Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 17, September 10, 2024
Auxiliary Services Providers must meet certain requirements
to provide interpreting and CART services for LAS.
Providers must hold a Status I or II Court/Legal credential
and pass initial and subsequent Judicial Department background checks to be
eligible for Court/Legal assignments. Status IV providers are eligible for all
community assignments.
LAS shall review each Auxiliary Services Provider's Status I,
II, or IV designation annually based upon the rule requirements and keep an
updated Referral Resource List. Please refer to the Legal Auxiliary Services
Handbook for more information about LAS policies and procedures.
A. Qualified Interpreters
No qualified interpreter shall be categorized as a Status I
or II Court/Legal Interpreter or be placed on a Referral Resource List with the
Commission without first making an application and receiving a determination
from LAS that they are qualified under Statuses I, II, and/or IV below.
Interpreting services may be provided onsite or virtually.
Every effort will be made to provide optimal communication access.
Status I interpreters are preferred providers for all legal
and court assignments.
1. Status I:
Court/Legal Interpreter
a. Certified Deaf
Interpreters holding a current RID Certified Deaf Interpreter (CDI), BEI
Intermediary Levels IV or V, or successor certification and who have passed the
National Center for State Courts (NCSC) written exam Holders of this
certificate are recommended for a broad range of assignments where an
interpreter who is deaf or hard of hearing would be beneficial.
1) Initial Status I designation: interpreters
in this category are required to complete 65 hours of training specific to
legal interpreting and a minimum of 50 hours of mentoring pursuant to the Legal
Auxiliary Services Handbook, to attain a Status I designation. In addition,
they are required to have passed the National Center for State Courts (NCSC)
written exam.
A. Compliance: current Status I
Certified Deaf Interpreters must come into full compliance with the NCSC
written exam requirement by June 30, 2025, in order to retain the Status I
designation. Anyone who does not pass the NCSC exam by that date will be moved
to Status II. Extensions may be granted on a case-by-case basis.
B. Court/Legal Interpreters new to the
Colorado State Court System who completed the required number of mentoring
hours out-of-state must complete a Legal Auxiliary Services orientation and a
minimum of ten hours of successful teaming with Colorado Status I or II
Court/Legal Interpreters prior to being granted Status I, pursuant to the Legal
Auxiliary Services Handbook.
2) Maintenance of Status I designation:
interpreters in this category must maintain current certification and complete
2.0 (20 clock hours) Continuing Education Units (CEUs) in legal and/or
court-related topics during their CEU cycle(s), pursuant to the Legal Auxiliary
Services Handbook. The 2.0 of legal and/or court-related CEUs must be approved
as such by the certification body.
b. Certified Hearing Interpreters holding a
current Registry of Interpreters for the
Deaf (RID) Specialist Certificate: Legal (SC:L), Board for
Evaluation of Interpreters (BEI) Court Interpreter, or successor
certification
1) Initial Status I
designation: holders of a current RID Legal SC:L certification and/or BEI Court
Interpreter certification are not required to complete the Legal Auxiliary
Services legal training and mentorship program to attain a Status I
designation.
A. Court/Legal interpreters new
to the Colorado State Court System must complete a Legal Auxiliary Services
orientation and a minimum of ten hours of successful teaming with Colorado
Status I or II Court/Legal Interpreters prior to being granted Status I,
pursuant to the Legal Auxiliary Services Handbook.
2) Maintenance of Status I designation: each
SC:L or BEI Court Interpreter certification holder must maintain current
certification.
2. Status II: Court/Legal Interpreter
a. Certified Deaf Interpreters Holders of
this certificate are recommended for a broad range of assignments where an
interpreter who is deaf or hard of hearing would be beneficial.
