Translation and interpreting services in Memphis

Language access rules in Tennessee

Court interpreter program

Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC), which by statute creates, maintains, and posts on its website a registry of persons credentialed as court interpreters of spoken foreign languages under Tennessee Supreme Court rules; court-appointed foreign language interpreters submit their invoices for compensation to the AOC.

Court-certified languages

Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 42 sorts court interpreters into three tiers: certified, registered, and non-credentialed. Anyone seeking to become a credentialed court interpreter for spoken foreign languages must supply fingerprints and pass a TBI/FBI criminal history check. For deaf parties, a qualified interpreter is one certified by the National Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf or the Tennessee Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf, with Legal Skills or Comprehensive Skills certificate holders sought first.

The rule

Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 42 governs the appointment of foreign language interpreters; under Rule 42, Section 3(f), a court must appoint a certified court interpreter if one is reasonably available, and if it appoints a registered or non-credentialed interpreter it must summarize its efforts to obtain a certified or registered interpreter. T.C.A. 24-1-211 (formerly 24-1-103) requires the court to appoint a qualified sign language interpreter whenever a deaf person is a complainant, defendant, or witness in any case in law or equity or before a grand jury, with the fee paid from general county funds.

Interpreters for deaf persons in agency proceedings

T.C.A. 24-1-211 requires any state or local department, board, commission, agency, or licensing authority to appoint a qualified interpreter when a deaf person is a principal party of interest, and the appointing authority pays the fee from its own funds.

Interpreters for deaf arrestees

When a deaf person is arrested for an alleged violation of Tennessee criminal law, the arresting officers must procure a qualified interpreter for interrogation, and no statement taken before the interpreter is present is admissible in court (T.C.A. 24-1-211(b)(3)).

Court interpreter background checks

T.C.A. 16-3-813 requires every applicant for credentialing as a spoken foreign language court interpreter to submit a fingerprint sample and a criminal history records check, with the fees paid by the applicant.

Official language

T.C.A. 4-1-404 (1984) makes English the official and legal language of Tennessee and requires all communications and publications, including ballots, produced by governmental entities in Tennessee to be in English.

Sign language interpreter standards

T.C.A. 71-4-2104 directs the executive director of the Tennessee Council for the Deaf, Deaf-Blind, and Hard of Hearing to develop a strategy to create minimum standards for all sign language interpreters in Tennessee and to promote interpreter training.