Judiciary Interpreter/Translator Job Description

Judiciary Interpreter/Translator Job Profile and Description

Court hearings and trials that involve event witnesses who are migrants and expert witness from other lands who can barely speak or understand American English require a court appointed Judiciary Interpreter. The position may be a part time job in some localities that can be filled up by freelance interpreters or are contracted from language schools.  The work involve translating for the court and for the witness, the languages of each.

Judiciary Interpreter/Translator Duties and Responsibilities

• Coordinate with the court clerk on the schedules of arraignment and appearances required.
• Translate into American English affidavits, prepared statements and testimonies of witnesses written in the other language.
• Translate messages simultaneously or consecutively into specified languages, orally, maintaining message content, context, and style as much as possible.
• Translate in real-time during court testimonial depositions and trials.
• Appear in court hearings and trials to assist migrant witness or experts in delivering testimonies by translating their language for the court and vice verse in English.
• Follow ethical codes that protect the confidentiality of information.
• Proofread, edit, and correct or revise translated materials.
• Listen to speakers’ statements to determine contextual meanings and to prepare translations, using electronic audio systems as necessary.

Judiciary Interpreter/Translator Skills and Specifications

• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in a second major language

Judiciary Interpreter/Translator Education

Interpreters need only to be fluent in English and at least one more major language regardless of education but most are BA/BS degree holders.

Judiciary Interpreter/Translator Salary

The median annual salary of Interpreters and Translators was $38,900 in 2008. The middle 50% earned between $29,000 and $52,300 with the bottom 10% getting less than $22,200 while the top 10% got about $69,200. Individuals classified as language specialists in the Federal Government earned an average of $79,900 annually in 2009.