Pennsylvania Bar Association 

Resolution on Pennsylvania Court Interpreters

Adopted by House of Delegates, May 1994

Whereas, Pennsylvania has no system to regulate the quality of interpreters used in its courts; and

Whereas, the quality of interpretation is vital to the rights of limited English proficiency litigants in Pennsylvania courts; and

Whereas, the predominantly monolingual trial judges and attorneys in Pennsylvania are ill-equipped to monitor the quality of court interpretation; and

Whereas, the use of interpreters has grown dramatically in the last 10 years with the greater diversity in Pennsylvania's population; and

Whereas, the vendors who supply interpreters to the courts do not test for linguistic competency; and

Whereas, the Court Interpreters Act of 1978 only certifies federal Court interpreters in three languages, Spanish, Haitian Creole and Navajo:

Therefore, Be it Resolved that the Pennsylvania Bar Association supports the institution of an independent court-based program to test and certify the linguistic competency of interpreters used in Pennsylvania courts.

Therefore, Be it Resolved that the Pennsylvania Bar Association authorizes its president to take all necessary steps to institute an interpreter certification program in the Pennsylvania courts.

Therefore, Be it Resolved that the Pennsylvania Bar Association authorizes its president to take all necessary steps to expand the list of languages for which certification will be available under the Court Interpreters Act of 1978.

Therefore, Be it Resolved that the Pennsylvania Bar Association authorizes its president to take all necessary steps to urge rule changes in the courts of Pennsylvania to compel the use of audio recording equipment whenever an interpreter’s services are used in order to ensure litigants and the courts an opportunity to verify the accuracy of interpretation.