Ohio Supreme Court Interpreters

The Ohio Supreme Court is adopting a new Rule of Superintendence for interpreters which would require courts to hire certified foreign or sign language interpreters to ensure the "meaningful participation" of deaf and limited English proficient individuals in court proceedings. Public comment on the new rule are now being entertained, but need to be received by Feb. 23 and should be addressed to:

Bruno Romero, Interpreter Services Program manager
Supreme Court of Ohio
65 S. Front St., Sixth Floor
Columbus, Ohio 43215 or e-mailed to Bruno.Romero@sc.ohio.gov

The Court's Interpreter Services Program provides technical assistance, training, and learning opportunities for the courts, interpreters, and other important stakeholders on the proper role and use of interpreters in legal proceedings. The Interpreter Services Program also assists courts in the state of Ohio in developing policies, procedures, standards, and mechanisms to provide linguistic minorities and deaf and hard of hearing communities equal access to the courts.

Certification of court interpreters began last year when rules regarding certification of foreign language and sign language interpreters used by Ohio courts were adopted. ( Here )