[…] Such misunderstandings are surprisingly common in state and local courts. Because many states and localities don’t use tested court interpreters and ignore federal rules for when interpreters are required, many criminal defendants and civil litigants with limited English skills are not equipped to navigate the complex legal system, jeopardizing their constitutional rights.
“There is ample experience and anecdotal evidence to substantiate that many [people with limited English proficiency] regularly come before the courts and are unable, without language access services, to protect or enforce their legal rights, with devastating consequences to life, liberty, family, and property interests,” the American Bar Association (ABA) said in a resolution four years ago urging courts at all levels to adopt standards for interpreter services and calling for adequate funding. More.
See: PBS NewsHour
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Local time: 07:06
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I am a Court Interpreter and it hit the nail on the head.
United States
Local time: 07:06
Romanian to English
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I start getting tired of the "certified interpreter" thing. People who write this kind of articles have in mind only Spanish interpreters. Guess what? In the USA there are over 300 spoken languages. It is true that there are about 35,000 Spanish court interpreters who h... See more
I start getting tired of the "certified interpreter" thing. People who write this kind of articles have in mind only Spanish interpreters. Guess what? In the USA there are over 300 spoken languages. It is true that there are about 35,000 Spanish court interpreters who had/have the opportunity to take a certification exam, and that there are a little more than 3,500 court interpreters for the other languages who don't have the opportunity to take a certification exam in their language pair. It is not our fault that there is no exam available. Most of us, "the others", although we are not certified, we can provide high quality court interpreting. It is the time to stop calling us "noncertified", "unprofessional" etc.
"Most states certify court interpreters, requiring that they pass a test to demonstrate their language skills. But many state certification tests aren’t as rigorous as the federal one" - Really? Where did the author get that from? Is the author aware that in the US the Federal Court Interpreter Certification Examination is offered for Spanish/English testing only? Any other non-Spanish court interpreter who claims in court to be federally certified commits perjury. There are some states that provide certification exams for Russian, Chinese, Vietnamese, Italian, French, German and a few others, but still, the vast majority is not certified. Are we worthless? For the last 15 years I have been interpreting in federal courts all over the country and not only I did not receive a single complaint, but I was asked to come again and again travelling hundreds of miles.
I think that it is the time to stop with this nonsense.
Lee ▲ Collapse
United States
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As to the Federal Court, you are right. Only credentials and background check is required, and being a state interpreter helps. They do not commit perjury though, those that say that they are certified by the Federal Co... See more
As to the Federal Court, you are right. Only credentials and background check is required, and being a state interpreter helps. They do not commit perjury though, those that say that they are certified by the Federal Court, since thy do not testify under oath, I guess. Some may state it on their resumes. They just slightly misrepresent the status quo. ▲ Collapse
United States
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I agree with you. As I mentioned in my first post, there are many states that provide exams for some languages and these interpreters are OK if they state that they are certified, but only in state courts, not in federal court. There is a distinction between them.
I also agree with th... See more
I agree with you. As I mentioned in my first post, there are many states that provide exams for some languages and these interpreters are OK if they state that they are certified, but only in state courts, not in federal court. There is a distinction between them.
I also agree with the terms "approved", "tested", "skilled" etc, but let's get rid of the "noncertified = nonprofessional"
The Federal Certification Exam is a very tough exam and the passing rate, if I am not mistaken, is about 9%!
Lee
[Edited at 2016-08-28 13:28 GMT]
[Edited at 2016-08-28 20:13 GMT] ▲ Collapse
United States
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Although it was written in a blog, the Jenner sisters are well known and respected court interpreters.
Enjoy the article: http://translationtimes.blogspot.com/2013/10/the-results-federal-court-interpreting.html
Thailand
Local time: 18:06
There are various serious cases happening with court cases in Thailand without hiring a proper court interpreter. Thus, the Southeast Asian Association of Professional Translators and Interpreters (https://www.sea-proti.com/) was established to empower court and professional interpreters.
Thanks for sharing about the using of the court interpreters. I am sure I will want to hear some more.
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