Arizona Superior Court in Pima County
A court interpreter is a person who is an officer of the court that provides impartial and confidential language services to all parties in a judicial setting. A court interpreter adheres to the principles, practices, and code of ethics for court interpretation.
Interpreters who have successfully passed all the required components of the State Court Interpreter Certification Examination administered under the auspices of the AOC.
Interpreters who do not qualify as AO-certified or professionally qualified interpreters, but who can demonstrate to the court’s satisfaction the ability to interpret court proceedings from English to a designated language and from that language into English.
Effective with the implementation of the Arizona Court Interpreter Credentialing Program (ACICP) Arizona State courts are required to have current staff interpreters credentialed at the Tier 3 or Tier 4 level by June 30, 2019 pursuant Administrative Order No.2016-02.
To promote high-quality interpreter services the judiciary established the interpreter credentialing program comprised of tier levels as follow:
Tier 1 Credential: Requires demonstration of general court knowledge, an understanding of ethical conduct required by Administrative Order No.2015-98, and language skills in both English and the non-English language. Tier 1 Credential requirements must be met before an interpreter may apply for higher tier credentials.
Tiers 2, 3, and 4 Credentials: Each tier credential is demonstrated through performance on an oral interpreting examination. Performance requirements for each tier shall be established by the Administrative Office of the Court and maintained on its website.
Tier A: Established for credentialing languages for which there is no oral interpreting examination available from the National Center for State Courts.
Information regarding the Interpreter Credentialing Program can be found at www.azcourts.gov
An interpreter verbally conveys the translation of the original message into the target language after the speaker has paused.
A translator conveys in writing a document’s meaning from a source language into the target language.
An interpreter works in the oral communication mode whereas a translator works in the written mode.
Locally, Pima Community College offers programs in Translation (Spanish) and American Sign Language. The University of Arizona offers and undergraduate degree in Interpretation and Translation (UMIT, Spanish), a summer course in legal and medical interpretation (Spanish), as well as courses in American Sign Language. In addition, professional organizations such as the Arizona Court interpreters Association (ACIA) or the National Association for Judicial Interpreters and Translators periodically present workshops on specific topics in court interpretation. For additional information on these programs, see Additional Resources below.
Information regarding the Interpreter Credentialing Program can be found at www.azcourts.gov
Director of CITS
Superior Court - Ramir Evarola
(520) 724-3888
[email protected]
Juvenile Court - Sarha Beltran
(520) 724-2961
[email protected]