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En foi de ce qui précède

English translation: in witness whereof

07:57 May 18, 2020
French to English translations [PRO]
Law/Patents - Law (general) / Court Ruling
French term or phrase: En foi de ce qui précède
En foi de ce qui précède, nous avons dressé le présent acte en présence des témoins.

Is this just another way of saying "In witness whereof"?
Vivien Green
United Kingdom
English translation:in witness whereof
Explanation:
Yes, I think you're right that this is a variation of "en foi de quoi".

It seems to be used in exactly the same way as "en foi de quoi" and specific to Luxembourg, e.g. http://www.legilux.lu/eli/etat/leg/prot/2020/01/06/a21/jo

Hope this helps!

Selected response from:

Leighton Jacobs
United Kingdom
Local time: 10:31
Grading comment
Selected automatically based on peer agreement.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
3 +14in witness whereof
Leighton Jacobs
5 +1Based on the above (assessment/testimony etc.)
Saro Nova
3 -1In acceptance of that which precedes
Lisa Rosengard


Discussion entries: 4





  

Answers


12 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +14
in witness whereof


Explanation:
Yes, I think you're right that this is a variation of "en foi de quoi".

It seems to be used in exactly the same way as "en foi de quoi" and specific to Luxembourg, e.g. http://www.legilux.lu/eli/etat/leg/prot/2020/01/06/a21/jo

Hope this helps!



Leighton Jacobs
United Kingdom
Local time: 10:31
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 4
Grading comment
Selected automatically based on peer agreement.
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thanks Adrian MM - it's US English in this case. Should I just leave it as it is?

Asker: Any suggestions as to an alternative to "witnesses" at the end of the sentence if I don't go for "based on the above"? There seems to be disagreement as to whether the latter is an option here and as the first option has full agreement it would seem more sensible to use it if possible. I don't recall having seen many references to witnesses described using a different term. Attestants maybe? I don't recall ever coming across that though so maybe not?


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  James Roden
25 mins
agree  mchd
35 mins
agree  Saro Nova: This is also good. So long as you don't repeat the WITNESS at the end of the sentence. However, if there is a particular item such as testimony, accusations, etc, it might be important to distinguish: refer to my suggestion.
40 mins
  -> Yes, I agree
agree  Adrian MM.: IN WITNESS usually capitalis/zed in all Brit. Comm. countries - a legal drafting point.
48 mins
agree  ph-b (X)
58 mins
agree  AllegroTrans
2 hrs
agree  Paulina Sobelman
4 hrs
agree  Yvonne Gallagher: boilerplate I'd have thought
4 hrs
agree  Michael Grabczan-Grabowski
8 hrs
agree  Simon Charass
1 day 9 hrs
agree  EirTranslations
1 day 10 hrs
agree  Hazel Underwood
2 days 5 hrs
agree  Kathleen Johnson
2 days 11 hrs
agree  Eliza Hall
2 days 13 hrs
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43 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5 peer agreement (net): +1
Based on the above (assessment/testimony etc.)


Explanation:
It is a simple translation, quite regularly used in law. No need to complicate, but you can add context based on the information within your text.

Example sentence(s):
  • Based on the above (...), we have filed an (act/indictment/ a law) in the presence of witnesses.

    https://www.linguee.fr/francais-anglais/traduction/foi+de+ce+qui+pr%C3%A9c%C3%A8de.html
Saro Nova
Canada
Works in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 16

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
disagree  AllegroTrans: Not the way it is used in legal practice - see above answer
2 hrs
  -> See my example.
agree  philgoddard: Nothing wrong with this. And, as you point out, you can't say "witness" twice in one sentence.
3 hrs
agree  Yvonne Gallagher: yes, if plain English required
4 hrs
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15 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): -1
In acceptance of that which precedes


Explanation:
'en foi de' would mean 'in faith of'
'ce qui précède' means 'that which precedes'

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 days 5 hrs (2020-05-20 13:17:48 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

I checked "en foi de ce qui précède" on 'DeepL Translator Linguee' and it wasn't there exactly. There I found "en foi de quoi" transalted as " in witness whereof" . I also found "Sur la foi de ce quii précède" on DeepL Translator Linguee" translated as "Based on the foregoing". In addition, I found a definition of "In witness whereof" to be clarification 'that whoever signs a legal document does so as a witness'.

Example sentence(s):
  • En foi de ce qui précède, nous avons dressé le présent acte en présence des témoins.
  • In acceptance of the preceding words, we have reviewed the current proceedings (deeds) in the presence of witnesses.
Lisa Rosengard
United Kingdom
Local time: 10:31
Native speaker of: English

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
disagree  AllegroTrans: this is not the wording used in legal documents: witnesses don't 'accept' anything, they simply are witnesses to somebody else's signature, and even a notary doesn't 'accept' - he or she simply records the wishes of the parties
11 hrs
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