Translation and interpreting services in Scarborough

Language access rules in Maine

Court interpreter program

Maine Judicial Branch, Administrative Office of the Courts, whose Communication Access Specialist takes applications for the court interpreter roster; under Administrative Order JB-06-3, court clerks arrange interpreter or translator services when a judge, litigant, or attorney requests them.

Court-certified languages

Rather than certifying spoken-language interpreters by language, Maine places Rostered Court Interpreters in three tiers, from Tier I (80% on the NCSC written English exam, an ACTFL Advanced-Mid oral proficiency rating, a background check, and orientation) to Tier III (federal court certification or passing all three NCSC oral exam sections). American Sign Language interpreters must be licensed in Maine and hold national RID certification.

The rule

Supreme Judicial Court Administrative Order JB-06-3 (A. 3-22, effective March 11, 2022) requires the state courts to provide an interpreter at the State's expense to every limited English proficient party, witness, or parent of a minor in a juvenile matter in all court proceedings, and to victims when they address the court; 5 M.R.S. § 48-A requires a qualified legal interpreter or CART provider for deaf and hard of hearing people in court and agency proceedings.

Scope of court interpreting

Under Administrative Order JB-06-3, all court proceedings covered at state expense include case management conferences, judicially assisted mediations, arraignments, competency hearings, jury selection, trials, sentencing, appellate arguments, and grand jury proceedings, and clerks must use an in-person or telephone interpreter for limited English proficient people at the clerk's window.

Deaf people in agency and court proceedings

5 M.R.S. § 48-A requires the presiding officer of any agency or court proceeding affecting a deaf, hard of hearing, or late-deafened person's personal or property interest to appoint a qualified legal interpreter or CART provider, and makes the agency or court responsible for compliance.

Licensed ASL interpreters

32 M.R.S. § 1525 bars anyone from providing interpreting services for compensation without a Maine license, including video-based interpreting when a participant is physically in Maine, unless an exemption under § 1525-A applies.

Court ASL interpreter qualifications

Administrative Order JB-06-3 lets an ASL interpreter who is Maine-licensed and RID-certified interpret in court if the interpreter also meets set combinations of education, legal interpreting or mentoring hours (50 to 100), and formal legal training (30 to 70 hours).

Languages the courts are recruiting

The Maine Judicial Branch lists an ongoing need for interpreters in 41 languages, including Acholi, Arabic, Dari, Dinka, Farsi, Haitian Creole, Kirundi, Lingala, Maay Maay, Pashto, Portuguese, Somali, Swahili, Tigrinya, and Vietnamese.

Refugee program

The Office of Maine Refugee Services, a department of Catholic Charities Maine, is designated by the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement to administer Maine's state refugee resettlement program, funding job readiness, case management, and English language training.

Office of New Americans

5 M.R.S. § 3110, enacted by Public Law 2023, chapter 643, established the Office of New Americans within the Office of Policy Innovation and the Future to improve the economic and civic integration of immigrants, with activities that may include expanding access to English language learning programs.