In that regard the Committee recommends the following strategic initiatives. The Judiciary should recruit and train staff to meet the needs of a culturally and linguistically diverse population. Access to the courts is limited for linguistic minorities because often qualified interpreters are not readily available. Since that Task Force report, the Judiciary has made significant strides in ensuring that court interpreters are provided when needed. The Judiciary has developed a certification program to qualify interpreters, along with guidelines to regulate freelance interpreters and operating standards for court interpreters.
Barriers still exist that block equal access to our justice system.
The recruitment and training of bilingual staff is critical to the operation of the courts. A vigorous and aggressive recruitment and hiring process to fill vacancies with bilingual staff is needed. The effort will provide the public, as users of court services, a system that is accessible, fair, and just in all aspects. As suggested by the growing population of linguistic minorities, by the possibility of conscious or subconscious discrimination, and by such events as the recent recognition of same-sex couples as eligible adoptive parents, the Judiciary must meet the concerns of an increasingly culturally diverse population. Diversity training for judges and support staff is essential and must be an ongoing and dynamic process.