Interpreters holding a current RID Certified Deaf Interpreter
(CDI), BEI Intermediary Levels IV OR V, or successor certification are eligible
to attain a Status I or II designation if they comply with the
following:
1) Initial Status II
designation:
A. Prerequisite: interpreters
must complete the community interpreting experience requirement set forth in
the Legal Auxiliary Services Handbook before beginning legal interpreting
training.
i. Interpreters in this category
are required to complete 65 hours of training specific to legal interpreting
and a minimum of 50 hours of mentoring pursuant to the Legal Auxiliary Services
Handbook to attain a Status II designation.
a. Compliance: current Status II interpreters
must come into full compliance with the RID or BEI certification requirement by
June 30, 2025, to retain the Status II designation. Not doing so will result in
loss of the Status II designation. Extensions may be granted on a case-by-case
basis.
ii. Interpreters
from out-of-state who are experienced in court/legal settings but are new to
the Colorado State Court System are eligible to attain a Status II designation
by demonstrating that they have sufficient experience in court/legal settings,
have completed a minimum of 65 hours of training specific to legal
interpreting, and have completed a minimum of 50 hours of mentoring. They must
complete a Legal Auxiliary Services orientation and a minimum of 20 hours of
successful teaming with current Colorado Status I and II Court/Legal
Interpreters prior to being granted Status II, pursuant to the Legal Auxiliary
Services Handbook. Exceptions may be made on a case-by-case basis.
2) Maintenance of
Status II designation: interpreters in this category must maintain current
certification and complete 4.0 (40 clock hours) of Continuing Education Units
(CEUs) in legal and/or court-related topics during their CEU cycle(s), pursuant
to the Legal Auxiliary Services Handbook. The 4.0 of legal and/or court-related
CEUs must be approved as such by the certification body.
3) Moving from Status II to Status I:
interpreters holding a current Status II designation may apply for a Status I
designation upon meeting the Status I written test requirements, pursuant to
the Legal Auxiliary Services Handbook.
b. Certified Hearing Interpreters with other
certifications
Interpreters holding a current Registry of Interpreters for
the Deaf (RID), Board for Evaluation of Interpreters (BEI) Advanced or Master,
or successor certification are eligible to attain a Status II designation if
they comply with the following:
1)
Initial Status II designation:
A.
Prerequisite: interpreters must complete the community interpreting experience
requirement set forth in the Legal Auxiliary Services Handbook before beginning
legal interpreting training.
i. Interpreters
in this category are required to complete 65 hours of training specific to
legal interpreting and a minimum of 50 hours of mentoring pursuant to the Legal
Auxiliary Services Handbook to attain a Status II designation.
ii. Interpreters from out-of-state who are
experienced in court/legal settings but are new to the Colorado State Court
System are eligible to attain a Status II designation by demonstrating that
they have sufficient experience in court/legal settings, have completed a
minimum of 65 hours of training specific to legal interpreting, and have
completed a minimum of 50 hours of mentoring. They must complete a Legal
Auxiliary Services orientation and a minimum of 20 hours of successful teaming
with current Colorado Status I and II Court/Legal Interpreters prior to being
granted Status II, pursuant to the Legal Auxiliary Services Handbook.
Exceptions may be made on a case-by-case basis.
2) Maintenance of Status II designation:
interpreters in this category must maintain current certification and complete
4.0 (40 clock hours) of Continuing Education Units (CEUs) in legal and/or
court-related topics during their CEU cycle(s), pursuant to the Legal Auxiliary
Services Handbook. The 4.0 of legal and/or court-related CEUs must be approved
as such by the certification body.
3) Moving from Status II to Status I:
interpreters holding a current Status II designation may apply for a Status I
designation upon meeting the Status I certification requirements, pursuant to
the Legal Auxiliary Services Handbook.
3. Status III: Communication Assistants
Communication Assistants may or may not have formal training or certification
but have experience with the unique communication needs of a particular deaf,
hard of hearing, or deafblind individual (for example, foreign sign languages,
home sign, deafblind-specific communications, etc.). Communication Assistants
may be assigned on a case-by-case basis and shall only work under the
supervision of a Status I or Status II Court/Legal Interpreter. All
on-the-record interpreting shall come from Status I or II Court/Legal
Interpreters
4. Status IV:
Community Interpreters Interpreters for court-ordered treatment or therapy must
hold current (a) RID certification, (b) one of the following BEI
certifications: Advanced, Master, Court Interpreter, Trilingual Advanced,
Trilingual Master, Medical Interpreter, Level IV Intermediary, or Level V
Intermediary, or (c) successor certification.
