Section 201. Notice of Need for Interpreter; Procurement of Certified and Otherwise Qualified Interpreters

(a) Persons required to give notice; persons to whom notice is to be given; timing of notice.—

(1) If a principal party in interest is a person with limited English proficiency or a person who is deaf or hard of hearing and is in need of an interpreter, either the principal party in interest or his or her attorney shall give notice of the need for an interpreter as soon as is practicable after learning of the need. The notice shall be made to the presiding judicial officer or the Appellate Court Prothonotary/District Court Administrator or his or her designee and contain the information required in subsection (b)(2) of this regulation.

(2) If the person with limited English proficiency or person who is deaf or hard of hearing is a witness, notice of the need for an interpreter shall be given by the party that intends to call the person as a witness as soon as is practicable after learning of the need. The notice shall be made to the presiding judicial officer or the Appellate Court Prothonotary/District Court Administrator or his or her designee and contain the information required in subsection (b)(2) of this regulation.

(3) If the person with limited English proficiency or person who is deaf or hard of hearing is a direct victim, notice of the need for an interpreter shall be given by the Commonwealth as soon as is practicable after learning of the need. The notice shall be made to the presiding judicial officer or the Appellate Court Prothonotary/District Court Administrator or his or her designee and contain the information required in subsection (b)(2) of this regulation.

(4) In addition to the foregoing persons, anyone with knowledge of a principal party in interest, witness or direct victim’s need for an interpreter may give notice of that need to the presiding judicial officer or the Appellate Court Prothonotary/District Court Administrator or his or her designee and contain the information required in subsection (b)(2) of this regulation.

(b) Form and content of notice.—

(1) Notice form.—The notice of need for an interpreter should be given on the form provided by the Court Administrator for this purpose, if practicable. If notice by way of said form is not practicable, written or oral notice may be given provided it contains the information set forth in subsection (b)(2) below.

(2) Content of notice.—The notice of need for an interpreter, whether on the form specified in subsection (b)(1) or otherwise, must contain at minimum the following information:

(i) party and case identifying information; and

(ii) for a person with limited English proficiency, the language spoken (specifying any particular dialect or regional version) and the country of origin; or

(iii) for a person who is deaf or hard of hearing, the type of sign language or method of communication used, the country of origin (if a foreign sign language is used to communicate), and a description of any educational, physical, mental or other particular condition which may limit the person’s ability to communicate.

(c) Procurement of certified or otherwise qualified interpreters.—

(1) Once the Appellate Court Prothonotary/District Court Administrator or his or her designee is made aware of the need for an interpreter, he or she shall procure a certified interpreter in the manner provided by the guidelines established by the Court Administrator for the appointment of certified interpreters.

(2) If the Appellate Court Prothonotary/District Court Administrator or his or her designee cannot procure a certified interpreter in the manner set forth in subsection (c)(1) above, he or she shall procure an otherwise qualified interpreter in the manner provided by the guidelines established by the Court Administrator for the appointment of otherwise qualified interpreters.

Comment

Subsection (a) requires that notice be given as soon as practicable after learning of the need. The fact that no specific time limit is given is in recognition of the fact that situations may arise in which significant advance notice is not feasible. Nevertheless, the party responsible for giving notice under these regulations or anyone aware of the need must notify the presiding judicial officer or Appellate Court Prothonotary/District Court Administrator or his or her designee as soon as the need for an interpreter is known so as to avoid unnecessary delay.

Subsection (b)(1) makes clear that notice on the form provided by the Court Administrator is the preferred method of providing notice of need for an interpreter. If use of the Court Administrator’s form is not practicable, other written or oral notice is acceptable provided it conveys the information set forth in subsection (b)(2).

The regulations do not require that only one person be designated by the District Court Administrator to handle requests for interpreters in the district. Different individuals can be assigned to handle different courts within the district. For example, the designee for common pleas interpreter requests may be the District Court Administrator while for cases in the magisterial district courts the special or minor courts administrator could be designated.

In the case of a deaf or hard of hearing juror, the District Court Administrator or his or her designee should follow the judicial district’s existing policies pursuant to the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), 42 U.S.C. § § 12101 et seq., to ensure proper accommodation of a deaf or hard of hearing juror. Juror summonses and/or questionnaires should advise prospective jurors to give notice of need for an accommodation prior to the date they report for jury duty.

Subsection (c)(1) requires the Appellate Court Prothonotary/District Court Administrator or his or her designee to follow the Court Administrator’s guidelines for appointing a certified interpreter and to make the necessary arrangements to secure the interpreter’s services for the judicial proceeding if one is found. If a certified interpreter cannot be found, subsection (c)(2) requires the Appellate Court Prothonotary/District Court Administrator or his or her designee to obtain an otherwise qualified interpreter in the manner provided in the Court Administrator’s guidelines. In procuring either a certified or otherwise qualified interpreter, and when the person requiring the interpreter is a person with limited English proficiency, the Appellate Court Prothonotary/District Court Administrator or his or her designee may obtain the services of an interpreter to interpret remotely subject to the limitations of § 104. In the event that neither a certified nor an otherwise qualified interpreter can be procured, the Appellate Court Prothonotary/District Court Administrator or his or her designee shall contact the Court Administrator’s office for guidance.