Left to right: Carol Bereuter, Anne Carnot, Nathalie Joffre, Ségolène Busch (Deputy Secretary General), Deborah Fortain, Agnès Bousteau (Chair), Isabelle Kobayashi (Secretary General), Véronique Duchene (Vice-Chair), Eddy-Pierre Larra (Assistant Treasurer), and Valérie Vulliard (Treasurer).
By the SFT Board
2026 elections of SFT representatives
Every October, members of the Société française des traducteurs (SFT) vote to elect the representatives who will serve on its board and across the union’s 16 regional delegations the following year.
This year, two new members have joined the board: Anne Carnot and Véronique Duchene. Nathalie Joffre, an incumbent board member, was re-elected for a second term.
Unity, information, advocacy
Amid the significant challenges facing the sector in 2026, the SFT – as a national professional union – remains steadfast in its three core missions:
- Unity: Championing collective action to protect the translation and interpreting professions, counteracting the vulnerability of isolation.
- Information: Providing the clarity and information our members need to succeed in increasingly complex circumstances.
- Support: through practical initiatives advocating for and defending our industry.
Payment delays for court-certified translators-interpreters [ETIs]
In France, language professionals working within the judicial system hold a specific status awarded by a Court of Appeal: Court-Certified Translator-Interpreter [Expert traducteur interprète (ETI)].
To receive payment, ETIs must claim their fees via a French Government digital platform. However, for years this role has been marred by payment delays that, in many cases, are staggering. A bill passed by the Senate in January even proposed maximum payment terms of 180 days for these judicial services. These terms are unacceptable, inconsistent with standard payment practices and detrimental to these professionals’ working conditions.
In response, the SFT, supported by its legal translation/interpretation committee, has launched several union actions, including:
- A formal petition
- A call to action
- An awareness campaign targeting Members of Parliament, which includes a letter template to use.
The AI challenge
In February, the SFT sent an open letter to the French public authorities expressing deep concerns over the implementation of artificial intelligence (AI) across the judicial and administrative sectors.
By taking this stand, the SFT is reaffirming its commitment to quality, reliability and ethics in the translation and interpreting professions, which is in the best interests of the public and the effective functioning of French government authorities.
This year has begun with several trade union initiatives involving the SFT board, committees and volunteers, highlighting the vibrancy and collective strength of translators and interpreters across France today.