Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 92 Part 2.djvu/760

 92 STAT. 2040

PUBLIC LAW 95-539—OCT. 28, 1978

Public Law 95-539 95th Congress An Act Oct. 28, 1978 [S. 1315]

Court Interpreters Act. 28 USC 1 note. 28 USC 1827.

Annual report.

Fee schedule.

To provide more effectively for the use of interpreters in courts of the United States, and for other purposes. Be it enacted 'by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That this Act may be cited as the "Court Interpreters Act". SEC. 2. (a) Chapter 119 of title 28, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end thereof the following new sections: "§ 1827. Interpreters in courts of the United States " (a) The Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts shall establish a program to facilitate the use of interpreters in courts of the United States. " (b) The Director shall prescribe, determine, and certify the qualifications of persons who may serve as certified interpreters in courts of the United States in bilingual proceedings and proceedings involving the hearing impaired (whether or not also speech impaired), and in so doing, the Director shall consider the education, training, and experience of those persons. The Director shall maintain a current master list of all interpreters certified by the Director and shall report annually on the frequency of requests for, and the use and effectiveness of, interpreters. The Director shall prescribe a schedule of fees for services rendered by interpreters. " (c) Each United States district court shall maintain on file in the office of the clerk of court a list of all persons who have been certified as interpreters, including bilingual interpreters and oral or manual interpreters for the hearing impaired (whether or not also speech impaired), by the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts in accordance with the certification program established pursuant to subsection (b) of this section. "(d) The presiding judicial officer, with the assistance of the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts, shall utilize the services of the most available certified interpreter, or when no certified interpreter is reasonably available, as determined by the presiding judicial officer, the services of an otherwise competent interpreter, in any criminal or civil action initiated by the United States in a United States district court (including a petition for a writ of habeas corpus initiated in the name of the United States by a relator), if the presiding judicial officer determines on such officer's own motion or on the motion of a party that such party (including a defendant in a criminal case), or a witness who may present testimony in such action— " (1) speaks only or primarily a language other than the English language;or " (2) suffers from a hearing impairment (whether or not suffering also from a speech impairment) so as to inhibit such party's comprehension of the proceedings or communication with counsel or the presiding judicial officer, or so as to inhibit such witness' comprehension of questions and the presentation of such testimony.

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