Corpus-based Translation Studies (CTS) is now recognised as a major paradigm informing a wide array of studies in the discipline. Recent events such as the Research Models in Translation Studies conference held at UMIST in 2000 and the 2001 EST Congress in Copenhagen have been dominated by panels and workshops devoted to corpus-based translation research.

What motivates this growing interest in the use of corpora in translation research? Does corpus-based research represent a major departure from previous, well-established paradigms? Or does it simply involve the application of modern technology on the basis of the same assumptions and theoretical frameworks that have informed the discipline for several decades? Is the use of technology likely to allow us to refine our research techniques or will it simply encourage more number-crunching and superficial quantitative analyses? Are corpora creating opportunities for more reliable and 'objective' research or are they widening the gap between dominant and minoritised languages and cultures? Can they be effectively used to challenge rather than bolster dominant languages and dominant research paradigms?

It is perhaps time to reassess our positions and consider ways in which corpora may be used to develop novel and challenging perspectives in the discipline, as well as ways in which they may support research outside the mainstream hegemonic research cultures. The conference aims to create a platform for critical debate about key issues in corpus-based studies of translation, interrogating their underlying assumptions, and offering an opportunity for discussing potential future developments in the field.