5. Non-resident court/legal interpreters: RID
certified interpreters, BEI Advanced, Master, Intermediary certified
interpreters, or successor certifications from out-of-state who are experienced
in court/legal settings but do not hold a Colorado Status I or II Court/Legal
Interpreter designation are eligible to interpret in the State Court System and
other court/legal settings for up to 14 days per calendar year without a Status
I or II designation. Exceptions to the 14-day period may be granted by LAS on a
case-by-case basis. Non-resident court/legal interpreters shall work only under
the supervision of a Status I or II Court/Legal Interpreter.
Non-resident court/legal interpreters in this category must
demonstrate that they have sufficient experience in court/legal settings and
successfully complete pre-assignment orientation and preparation with the
assigned interpreting team, pursuant to the Legal Auxiliary Services
Handbook.
6.
After-hours/weekend/holiday court and law enforcement requests: virtual
interpreting services may be provided by a pre-approved agency to law
enforcement and the Colorado State Court System in situations requiring
immediate interpreting services, pursuant to the Legal Auxiliary Services
Handbook. Interpreters must hold either:
(1)
a current RID SC:L, BEI Court Interpreter, or successor certification, or
(2) a current RID certification or
BEI Advanced, Master, or Intermediary certification, or successor certification
and have completed a minimum of 20 hours of current legal interpreting
training.
B.
CART Providers
1. A Communication Access
Realtime Translation ("CART") provider is a trained professional who provides
live, immediate captioning from speech to text for deaf, hard of hearing, and
deafblind consumers to provide communication access. The text appears on a
computer or other screen or display. The CART provider also provides
environmental cues to the consumer, such as phones ringing, laughter, door
slamming, etc. CART is also referred to as real-time captioning, and live
captioning.
2. Pursuant to the
Legal Auxiliary Services Handbook, to attain an initial Status I or II
Court/Legal credential, CART providers must:
a. Hold a current Certified Realtime
Captioner (CRC) designation, or meet each of the following criteria:
1) Have graduated from an accredited court
reporting program.
2) Have a
minimum rate of 98% accuracy at 225 words per minute for captioning
work.
3) Have two years of general
CART experience post-graduation and a minimum average of 20 hours of CART
services per week for each of the most recent two years of CART work.
Exceptions will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
b. Successfully complete a minimum of six
hands-on assignments in the State Court System, as supervised by a current
Status I or II CART Provider and approved by Legal Auxiliary Services
(LAS).
c. Complete an orientation
provided by LAS.
3. CART
Providers will be designated as:
a. Status I
if they hold a current Certified Realtime Captioner (CRC) designation and meet
the requirements listed in section 2.
Status I providers will be eligible to cover all court/legal
LAS assignments where the consumer is a party to the case.
b. Status II if they meet the requirements
listed in section 2 but do not hold a current CRC designation.
Status II providers will be eligible to cover all LAS
assignments, except trials and hearings with testimony unless approved by LAS
or the appointing authority.
c. Status IV if they meet the requirements
listed in section 2(a)(1), (2), and (3).
Status IV providers will not be eligible to cover court/legal
assignments but may cover court-ordered treatment or therapy
assignments.
4.
To maintain a Status I or II Court/Legal credential:
a. CART Providers must:
1) Maintain a current CRC designation for
Status I.
2) Complete a sufficient
number of CART assignments, as determined by LAS, within the State Court System
within the last year for Status II.
b. Attend a refresher orientation program if
requested by LAS.
5. The
purpose of CART services is to facilitate communication accessibility in a live
format.
CART providers do not provide a record of the proceedings and
will not retain or distribute CART notes or print-outs. Court reporters are
responsible for providing a verbatim record of the proceedings and persons
wanting a transcript can order an official transcript through the
courts.
6. CART services
may be provided onsite or virtually. Every effort will be made to provide
optimal communication access. Onsite cart services will be prioritized for
trials, jury duty, and hearings with testimony.
C. Cued Language Transliterators Colorado
recognizes Cued Language Transliterators who hold a Transliteration Skills
Certificate (TSC) pursuant to section
6-1-707(1)(e)(i)(a),
C.R.S., and the rules in section 27.500 . Due to a lack of Cued Language
Transliterator (CLT) providers with specific qualifications for court and legal
settings, LAS will make CLT assignments on a case-by-case basis upon
consultation with a provider that has expertise in CLT training and
practice.
