Language interpretation in general is a demanding, meticulous, highly specialized and exciting field, requiring great mental stamina, flexibility, and extensive general knowledge, and native fluency in the languages interpreted.

Court interpretation requires all of the above, plus an intricate knowledge of the justice system and its terminology and equivalent terms in the other target language, as well as of the ethics of interpretation in a legal setting. It also requires the ability to work under pressure.

Who uses certified court interpreters?

Courts, attorneys, law firms, insurance companies, and others who need to know that their words, as well as those of their interlocutors, are being transmitted as faithfully and as accurately as possible. Certified interpreters are used for depositions, attorney-client conferences, criminal, civil, or juvenile proceedings.

Court interpretation is a developing field, so certification does not yet exist for many languages. Interpreters may be hold other qualifications that help guarantee their abilities as court interpretetaters. Some of the more common languages for which interpreters are used in the United States judiciary are Spanish, Haitian Creole, Navajo (for all of which there exists federal certification), Arabic, Mandarin, Farsi, Hmong, ASL (American Sign Language), etc.