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Legal services
organizations and public interest law offices need to develop policies
and protocols to ensure quality legal
services are provided to limited English proficient clients.
Language Services for LEP Clients
The increase both in the foreign-born
population and in the number of geographic areas where immigrants
reside has made the issue relevant for many more programs than in
the past. At the same time the increasing understanding of language
access as a civil rights issue is causing legal aid programs to
examine their own practices before demanding linguistic access to
other government services for their clients. Taken from
this article, available in
the resources below.
Assessing the Quality of
Legal Assistance to LEP Individuals
Quick Indicators of
Basic Language Access Deficiencies:
- The program
encourages relatives or friends to interpret for clients.
- The intake
database lacks a mandatory data field for the client’s primary
language.
- No formal
arrangements are in place to obtain professional interpreters.
- Neither bilingual
nor monolingual staff have been trained on interpreting
techniques.
- No articulated
policy on delivering services to LEP clients exists.
- Case handlers
send non-translated letters (or no letters at all) to clients who
don’t read English (or Spanish).
Taken from
this article
available in the resources below.
National
Resources
LSC Resources
Legal Services Language Access Policies
Other Resources
Guides and Manuals: Legal
Terms in Spanish and English
Other
Articles and Resources
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Legal Help for Speakers of Other
Languages: Three Ethical Traps, Paul M. Uyehara, 2007, NLADA
Cornerstone (PDF)
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Title VI, Limited English Proficiency
and the Public Lawyer, Bruce L. Adelson, 2007 ABA Public
Lawyer (PDF)
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Tips for Legal Providers on Using an Interpreter
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Making Legal Services Accessible to LEP Clients
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Opening Our Doors to Language-Minority
Clients, Paul M. Uyehara Language Access Project of Community
Legal Services, Philadelphia
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Serving Limited English Proficient
Clients Through Technology, Legal Services National
Technology Assistance Project (NTAP)
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Things to Consider when Designing a
Linguistically and Culturally Sensitive Intake System, LSC
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Interpretation and Translation Resources
for the Criminal Justice System
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