Code of Conduct

Preamble

Ethical Principles of Association of Translating Societies of Slovakia (hereinafter referred to as ATCSK) are issued by the Board of Directors of ATCSK in accordance with Article III.(g) of its statutes.

General provisions
Article 1
The Code of Ethics represents a set of rules of correct business in the field of translation and interpretation, the obligation of competence, responsibility and professionalism of ATCSK members towards clients and all entities in the field of translation and interpretation, and also regulates relations between ATCSK members.
Article 2
The obligation of the Code of Ethics is not just personal. It is an organisational obligation not to take a non-professional step of the ATCSK member, which would damage the status image of each other ATCSK and ATCSK as a whole.
Article 3
The Code of Ethics protects the interests of Association members vis-à-vis businesses with questionable business activities, contributes to better consumer protection.
Article 4
Acceptance of the Code of Ethics and its adherence is one of the conditions for membership of ATCSK. Only on the basis of this acceptance can the prerequisites for cooperation, education, recognition and effectiveness of ATCSK be achieved. Acceptance of the code of ethics should comply with the following principles:

CHAPTER I
Principles and principles of the Code of Ethics
1. Obligation to be educated and informed
The Code of Ethics includes provisions that require that persons, members of ATCSK, engaged in translation and interpretation can actively contribute to the formation of a positive relationship of the public to quality services and to act in a qualified manner, honestly, in accordance with good morals, statutes and law in their activities.
2. Duty to Be Honest
The Code of Ethics prohibits fraud, abuse of consumer confidence and illicit trafficking.
3. Obligation to avoid disputes with other members of ATCSK
The Code of Ethics requires members of the Association to avoid conflict with each other.
These disputes could hinder the profession and badly affect the services provided to customers.
4. Obligation to submit to ATCSK discipline
The Code of Ethics requires that in the event of any dispute between the members of ATCSK this is primarily dealt with by the ATCSK Presidency. In such a case, the parties shall be obliged to provide the Presidency with all the materials and facts required and to assist effectively in resolving the dispute.
5. Obligation of confidentiality and impartiality
The Code of Ethics requires absolute confidentiality of all acquired information and impartiality (while maintaining loyalty to the client and other ATCSK members).

6. Commitment of professionalism and efficiency

A Member ATC-SK shall carry out its business to the best of its knowledge and ability, impartially and without prejudice, so as to achieve the highest possible quality of translation. A member of ATCSK undertakes to adhere to the agreed time limit for the transmission of translation, to translate faithfully and accurately, without pointless slides and without omitting the text, to make use of all available materials (dictionaries, manuals) and to use Internet-friendly materials of a similar nature in order to achieve the most faithful final form of the document, to take all security measures to preserve the confidentiality of the content of translated documents, in particular when storing in electronic form or through mail, to convey the risks to the speeches, and not to speak to the client without comprehension, and to discuss the subject with no explanations, advice and advice, without comprehension, advice and advice, without comprehension and advice.

7. Adherence to Collegiality

The ATCSK member has a general obligation to observe the principles of collegiality and solidarity towards other ATCSK members and to speak correctly to customers, ATC-SK members as well as other interested parties.

8. Compliance with EU principles

In the exercise of his profession, the ATCSK member is obliged to apply and enforce the standard conditions and principles of the provision of translation services contained in EN 15038.

9. Working with contracts

As a general rule, an ATCSK member shall accept only such contracts that correspond to its possibilities. By accepting the contract, it assumes the obligation to provide the service professionally, properly and in a timely manner. Before accepting an order, he undertakes to critically re-evaluate the difficulty of the subject and not accept it in case of its exceptional difficulty.

The competition will be conducted by ATCSK members in an honest and honest way, without unfair practices of the agreement, they will not use databases or other means which they learn have been processed at the expense of another body of translation and interpretation.

They recognise and fully respect the rules of fair competition and commercial practices, avoiding the dissemination of false and incomplete information, in particular on their competitors as well as other entities providing translation and interpretation services.

They do not attack or otherwise discredit the products of other service providers, and do not disseminate misleading information about their own or foreign person, translation and interpretation services, their products and performances to the detriment of others.

They will respect and permanently comply with the law, in particular the laws defining the conditions for doing business and providing services in the field of translation and interpretation, the consumer protection law and the relevant provisions of the Labour Code, as well as the Commercial and Civil Code, which lay down rules of fair competition and protect the interest of the customer.

In order to protect the market from non-serious providers of translation and interpretation services, but also business partners and entrepreneurs, members of ATCSK will provide each other with information on the negative effects of such entities.

They shall ensure that the various provisions of their contractual relations are easy to understand as regards the nature, price, scope and quality of the services they undertake to provide in person and with the best knowledge and conscience. In the event of exceptional circumstances which could result in their inability to comply with their contractual obligations, they must inform the contractual partner without undue delay, cooperate constructively in negotiating redress and be prepared to provide adequate compensation to their customers. In the event of their error or guilt, they will be prepared to bear the extraordinary costs or damages incurred to the extent defined by the law.

CHAPTER II

Application of the Code.
Scope
Any natural or legal person may report violations of this Code to the Review Commission. The complaint shall be presented in writing with all reasonable grounds. The review committee shall operate primarily on the initiative of the Presidency or its President. Their task is to keep an eye on the members of the Association respecting the principles of this code.
Penalties
If the Commission detects a breach of the Code, it shall give the member in question a reasonable period of time to rectify it. In particularly serious cases, the review commission shall refer the matter to the Bureau. The latter shall be allowed to be heard by the Management Board.
Communication
The member concerned must be informed of the findings of the review committee or of the sanctioning measures. At the same time, they will be notified to all members of the Association.
Validity and amendments
The Code may at any time be amended or supplemented by the General Assembly. Consent to and adherence to the Code is a condition for the acceptance of each new member of the Association.

CHAPTER III
Final provisions
the activities of this Code shall begin on the date of its approval by the plenary of the Conference or the meeting of the members of ATCSK.
The application of the provisions of this Code is monitored and reviewed by the ATCSK Bureau, which also proposes amendments to the ATCSK Conference and amendments to this Code of Ethics.
3. Violation of the principles of this Code is considered to be a serious breach of the obligations of an ATCSK member, which are enshrined in the statutes with consequences, which are determined by the statutes of ATCSK.

This Code of Conduct was approved by the Board of Governors on 14. 12. 2006, held in Nitra. The original is deposited with the Chairman of the ATCSK.