key tasks required of the post are:

• Planning, prioritising and delivering editing work within available timeframes, negotiating deadlines or subsequent revisions as necessary;
• Undertaking comparative scrutiny, revision and correction of Welsh and English legislative texts in respect of final bilingual drafts of general Welsh Statutory Instruments, local and other subordinate legislation and a range of miscellaneous bilingual legislative documents;
• Considering such advice on Welsh terminology, bilingual consistency and equivalence in legislation as may be reported or published by the Senedd’s Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee and contributing advice to official Welsh Government responses to that Committee;
• Scrutinising additional lawyer amendments to legislative texts as required and advising on revisions within specified timeframes for making or laying in draft;
• Contributing such linguistic advice as may be required to Office of Legislative Counsel lawyers, including Legislative Codes Office staff;
• Assist as required in the delivery of subordinate legislative training for incoming or established lawyers and administrators, to explain the role and importance of bilingual equivalence and the assurance processes in place to secure it;
• Liaising with the First Welsh Legislative Counsel, drafting lawyers and specialist legal translators where technical corrections may be needed, where alternative or novel terminology may be required, and/or where the Welsh or English text may need to be amended in order to ensure legal equivalence;
• Liaising where appropriate on drafting and terminology matters with the Legal Advisers to the Senedd’s Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee;
• Assisting drafting lawyers, as required, in the timely bilingual checking of all draft affirmative SIs that are amended following withdrawal by Welsh Ministers;
• Contributing such information as may be required to the Legislative Codes Office information databases for the purposes of producing current and historical statistical reports in respect of legislation made by the Welsh Ministers.

Development opportunities -

Your experience will give you a unique understanding of how bilingual legislation in Wales is prepared and made and the processes involved.  This role offers the opportunity to work within a professional legal environment at the heart of devolved government, at the forefront of the policy and law-making process and at the cutting edge of major constitutional developments.