The topic of this paper is the translation of English legal texts into German. Chapters 1 and 2 show that the legal system, legal thinking and legal language are closely related. English legal texts are influenced by the common law, its history and its legal thinking. The wordiness of legal English contrasts with the more concise legal language in German. Chapter 3 discusses translation problems in contracts, bylaws and judgments. Text samples from contracts show how the translator can use creativity to produce a readable target text and still guarantee accuracy. Basic terms of company law and their possible translations illustrate how the translator can deal with terminological incongruency. The need for the translator to understand judicial argumentation is demonstrated by text samples from judgments (summary of arguments presented by the parties, citation of precedents, polysemous expressions).